Ben Keith

@benlk

Bike advocate and urbanist, North Linden Area Commissioner + Zoning Cmte Chair. He. Trains pls. Senior Web Engineer at Fueled. DMs checked intermittently.

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Ben Keith@benlk· Jul 13

I don't drive much, but this is the second time I've received traffic alerts in Columbus via the Wireless Emergency Alerts system.

Screenshot of the Wireless Emergency Alerts system, a message from now: I-70 is closed in the Westbound direction from MM 109 (-270) to MM 101 (1-71) due to a crash. This closure could last several hours.

Ben Keith@benlk· Jul 10

The weird transition zone has been completely repainted, and plastic bollards installed!

Where before there was a gradually-narrowing parking lane on the right that became too narrow to park in, leading drivers to park in the gradually-widening bike lane, now there is a constant-width parking lane separated from the constant-width bike lane by a constant-width buffer with plastic bollards at 10' intervals. At the intersection with Iuka, the parking lane goes away and the bike lane steps to the left to allow a curb left-turn lane.

Ben Keith@benlk· Jul 6

He's just as bad as the ISB!

In S1E4 of Andor, Dedra Meero stands next to a hip-high stack of datapads.

Ben Keith@benlk· Jul 2

With the exception of this one weird transition zone at Iuka, last night there were no cars parked in the 4th Street bike lane lane from 17th to Hudson.

The bike lane is wider than a parking lane in the foreground, at about 12 feet wide, with a 3-foot painted buffer, and a 5-foot parking lane. Up ahead, the lane markings change to have the parking/turn lane next to the curb, with no door-zone buffer, a 5-foot bike lane, a 3- or 4-foot buffer, and then the street-side parking lane tapers down to nothing as it approaches Iuka Avenue.

Ben Keith@benlk· Jul 2

edit of the "miette" tweet by Patricia Lockwood:

me, dribbling miette with the side of my foot: miette move out of the way please so I don't trip on you

miette, her eyes enormous: you KICK miette? you kick her body like the football? oh! oh! gaol for mother! gaol for mother for One Thousand Point!!!!!

Ben Keith@benlk· Jun 23

Forward that response and your confusion to bikeways@columbus.gov, because whomever responded to that ticket clearly didn't get the memo about the new traffic pattern.

Photo of the new bidirectional bike boulevard markings on Summit Street north of Hudson. The road is otherwise one-way.

Ben Keith@benlk· Jun 23

Here's what the new North 4th Street bike lane looked like yesterday, from 17th to Tompkins, in a 5x speed timelapse.

Ben Keith@benlk· Jun 21

You can watch progress on @columbusdps.bsky.social ' new parking-protected bike lane in real time using traffic cameras. For example, at www.ohgo.com/columbus?lt=... , there are currently 5 cars parked in the new bike lane.

A City of Columbus camera named "Chittenden Av at Fourth St". On 2026/06/21 at 10:46:48, the camera shows sunny conditions. Fourth Street is a northbound one-way arterial road with, from left to right: a wide one-way bike lane, a painted buffer, a parking lane that is as wide as the bike lane, two travel lanes, and another parking lane, all northbound. On the right-hand parking lane, there are a number of cars parked legally. On the left-hand parking lane, there are no cars parked. In the left-hand bike lane, there are 5 cars parked.

Ben Keith@benlk· Jun 20

Arnold has been decked out.

The Arnold Schwarzenegger statue at the Columbus Convention Center wears a black tee shirt with a rainbow on the chest, and has a crepe-paper skirt in pansexual flag colors.

Ben Keith@benlk· Jun 20

The first float in Stonewall Columbus' Pride parade is Columbus Police Department's "Commercial Enforcement" truck, acting as a pace car.

Truck 659, a Ford pickup with an XL cab, bed delete, and cargo storage lockers on the back, rolls past High and Spruce, flanked by bike police.

