Bike Lanes

[kspangler]

There is absolutely no reason why more cities cannot add bike lanes when they redue their roads. Lack of dollars, bull sh_t. The borough here just repaved and widened two major roads out of town - north and south - and turned a hazardous situation for bikers into a comfortable and smooth bike route. The only thing they didn't mark it that way. I just got back from Amherst, MASS, where they have bike lanes painted on the road. Despite some rough sections, the routes work so great for getting around the town. The trails there need some work, but heck you can go all over the place in your own bike lane.

 

[NORECUMYET]

There is absolutely no reason why more cities cannot add bike lanes when they redue their roads. Lack of dollars, bull sh_t. The borough here just repaved and widened two major roads out of town - north and south - and turned a hazardous situation for bikers into a comfortable and smooth bike route. The only thing they didn't mark it that way. I just got back from Amherst, MASS, where they have bike lanes painted on the road. Despite some rough sections, the routes work so great for getting around the town. The trails there need some work, but heck you can go all over the place in your own bike lane.

I'm all for more and better bike lanes. My trouble here is that the bike lanes are often literally three inches wide and when they're wider they're all pot holed and loaded with debris, mainly broken glass. I know I ******** drivers when they see me riding on the left side of the bike lane line. Unfortunately bike lanes or no bike lanes, the drivers in So Cal I think are statistically more likely to get into a conflict with a bicyclist. There's a whole lot of road rage going on around here.

Just the other day some woman scared the hell out of me. She was directly behind me in my blind spot (I think a second mirror might get rid of that)and she laid on the horn. Now I couldn't see her so there was nothing safe to do. Just keep going straight. She finally turned right behind me. I must have slowed her trip home by 10 or 15 seconds. Here's the thing. It was a residential street and I was going 30 miles an hour. (The speed limit was 25) To top it off she could have easily passed me on the left. She had lots and lots of room and no opposing traffic. But I was on HER ROAD. That's what gets these crazies. They actually think that you as a cyclilst have no right to be on the road. I've had people like her tell me to get on the sidewalk (Illegal) or the other side of the street (Illegal).

It's like an old Disney cartoon I saw in driver's training when I was a kid. It showed Goofey as a normal, mellow kind of average citizen who pet the dog and kissed his wife and kids on the way to work. But when he got behind the wheel of his car he turned into a Dr. Jekyl like monster that refused to share the road with anyone else.

I know this fact won't keep a car from demolishing you and your bike, but in most if not all states in the US, a bicycle virtually always has the right of way. Even if he or she is doing something unsafe or illegal we still have the right of way. Now we of course shouldn't demand it, but we should'nt allow drivers to take it from us either.

Since I'm on YET ANOTHER rant. When are the Police going to enforce the laws about bicycles having to have a headlight and reflectors when riding after dusk? Worse yet, the same yahoos that ride without lights or reflectors often ride on the wrong side of the street. I used to work on a street that had these characters on it every day. I can't tell you how many times I had close calls with them. Then I would get flipped off. Go figure.

 

[thistledown]

I'm all for more and better bike lanes. My trouble here is that the bike lanes are often literally three inches wide and when they're wider they're all pot holed and loaded with debris, mainly broken glass. I know I ******** drivers when they see me riding on the left side of the bike lane line. Unfortunately bike lanes or no bike lanes, the drivers in So Cal I think are statistically more likely to get into a conflict with a bicyclist. There's a whole lot of road rage going on around here.

Just the other day some woman scared the hell out of me. She was directly behind me in my blind spot (I think a second mirror might get rid of that)and she laid on the horn. Now I couldn't see her so there was nothing safe to do. Just keep going straight. She finally turned right behind me. I must have slowed her trip home by 10 or 15 seconds. Here's the thing. It was a residential street and I was going 30 miles an hour. (The speed limit was 25) To top it off she could have easily passed me on the left. She had lots and lots of room and no opposing traffic. But I was on HER ROAD. That's what gets these crazies. They actually think that you as a cyclilst have no right to be on the road. I've had people like her tell me to get on the sidewalk (Illegal) or the other side of the street (Illegal).

