fietsbob

Oregon Coast Bike Route

Help ODOT make a better
Oregon Coast Bike Route.

Touring forum went way off topic (cabin fever side effect), maybe people who live around here have some actual suggestions ..

BritishV8

I haven't ridden any of the coast route yet, so I don't feel very qualified... but to help get this thread rolling:


The ODOT site shows one "solution" I adamantly don't support. A photo of a sidewalk is captioned "Shared bike and walking path - People on bikes and on foot could share a wide sidewalk or path."


That's an absolutely terrible, dangerous idea for all concerned:

• At every driveway and at every intersection, bikes will be crossing at significant speed where motorists aren't looking for them.
  
• If cyclists are expected to slow to the speed of a pedestrian at every driveway and intersection, the ride will be insufferable.
  
• It's actually incredibly safer all-around for cyclists to travel in marked bike lanes adjacent to automobile lanes but without barriers such as curbs, pylons, etc., because barriers give a false sense of safety, ironically making everyone less safe.
  
• As a commuter in Portland, where every sort of bike lane exists, I frequently see cases of barriers causing poor bike lane maintenance. For example, a long row of plastic stanchions with reflectors along N. Greeley St block street sweepers from clearing debris, snowplows from clearing snow, etc. (Incidentally, the stanchions also make it perilous for cyclists to cross the southbound traffic lane so they can utilize the bike-route-marked cloverleaf lane onto Going St. at Swan Island.)
  
• Furthermore, when sharing lanes with pedestrians, cyclists will be overtaking them at unsafe speed differentials. It's perilous to get around pedestrian families with children, leashed pets, walkers distracted by phones or music, etc.
  

Frankly though, the coast route doesn't appeal to me because there's just too much car traffic and noise. Instead, I've been riding quiet roads like Oregon 202 (from Mist to Astoria) that quietly take me through the forest to the coast.