Would You rather ride a trail, or a filthy bike lane?
litespeedchick: Our city has some recently installed bike lanes. The ones downtown drive me nuts because I don't know how to negotiate them as a driver. it seems unsafe now to make a right turn. Normally when you make a right turn, you move into the right lane first before you turn. Now and can't do that, and I'm crossing someone else's lane of travel. The bike lanes go "dotted" right before the intersections...what does that mean? As a cyclist, does it mean I'm not really in a bike lane anymore and better watch out?...
...Worse, a major thouroughfare that was formerly 4 lanes, is now 2 lanes of traffic, one center median, and bike lanes. To begin with it has angered drivers because it has impeded travel and I think that impacts my safety when drivers start to resent cyclists (multiple inflamed letters to the editor). But more importantly, the road was not quite wide enough to meet DOT specs for a bike lane the whole way. So the bike lane comes and goes. It will just randomly disappear forcing a bike to suddenly merge left into traffic. Where the bike lane is gone, there are "sharrows" , pictures of bikes that apparently warn a motorist to share the road, but do not indicate a bike lane.
Dossy: Normally the everybody oncoming has to yield, I read that laws very in different areas though. Our lanes I think were built to channel people to the bike trail which is all messed up this year again, and are fair game for parking. There's always roadkill too, on the other hand the way your city's done it sounds worse, I take to the sidewalk over the road but I'm kind of a weirdo.
JoelS: For the most part, the bike lanes here are well done. There are a couple of examples where they just don't work well, but in general they're great. The biggest problem is all the bozos that throw bottles out of their car windows and leave the bike lane littered with glass. These are probably the same people that yell at us when we're not in the bike lane (that has been covered with broken glass).
litespeedchick: Our city has some recently installed bike lanes. The ones downtown drive me nuts because I don't know how to negotiate them as a driver. it seems unsafe now to make a right turn. Normally when you make a right turn, you move into the right lane first before you turn. Now and can't do that, and I'm crossing someone else's lane of travel. The bike lanes go "dotted" right before the intersections...what does that mean? As a cyclist, does it mean I'm not really in a bike lane anymore and better watch out?...
...Worse, a major thouroughfare that was formerly 4 lanes, is now 2 lanes of traffic, one center median, and bike lanes. To begin with it has angered drivers because it has impeded travel and I think that impacts my safety when drivers start to resent cyclists (multiple inflamed letters to the editor). But more importantly, the road was not quite wide enough to meet DOT specs for a bike lane the whole way. So the bike lane comes and goes. It will just randomly disappear forcing a bike to suddenly merge left into traffic. Where the bike lane is gone, there are "sharrows" , pictures of bikes that apparently warn a motorist to share the road, but do not indicate a bike lane.
Dossy: Normally the everybody oncoming has to yield, I read that laws very in different areas though. Our lanes I think were built to channel people to the bike trail which is all messed up this year again, and are fair game for parking. There's always roadkill too, on the other hand the way your city's done it sounds worse, I take to the sidewalk over the road but I'm kind of a weirdo.
JoelS: For the most part, the bike lanes here are well done. There are a couple of examples where they just don't work well, but in general they're great. The biggest problem is all the bozos that throw bottles out of their car windows and leave the bike lane littered with glass. These are probably the same people that yell at us when we're not in the bike lane (that has been covered with broken glass).
If they wanted us to stay in the bike lanes, they should stop throwing trash into them!
Dossy: Yeah that too.
Bike Bumbs
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=1024854
Dossy: Yeah that too.
Bike Bumbs
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=1024854
Fixed: I suppose there is a fine line between touring and homeless.
Dossy: I'm perplexed by these people, they do this off the goodness of strangers. : Myself, riding 30 or 40 miles once a week & the repairs eat Me up. But most of the time I don't even think they ride, the last words out of My mouth are always '.. and don't bonk."
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