It's like an old Disney cartoon I saw in driver's training when I was a kid. It showed Goofey as a normal, mellow kind of average citizen who pet the dog and kissed his wife and kids on the way to work. But when he got behind the wheel of his car he turned into a Dr. Jekyl like monster that refused to share the road with anyone else.

I know this fact won't keep a car from demolishing you and your bike, but in most if not all states in the US, a bicycle virtually always has the right of way. Even if he or she is doing something unsafe or illegal we still have the right of way. Now we of course shouldn't demand it, but we should'nt allow drivers to take it from us either.

Since I'm on YET ANOTHER rant. When are the Police going to enforce the laws about bicycles having to have a headlight and reflectors when riding after dusk? Worse yet, the same yahoos that ride without lights or reflectors often ride on the wrong side of the street. I used to work on a street that had these characters on it every day. I can't tell you how many times I had close calls with them. Then I would get flipped off. Go figure.

Seriously. I was driving to my church after work this past Friday(I would have cycled it but, I had to take my brother to work with me and I also don't have enough lights yet) and some kid was riding on the wrong side of the road and didn't even have a rear reflector that was visible. At night. On a pretty dark street. The only reason I saw him was because now that I spend most of my road time on my bike, I'm looking out for other cyclists. It ****** me off.

Edit: Also wanted to add that I'm pretty sure he almost caused a car accident after I had passed because there were two cars behind me and one coming and he was riding in circles in the shadows.

 

[NickInNC]

I am actually 100% against creating bike lanes and these are the exact reasons why...

1) Cities will never ever put real money into bike lanes and perserving them(keeping lanes clear of glass general maintnance etc.). The reason behind this logic is this. When you purchase a bicycle you pay sales tax and that is it. You do not have to pay for a title, ownership taxes of any kind after the initial purchase, taxes when you purchase gasoline, nothing. So why would they bother putting money into something that well no money has been given too. It is unfortunate but that is the way municplities think.

2) Bike lanes create in a drivers mind an idea that bicycle only belong in BIKE LANES. Let us face the fact that the average person is not intelligent to operate heavy machines such as cars. Most drivers would get angry if a city put paths all over the place but a cyclist was riding in a lane without a place for a bike path. In their little minds the road lines are for cars and bikes would have no business in them.

3) Some dumb@$$ city would probably like to outlaw riding bicycles in areas without bike lanes. This hypothetical reasoning would be to keep drivers, pedestrians and cyclist safe. Restriciting cyclist to streets with only a certain posted speed limit and/or areas with bike lanes that already exsist.

This is the most dangerous and with how cities are ran now I can see some cities doing this. It only takes a few accidents with cyclist not knowing how to behave and drivers not giving a damn to turn this hypothetical into a real situation.

I personally would like to see PSA's(public service announcmentys) on TV and on radio that explained to the general public the roles and responsibilites that drivers and cyclist must take to be safe. I think this would help the motorist and cyclist relationship and possibly save lives.


NOW I WILL STEP DOWN FROM THE SOAP BOX!

 

[bampa]

There is absolutely no reason why more cities cannot add bike lanes when they redue their roads. Lack of dollars, bull sh_t. The borough here just repaved and widened two major roads out of town - north and south - and turned a hazardous situation for bikers into a comfortable and smooth bike route. The only thing they didn't mark it that way. I just got back from Amherst, MASS, where they have bike lanes painted on the road. Despite some rough sections, the routes work so great for getting around the town. The trails there need some work, but heck you can go all over the place in your own bike lane.

I agree. I live near Portland, Oregon. It's supposed to be a "bike friendly" town, but out here in the 'burbs you have to be really careful which road you chose, because not many of them have a bike lane or even a shoulder. And drivers don't watch out for us very well. A rider has to be very defensive.

 

[threaded]

I feel the main problem of bikes mixing it with traffic is that car drivers can get away with stuff that would in conjunction with a different type of vehicle, cause an accident.

So, I am minded that if a percentage of cyclists, of all ages, started wearing these little video cameras, and posting videos of **** car drivers up on YouTube or similar, especially of company drivers, a little peer pressure might make these drivers take note and modify their behaviour.

They have these cycle lanes in Denmark, and frankly I'd rather mix it with the cars. Example: I've never seen a cyclist rear ended by a car on the road, but I have seen a cyclist rear ended by a car on a cyclepath, and more than once!

So, if cycle paths are felt necessary, then some way to stop impatient car drivers from using them is needed. Now trees are very good for stopping cars. So line the interface between the cycle path and the cars path with trees.

 

[muzctch]

I am very new to these forums and to cycling, but this is something I can post on from the driver's side. I live in Tucson, Arizona, which is also supposed to be a bike-friendly town. The only problem with that is, all of the bike lanes get cut across by the bus lanes when the buses cut in and out of traffic to pull up to bus stops. That in itself wouldn't be so bad if it were efficient, which it is not. Whoever drew up the lengths of these stops made them way too short so the poor cyclist never knows if they're going to get run over by a bus or not... and God forbid it be at an intersection where there's a right-hand turn lane after the bus stop! Tucson drivers are not known for courtesy, so guess who is the last person they're worried about? Yep, the poor bike rider who just dodged the bus! Oh, and multiply this all by ten when the snow-birds are here, because (forgive me if anyone here is a snowbird to Tucson) the one thing most Tucson natives dislike more than bicyclists is snow-birds in their RV's.

Of course, I say all this tongue-in-cheek, but the bike lane issue in our town always scares me, especially since I am going to be forced to use them more now. I am losing my car soon and will be biking back and forth to work, which will be a completely new experience. Eek!

 

[Jonahhobbes]

I am very new to these forums and to cycling, but this is something I can post on from the driver's side. I live in Tucson, Arizona, which is also supposed to be a bike-friendly town. The only problem with that is, all of the bike lanes get cut across by the bus lanes when the buses cut in and out of traffic to pull up to bus stops. That in itself wouldn't be so bad if it were efficient, which it is not. Whoever drew up the lengths of these stops made them way too short so the poor cyclist never knows if they're going to get run over by a bus or not... and God forbid it be at an intersection where there's a right-hand turn lane after the bus stop! Tucson drivers are not known for courtesy, so guess who is the last person they're worried about? Yep, the poor bike rider who just dodged the bus! Oh, and multiply this all by ten when the snow-birds are here, because (forgive me if anyone here is a snowbird to Tucson) the one thing most Tucson natives dislike more than bicyclists is snow-birds in their RV's.

Of course, I say all this tongue-in-cheek, but the bike lane issue in our town always scares me, especially since I am going to be forced to use them more now. I am losing my car soon and will be biking back and forth to work, which will be a completely new experience. Eek!

You'll be fine but be cautious, I would suggest getting a mirror if roads are busy and congested. Be visable and be confident when biking.

 

[Chavez]

Now trees are very good for stopping cars.

Funny.

 

[Fatherzen]

. . . So, I am minded that if a percentage of cyclists, of all ages, started wearing these little video cameras, and posting videos of **** car drivers up on YouTube or similar, especially of company drivers, a little peer pressure might make these drivers take note and modify their behaviour. . . . So, if cycle paths are felt necessary, then some way to stop impatient car drivers from using them is needed. Now trees are very good for stopping cars. So line the interface between the cycle path and the cars path with trees.

I currently live in Norfolk, VA, a part of Hampton Roads. We currently seem to have a law that requires them to add a bicycle lane on either side of the road when that do major work on the road. The results are fairly good where they have done them, but they only exist in places where work has been done. One problem with getting a large number of such lanes is that cars cannot park in them. Ignoring NickInNC's tirade about the city governments not caring about bikes because we don't pay a lot of taxes, I don't think that the city or the citizens are going to be in a huge hurry to have a city with no street-side parking.

