Trying to be bike friendly?
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Trying to be bike friendly?
I give them credit for trying, but my question is "where?"
#2
Tortoise Wins by a Hare!
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Looney Tunes, IL
Posts: 7,398
Bikes: Wabi Special FG, Raleigh Roper, Nashbar AL-1, Miyata One Hundred, '70 Schwinn Lemonator and More!!
Mentioned: 22 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1549 Post(s)
Liked 941 Times
in
504 Posts
I see some faint lines on the sidewalk with the post and garbage can within it. Maybe that's it.
#3
Disco Infiltrator
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Folsom CA
Posts: 13,446
Bikes: Stormchaser, Paramount, Tilt, Samba tandem
Mentioned: 72 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3126 Post(s)
Liked 2,105 Times
in
1,369 Posts
I have my suspicions
Likes For Darth Lefty:
#4
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Colorado Springs, CO
Posts: 5,973
Bikes: 2015 Charge Plug, 2007 Dahon Boardwalk, 1997 Nishiki Blazer, 1984 Nishiki International, 2006 Felt F65, 1989 Dahon Getaway V
Mentioned: 54 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1364 Post(s)
Liked 1,677 Times
in
827 Posts
https://www.google.com/maps/place/62...!4d-78.6485163
The google street view is from 2018 and shows no possible lines on the street or the sidewalk...so it's still confusing.
The google street view is from 2018 and shows no possible lines on the street or the sidewalk...so it's still confusing.
Last edited by BobbyG; 01-21-20 at 02:58 PM.
#5
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Layton, UT
Posts: 1,606
Bikes: 2011 Bent TW Elegance 2014 Carbon Strada Velomobile
Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 626 Post(s)
Liked 701 Times
in
418 Posts
Often signs like that are for drivers to be aware, and it's a shared lane. In most areas these days, they will often add 'sharrows' as well as signs that say "Bike may use full lane". That's what we have here, especially around the military base where traffic gets bad and there's a lot of people that commute by bike to the base.
#6
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: northern Deep South
Posts: 8,904
Bikes: Fuji Touring, Novara Randonee
Mentioned: 36 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2604 Post(s)
Liked 1,933 Times
in
1,213 Posts
I expect a bike lane will have something to delineate it from the rest of the street or sidewalk. Sharrows or BMUFL signs are for streets without a bike lane (that someone thinks need to be marked). There's a new street in my fair city with a bike lane sign. I think they intend for cyclists to ride on the sidewalk, but every time I look it seems like I'd ride up the handicap ramp into a small tree, so I just ride on the street. If the nag of a cop ever stops me, I'll explain that I've been riding that street since before they put up the sign, I'm just waiting on the paint truck to add the stripe.
Likes For Kedosto:
#8
aka Tom Reingold
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: New York, NY, and High Falls, NY, USA
Posts: 40,503
Bikes: 1962 Rudge Sports, 1971 Raleigh Super Course, 1971 Raleigh Pro Track, 1974 Raleigh International, 1975 Viscount Fixie, 1982 McLean, 1996 Lemond (Ti), 2002 Burley Zydeco tandem
Mentioned: 511 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 7348 Post(s)
Liked 2,469 Times
in
1,435 Posts
That's a cute town in any case.
__________________
Tom Reingold, tom@noglider.com
New York City and High Falls, NY
Blogs: The Experienced Cyclist; noglider's ride blog
“When man invented the bicycle he reached the peak of his attainments.” — Elizabeth West, US author
Please email me rather than PM'ing me. Thanks.
Tom Reingold, tom@noglider.com
New York City and High Falls, NY
Blogs: The Experienced Cyclist; noglider's ride blog
“When man invented the bicycle he reached the peak of his attainments.” — Elizabeth West, US author
Please email me rather than PM'ing me. Thanks.
#9
Junior Member
Join Date: Jan 2020
Posts: 17
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 2 Times
in
2 Posts
Lol. It happened all the time. Also, traffic lights in many intersections don't trigger for cyclista so if there are no cars around u have to go to the sidewalk and press the cross street button like a pedestrian
Likes For Kedosto:
#11
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Often signs like that are for drivers to be aware, and it's a shared lane. In most areas these days, they will often add 'sharrows' as well as signs that say "Bike may use full lane". That's what we have here, especially around the military base where traffic gets bad and there's a lot of people that commute by bike to the base.