Ben Keith@benlk· Jun 6

That right turn needs to accommodate 40' buses, but it's already been closed in a bit with paint and flex-posts, so apart from moving the curb (and the storm drain), what else could they do? - concrete island at the head of the turn lane - bump-out on east side - lane-keeping paint

Current (2023) aerial imagery of the intersection

Modified intersection design: Crosswalks are now painted with parallel-bar markings. Bike lane has green paint and the bike-lane stop bar has been moved closer to the crosswalk. The current painted curb extension on the west and east sides of the intersection are filled in with concrete curb extensions. Lane-keeping paint for traffic headed south or turning south onto Summit has been added.

Ben Keith@benlk· Jun 6

Dear Driver, The parking lane is entirely empty. Why did you choose to park your SUV in the bike lane? Sincerely, Confused in Columbus

A recent-model Range Rover is parked in the bidirectional bike lane on Summit Street at Hudson Street.

Ben Keith@benlk· Jun 5

Those are some really weird lots. The sidewalk might cross an area that's functionally equivalent to their back yard?

The houses with the long sidewalks over deep yards appear to be situated on an island between two roads. The houses line up in the middle of the island, with driveways and garages on one side. On the other side, the sidewalks stretch across what would be a generous backyard to reach the other road.

Ben Keith@benlk· Jun 5

The City of Columbus' Smart Columbus website at smart\.columbus\.gov appears to have been hacked; it's serving content-farm slop now.

A screenshot of a website claiming to be "Smart Columbus Insights News", with headlines like "Smart Insights: Visa Denied At The Border? Here's What To Do", "Urban Vision: Top IIFlow Meter Suppliers in Bahrain", "Ipseisportingse Hill Elementary: A Closer Look in Focus", "Philippe De Villiers on CNews: Replay And Key Insights", "Key Insight: IFPGA Image Processing: Projects & Applications", and "IOSCP E-Pesto: Your Guide to TIN, NSDL Refund Status".

Ben Keith@benlk· May 28

Interesting new twist: back in 2021, there was a "LEFT TURN ONLY" sign on the same post as the stop sign.

Google Street View screenshot at 418 East Tompkins St, Columbus, Ohio, from September 2021, looking west on Tompkins. Facing drivers headed west, there are two sign posts. The one on the left of the roadway has a "LEFT TURN ONLY" sign twisted away from the road. The one on the right has a STOP sign, a "ONE WAY (Left) EXCEPT BIKE LANE" sign, and a graffitied "LEFT TURN ONLY" sign.

Ben Keith@benlk· May 28

Another day, another driver disobeying the "LEFT TURN ONLY" signs on Tompkins at Summit.

Ben Keith@benlk· May 22

This is a cat checkpoint; relinquish your most recent cat picture on your phone. 🐈 A pair I saw while out yesterday on a walk.

Two tabby cats sit on the bottom step of a stoop. The bigger one is black and grey with a hint of brown at breast and nose; the smaller one is black and tan. They're sitting oriented the same direction, both looking at the camera.

Ben Keith@benlk· May 20

New Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon crosswalk lights on Hudson Street!

A wet grey day, but at the intersection of Hudson Street and Audubon Road, there are two new poles with crosswalk signs and beg-button-triggered flashing lights to help pedestrians cross Hudson's three lanes.

Ben Keith@benlk· May 17

The newest Murderbot is very relatable.

Book excerpt: "... and then I made the mistake of getting optimistic. Then we got to a border and found the only option was to rent a ground vehicle and drive across ywo unaffiliated zones because both had zero mass transport. Zero. Mass. Transport. This is supposed to be a civilized space station, in space, why the fuck am I driving a ground vehicle to get to a fucking port on a fucking—
(Emotion check: I am absolutely fine.)"

Ben Keith@benlk· May 15

The gas station on Hudson Street just east of I-71 is charging $46.9 and 9/10 for a gallon of gas, according to this side of their sign.

Regular gas, from Amoco: four six point nine and nine-tenths. Why the sign can even display a decimal point there, I don't know.

Ben Keith@benlk· May 14

Sometimes your GoPro mount breaks. Fortunately, thanks to 3d printers, it's easy to print off another one.

Ben Keith@benlk· May 13

Then there was Hiawatha Park Drive, which seems to be prepping for repaving, but was navigable.

