Categories: EtiquetteLa Vie VelominatusTechniqueThe Rides

Urban Riding: The Sanctity of the Bike Lane

Stay on your toes: you’re in the bike lane now.

There was a time when the world was painted in hues of black and white. Right and Wrong were separated by lines painted in such a thick, heavy paint that even to wander close was to already alter your very nature. The Elders taught us on which side we were to dwell and what evils would descend upon us if we were to transcend into the void. Little was known of what dwelt on the other side; the mind imagines the most horrific beasts in the unknown.

As Cyclists, we dwell in the space between black and white; everything we know is confined within the shades of gray that exist between two absolutes. Nowhere is this more true than when we subject ourselves to the roads to ply our craft at the mercy of motor vehicles, pedestrians, and the department of transportation’s ability to place potholes and manhole covers in the most inopportune locations. A moment’s inattention and our fortunes could shift dramatically.

The bike lane is shrouded in an air of false security. The white line painted a few meters from the edge of the road offers little by way of providing a barrier or any other kind of physical protection. Nevertheless, we wrap ourselves in a blanket of wishful thinking and pedal merrily along our way. The biggest problem with the bike lane is the total disregard that people, traffic, and road crews have for how few options we have outside of our narrow strip of tarmac in the event that the way is blocked, often unaware of the dangers their behaviors impose upon us. These are normally not intended as threats; it is simply a lack of exposure and appreciation of the risks we as Cyclists endure. In the spirit of Rule #3, I will outline some of the greatest risks.

The bike lane is not a turning lane. In many cases – at least in Seattle – the bike lane will be sandwiched between traffic on the left and a parking lane on the right. Traffic will use our humble strip as a turning lane, or use it as a runway for their futile efforts to parallel park.
The bike lane is not a parking lane. If there is no dedicated parking lane, the bike path serves double duty for this purpose in the eyes of the driver. I have had the unpleasant experience of entering a suddenly stopped car through its rear windshield; it is an experience I prefer to limit to a single occasion.
The bicycle lane that was crossed in order to park your car may occasionally contain a person riding a bicycle. Please look behind you prior to opening your door.
Bike lanes are not construction tool collection areas. Cones, shovels, gravel, loitering workers have all sent me diverted into traffic. What’s so attractive about using the bike lane for this purpose? Surely the grassy bit between the sidewalk and the street is equally suitable.
Please repair the tarmac with the same care given to the car lanes. I understand that water mains, power lines, and sewers might need to be accessed by way removing the tarmac in the bike lane. But that lumpy patchwork with the long seam along the edge that runs parallel to the direction of travel is lethal.

Too many Cyclists are being killed doing what they love. We all understand what we risk and accept those rather than not ride our bikes, but I think I speak for all of us when I say I’d rather live to ride again tomorrow. We all have to come together with our fellow motorists to understand how best to work together. But most of all: be careful and diligent, my fellow Cyclists.

Vive la Vie Velominatus.

frank

The founder of Velominati and curator of The Rules, Frank was born in the Dutch colonies of Minnesota. His boundless physical talents are carefully canceled out by his equally boundless enthusiasm for drinking. Coffee, beer, wine, if it’s in a container, he will enjoy it, a lot of it. He currently lives in Seattle. He loves riding in the rain and scheduling visits with the Man with the Hammer just to be reminded of the privilege it is to feel completely depleted. He holds down a technology job the description of which no-one really understands and his interests outside of Cycling and drinking are Cycling and drinking. As devoted aesthete, the only thing more important to him than riding a bike well is looking good doing it. Frank is co-author along with the other Keepers of the Cog of the popular book, The Rules, The Way of the Cycling Disciple and also writes a monthly column for the magazine, Cyclist. He is also currently working on the first follow-up to The Rules, tentatively entitled The Hardmen. Email him directly at rouleur@velominati.com.

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View Comments

Ccos says:

Jun 16 2014 at 7:57 pm

@Fausto Crapiz

Hate being obvious, but will the rider in the photo get both hands on the bars and put the frigging phone away?

Fausto: since you are a junior (reportedly) several points: 1. I suspect that the photo has been taken by Frahnk and was done quickly and without a web search for the nearest douche. 2. The photo shows the classic hand position when riding one handed for greatest stability, such as when drinking from your bidon (assuming one does not need to touch the brakes abruptly) 3. if one does need to brake abruptly, the phone's getting ejected tout suite because you should always assume the philosophy of "fuck everyone and everything" of staying upright in an emergency and 4. rule #43.
frank says:

Jun 16 2014 at 8:09 pm

@Gianni

@xyxax

NYC is the wild west of bike lanes. And now with the city bikes, every clueless person can head down a bike lane in the wrong direction, just because. It might be safer riding in traffic, at least most of it is going in the same direction. I do admire NYC for carving out all those bike lanes though, it's like outlawing smoking in Irish pubs, one would never, ever think it would happen, then it does, and people get used to it.

No part of the world is immune to this absurdity. Joggers, bicyclists (not Cyclists) riding the wrong fucking way. Holy fucking Merckx, its hard enough to try to steal glimpses of myself in the shop windows without crashing, I can't also be dodging oncoming riders!
frank says:

Jun 16 2014 at 8:32 pm

@xyxax

@Gianni

It's Dustin Hoffman pounding on the hood of a taxi, "HEY, I'm WALKING here!!" You gotta love it even when you don't.

Funny thing about Citi Bikes is it's losing money because it is TOO popular with the locals (who can pay a relatively cheap year-round fee) instead of with visitors buying expensive short term passes.

Down by one of the ferry terminals here in Seattle, a car pulled out and hit a pedestrian who appeared to be Andre The Giant's big-boned brother.

The car hit him, and the giant did a full fucking somersault over the hood and slid lazily off the side before jumping up and exclaiming, "HOW DID YOU NOT SEE ME???? I'M THE SIZE OF A SMALL BUILDING!!!"

He wasn't wrong.
frank says:

Jun 16 2014 at 8:40 pm

@VeloSix

I need about 2.5 km of bike lane to make riding out of my front door suitable. My "no outlet" neighborhood, dumps my on a shoulder-less, narrow even for motorized vehicles, two lane bit of pot hole riddled tarmac, where the motorists push the 100 km/h mark. It might be the only bit of bike lane I ever use in this town, but it would be my sanctum pathway to happiness.

Otherwise, the location of our "bike lanes" (using the term loosly) are somewhat of a head scratcher....

By and large, I consider roads with bike lanes no safer that roads without. On some of the big urban roads they are a life saver, but the best routes in town lean lightly on them; most of the roads used have no such thing and I might argue they are safer without the riders and car telling each other a lie about where they should live and just working it out like civilized beings.

Back when I was growing up, though, the general consensus was that if it was marked as a "Bike Route", you should stay the fuck away. City planners by and large appear to have little in the way of an understanding of what it means to ride a bike alongside traffic that moves at 100-150kmph.
frank says:

Jun 16 2014 at 8:44 pm

@Ccos

As a humble redneck I am content to ride in locales sans bike paths and to accept the inherent dangers. However, on visiting some friends in Qubec City I was floored by the infrastructure devoted to bikes. Hundreds of kilometers of bike paths so busy they have freakin traffic lights and many separated nicely from regular traffic. Of course the locals were treated to the hazards of me and my ginned up buddies zipping around on our racing rigs like we were on some Belgian farm road.

Sounds like the Netherlands.

Including the Ginned up twats on racing rigs. I.e. me.

@GogglesPizano

I think they need to change the signage on my routes downtown from "bike lane" to Bike Lane / Snow Storage lane" as our city council although they have great intentions of building $20million worth of separated pathways in the next while still can't get their act together and clear to the curb where painted lanes exist... I think the grader operator goes out of his way to completely fill the bike lane nice windrow of snow when he is plowing .....

Classic example of cluelessness with no ill-intent.

@PeakInTwoYears

Living in the boonies, every spring I am in high dudgeon-it gets my dander right up-when the road shoulders on every climb and descent are covered with the gravel that is unnecessarily layered over the dry, ice-free roads so that retirees, who make up 90% of the local population, can feel safe when they careen about the area towing goose-neck camper trailers behind their Ford F-350s and that is then swept cursorily into what the county workers no doubt refer to as the "breakdown lane."

A class post. Perfectection, in fact. +1 badge to you, my good man.
RedRanger says:

Jun 16 2014 at 9:13 pm

Bikes lanes might be great for commuting. But there is an element behavior manipulation or social engineering. Like bike lanes are the only place to ride and if there isnt a bike lane we shouldnt be riding thete. Just my initial take on it after 5 minutes of thinking.
PeakInTwoYears says:

Jun 16 2014 at 9:22 pm

@frank

Most grateful, and I beg you to consider attending the Hurricane Cogal on 23 August, the announcement of which is in @Gianni's hands presently.
sinikl says:

Jun 16 2014 at 9:40 pm

The worst "salmoning" event that ever happened to me was a drunk, possibly homeless, guy with a REAR blinky light (red) on the FRONT of his bike heading towards me. At first glance I thought I was closing on him super fast because I was actually fast (not true), followed by a sh*tshow of swerving.

The fact that he was on a semi legit Trek full-sus MTB and drinking a King Cobra 40 made more sense when I realized our local bike coop is drowning in parts from "i'll ride this year! oh hell, donate that thing" people from the burbs.
portemat says:

Jun 17 2014 at 12:33 am

@Wah-Balls I ride on a daily basis through London, mostly on a Boris (i.e. city rental) bike. I do not find it dangerous. The worst are pedestrians who step out without looking, but that doesn't happen near busy traffic (as they can hear the big lorries coming!).

However, I regularly see riders doing stupid things - jumping red lights (where they clearly haven't been watching the phasing, so head straight into traffic) and riding up on the inside of 'big things' at junctions.

Frankly, my view is that London drivers are doing a pretty good job of not hitting many of the idiots-on-bikes that I see on a regular basis!
Puffy says:

Jun 17 2014 at 12:35 am

Bike lane? Oh the luxury.

Reading this is kinda of like a the starving african kid reading a whine about the quality of food someone in the west has. Just saying...