These signs were part of a grant funded project to rehab the downtown sidewalks. Back in 2018 I suggested adding some bike racks to the downtown because there is nowhere to secure your bike. I was told they were looking into the rehab being bike friendly, but were getting resistance from some business owners. I also suggested that they work with the LBS when it came time to design it. I was told that the grant administrators have already done all of the work at the state level. This is what we ended up with - one bike rack & some confusing signs. Once again, I view it as a step forward, regardless of how small that step may be.
The trees were a non-native species and were infected with some disease. New native trees have been planted.
Last edited by medic75; 01-27-20 at 01:03 PM.
Likes For medic75:
#12
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Madison, WI USA
Posts: 6,154
Mentioned: 50 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2363 Post(s)
Liked 1,749 Times
in
1,191 Posts
^^^^^ +1; BMUFL is much more meaningful; "Bike Lane" implies a separate lane, which is obviously not there. Even a simple phrase like "Shared Lane" would be more useful.
There've been similar initiatives here, often met with resistance by local business owners. That resistance goes away when their business INCREASES with the increased accessibility. Unfortunately, the cycle repeats itself. That is, businesses in one business district don't learn from those in other business districts, that they actually benefitted from the reset/rehab. (Shrug) You know when the businesses finally "get it" when they're the ones asking for more bike parking.
There've been similar initiatives here, often met with resistance by local business owners. That resistance goes away when their business INCREASES with the increased accessibility. Unfortunately, the cycle repeats itself. That is, businesses in one business district don't learn from those in other business districts, that they actually benefitted from the reset/rehab. (Shrug) You know when the businesses finally "get it" when they're the ones asking for more bike parking.
#13
Senior Member
We have some shared lanes here, marked with sharrows, but it does not actually mean that bikes may use full lane. According to our traffic laws, the sharrows are there only to warn drivers of the possibility of cyclists using the lane, but do not impose any special obligations or rights to either drivers or cyclists. Hence they are largely useless at best (I would think there is a greater possibility of a driver noticing a cyclist than a marking on a pavement) and confusing at worst (many cyclists mistake those sharrows to indicate bike lanes and don't ride with appropriate caution).
#14
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Layton, UT
Posts: 1,606
Bikes: 2011 Bent TW Elegance 2014 Carbon Strada Velomobile
Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 626 Post(s)
Liked 701 Times
in
418 Posts
We have some shared lanes here, marked with sharrows, but it does not actually mean that bikes may use full lane. According to our traffic laws, the sharrows are there only to warn drivers of the possibility of cyclists using the lane, but do not impose any special obligations or rights to either drivers or cyclists. Hence they are largely useless at best (I would think there is a greater possibility of a driver noticing a cyclist than a marking on a pavement) and confusing at worst (many cyclists mistake those sharrows to indicate bike lanes and don't ride with appropriate caution).
#15
Senior Member
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Madison, WI USA
Posts: 6,154
Mentioned: 50 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2363 Post(s)
Liked 1,749 Times
in
1,191 Posts
In almost every municipality in the US, bikes are entitled to the full lane, as they are considered vehicles. The sharrows and signs are just there to remind drivers of that. Your area may be an exception, but I'd check your local statutes before making a blanket statement like that.
And the full-lane law does not apply in most jurisdictions here, either. The language in most states refers to operating "as far to the right as is practicable". The good thing is, "practicable" is in the eye of the operator. If it's only safe, as would be the case on the street referenced in this thread, to use the full lane, then indeed you'd have full lane usage. Because of the parked cars and the width of the traffic lane, it would not be "practicable" for someone operating a bicycle to right far enough to the right to allow a car driver to pass in the same lane.
One law that applies in most jurisdictions here is that if there are two or more lanes in the direction you're going, you're entitled to the full lane, as cars have the option of using the other lane to pass.
Likes For madpogue:
#16
Senior Member
In the city I live near the bike lane signs have been up for at least 20 years, and it was only 5 years ago that the bike lanes were actually painted out. Some things just take time. Government is a very oversized ship and turns don't come easy.
#17
Senior Member
In almost every municipality in the US, bikes are entitled to the full lane, as they are considered vehicles. The sharrows and signs are just there to remind drivers of that. Your area may be an exception, but I'd check your local statutes before making a blanket statement like that.
Likes For subgrade: