Highway Department Mistake???

[RedRider2009]

On Saturday morning, I was riding with the local bike club. We were going down a two lane road, probably a speed limit of 45, and not a very busy street.
The recently constructed bike lane is dangerous for bikes. We were riding 2 wide and like 5 bikes long, which was safe, but the lines and arrows in the bike lane make bicycles go opposing directions. The Arrows point toward eachother, which caused our group to end up going toward another group ---> <---. Would you report this to the Hwy dept? The next dilemma was that our group leader safely signaled, and then moved over into the lane just enough to make room for the other group to go by. Behind us a good distance was a car, but this asswipe did not slow down he buzzed the whole group and nearly hit an oncoming car too. What is a solution to both of those problems? Maybe a squirt gun full of paint would scare them a bit...

 

[dgregory57]

You should report any safety issues to the highway department.

How would you expect squirting paint on a jerks car to help the situation?

At best, it is vandalism, at worst, he is distracted or panics and swerves into your group or the oncoming traffic. I don't see any positive outcome in wither case.

Don't get me wrong, I have considered the possibility of paint guns as a deterrent, but when I consider what the real outcome would be, it rarely leads to a logical improvement of the situation.

Instead, try to get in the habit of getting license numbers, and reporting the individuals that drive erratically. Do this whether you are riding your bike or driving. I don't do this, but it seems like it would be a method with potential for addressing the core issues, whether it is a need for a wider roadway, or to educate drivers, or both.