Seen from Velma Drive, the northbound segment of Hiawatha Park Drive is closed off with cones, three "Road Closed" barricades, one "Do Not Enter" barricade, and one dumptruck-load of gravel. The sidewalk on the other side of the road is open, though!

Ben Keith@benlk· May 13

How to get to John Glenn Port Columbus International Airport by bicycle, according to Google Maps: 1. Take the Alum Creek Trail to Johnstown Road 2. Ride to the intersection of Stelzer and International Gateway 3. ¿¿¿ teleport to the terminal building ??? 4. Arrive!

Google Maps screenshot of bicycle routings from Hudson Street to Port Columbus. Three options are shown. One takes Mock Road to the Alum Creek Trail, then Johnstown Road to 17th Avenue to Stelzer road. The second route takes Joyce Avenue south to 12th Avenue, Woodward Avenue, and 5th Avenue, before taking the Johnstown route. A third route takes Joyce avenue north to Agler Road to Stelzer Road. All three routes stop at the intersection of Stelzer and International Gateway, where a dotted line leaps across the map to the terminal building. No route actually suggests riding on International Gateway.

Ben Keith@benlk· May 12

Join me on a ride from Linden Community Center at 8 a.m. to the free bagels and coffee at Front and Gay! Meet up with @columbusdps.bsky.social , @visionzerocbus.bsky.social , @transitcolumbus.org , and maybe even some City Council folks!

Google Maps route screenshot: From the Linden Community center, south to Hudson, west on Hudson to Hiawatha Park Place, south to Velma Drive, through the Fairgrounds to 17th Avenue, west on 17th to Summit Street, south on Summit to 1st Avenue, west on 1st to Park Drive, south on Park becoming Front Street to Front and Gay. Estimated trip time 30 minutes.

Ben Keith@benlk· May 9

If the Boring Company were serious, their system would look a lot more like this.

The tunnels beneath Washington Dulles International Airport, where the CrystalMover Automated Leople Mover rubber-tired train runs with third-rail power and guidance. This shows a long straightaway with a switch going off to the right, and at the previous station on the line, another train which looks disturbingly like a heavy truck coming down the tunnel.

Ben Keith@benlk· May 5

A good morning to bike to the polling place. 7 minutes each way, 5 minutes to park, cast, chat with folks, and return.

On a green shirt, a round white sticker with the outline of the state of Ohio, inside which is written "Ohio Voted". The I and VOTED are in red, which presumably is meant to be read something like "I voted", but which actually looks like "I Ohio Voted" or "Ohio I Voted". Maybe "I Voted Ohio".

Ben Keith@benlk· Apr 28

Columbus really needs to investigate bringing back traffic-light ticket cameras.

Ben Keith@benlk· Apr 27

That driver does misbehave elsewhere! Here you see the same Mercedes EQE-350 with the same Ohio license plate #KSF7984 just minutes earlier, parked in the bike lane at Summit and Hudson:

A silver Mercedes-Benz EQE-350 is seen parked diagonally across the parking lane at Summit and Hudson, with its nose in the bike lane. It has no front license plate, thanks to Ohio's removal of that requirement. A middle-aged man is seen opening the driver's door, carrying a paper bag. He is a rotund man with light skin, a close-cropped dense black beard, and thinning close-cropped black hair, wearing a black t-shirt, black pants, and black shoes. This image is a photograph of a computer screen, showing that a video with the filename GHO32291.MP4 has been opened in VLC.

The rear of a silver Mercedes-Benz EQE-350 is shown. It is parked diagonally in the no-parking zone at the head of the Summit Street bike lane. A diagonal bar paint line is clearly visible underneath the car's rear doors. The car's license plate is Ohio KSF-7984, with a tinted license plate cover.

Ben Keith@benlk· Apr 27

You might wonder: does this driver only misbehave at intersections?

Ben Keith@benlk· Apr 26

To prevent the bolt -down bollards from getting damaged, the state fairgrounds have erected some traffic cones. This seems like a lack of faith in the bollards' ability to control drivers.