As far as wearing those little video cameras, I have been a bicycle commuter for several years. Some of my commutes take me through the less savory parts of town. I have also seen a couple situations during late nights where partying kids were getting wild and decided to mess with me as I rode past. I had been considering setting up some sort of system that would be kind of like the dashboard camera in patrol cars, so that if I was ever messed with I would have a recording of the attack. I did not know anything about the technology and hadn’t found anything that I liked that was not prohibitively expensive when I was involved in an accident in November of 2005.

I have no memory of the accident. I have no memory of the first two weeks that I spent in an Intensive Care Unit. Brain injuries are like that. The police did not manage to get a car out to the accident because the site was hard to find. It was on a six lane road leading into one of the gates of the largest Navy Base in the United States. You can understand how hard that would be to find.

The long and the short of this is that I wish that I had set up a recording system so that I would know what had happened. I have found a couple of helmet camera systems that are only five or six hundred dollars. The problem I am having is that I think that I should have a system that would two cameras recording simultaneously the view from the front and the view from behind. I figure that that would be the only way to be fairly certain of establishing what happened, and who was at fault, would be to have a rear view camera and a forward facing Helmet Camera. Does anyone know of a system that would have this capability?

 

[Jonahhobbes]

Sorry to here about your accident Fartherzen. Hope you have made a full recovery.


Thought about the camera thing even if it was just to get a record of my journey. But I can never justify the amount of money I would spend. As you know there is always something to buy, replace or upgrade when it comes to cycling.

 

[Fatherzen]

Sorry to here about your accident Fartherzen. Hope you have made a full recovery.

The word "full" is a fascinating qualification to attach.

I have had the opportunity to speak with several individuals who are in a position to fully appreciate the nature of my injury and the path to recovery. I am a Petty Officer in the U. S. Navy. Since my accident I have spoken at length to the Neurosurgeon who was the primary Navy Physician on my case, the Neuropsychologist who evaluated several aspects of my recovery, and the Senior Medical Officer of the Nuclear Aircraft Carrier that I was serving on at the time. The general sense that I have gotten from these individuals is that the speed and the near completeness of my recovery is somewhat remarkable.

I only spent about one week in the Intensive Care Unit and only about one week in the Step Down Unit at the hospital in Norfolk that the ambulance took me to. I spent about another week and a half at the Navy Medical Center in Portsmouth and about a week at the Brain and Spinal Cord Injury Recovery Unit at the VA Medical Center in Richmond. The Neurosurgeon was expecting six months to a year.

Several of the Experts that I have spoken to attribute my rapid and remarkable recovery to the fact that I must have been in rather good physical condition. I have never been a jock and the only routine source of exercise I have used in the last seven years is bicycling.

Yes, I was wearing a helmet when my accident occurred. I always do.

Yes, it has been brought to my attention that I, since my accident, am rather verbose and have a tendency to ramble. I mention all of this information to let my friends/associates in the cycling community know two things. One, if I had not been wearing a helmet when this accident occurred I would, almost certainly, not have survived. Two, I am not a particularly health person. I smoked between a pack and half and two packs of cigarettes a day for about twenty years, from half way through Seventh Grade until my early thirties, and I have always been somewhat overweight. The only reason that I quit smoking is that my daughter needed money for flute lessons and that was the only place in my budget to generate the money. The reason I began bicycle commuting was that I was in dangerously bad shape and I had a vehicle problem. Bicycling to work saved me money and solved a problem of not enough cars. I admit this information to let all of you out there know that bicycling to work and recreationally cycling for about six years was enough to get me into good enough shape to survive and almost completely recover from a very bad injury.

Do not under estimate the benefits cycling alone can provide to your fitness and health. A man who almost fully recovered from a couple of skull fractures, intracranial bleeding, seven fractured ribs, a punctured lung, and some less significant injuries is telling you that you are making your body capable of amazing things.

Keep cycling!