I'm seeking information on the appropriateness of bicycle lanes on one-way streets. But I don't want to turn this into an argument about bike lanes (I know, I know. Wishful thinking). Here's the deal: About a mile of my city's marked north-south bicycle route features a bike lane on the left side of a northbound, single lane, one-way street. Yet this bike lane is also heavily used by southbound cyclists.
I believe that the placement of a bike lane on a one-way street is dangerous by design as it essentially "invites" bicyclists to ride against traffic and thus makes them more vulnerable to car vs. bike collisions. Late last month such a collision occurred and I've just been informed that another cyclist was hit yesterday. Both were riding in the bike lane, against traffic.
Is anyone aware of standards for street design that advise against marking bike lanes on one-way streets? And what about the placement on the bike lane on the left side of the street? Would it be any safer if it was on the right side? Are contraflow lanes inherently evil? Could "wrong way" signs on the backs of the bike route signs reduce southbound travel? Should I just keep riding and mind my own business?
Any advice or guidance would be appreciated.
The BikeForums Team
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I believe that the placement of a bike lane on a one-way street is dangerous by design as it essentially "invites" bicyclists to ride against traffic and thus makes them more vulnerable to car vs. bike collisions. Late last month such a collision occurred and I've just been informed that another cyclist was hit yesterday. Both were riding in the bike lane, against traffic.
Many of Philadelphia's bike lanes are on one way streets.
Brian Ratliff
I've seen contra-flow bike lanes implemented. They are on the correct side of the road (on the right, from the perspective of the contra-flow cyclist) and instead of the solid white lane line, there is a double yellow. The cyclists traveling in the same direction as the cars just use the full size lanes.
Otherwise, I don't see a need for bike lanes on one way streets unless the traffic is over 35mph (outside the central city grid). If a bike lane is needed, it is probably best to route it on the left and outside the door zone of on-street parking. Routing it left of the traffic lanes keeps bikes visible to traffic and out of the way of pedestrians jumping out of their cars. If there is no on-street parking, the bike lane can be put either side.
Any time there is bicycle accomodation on a street (one way or two way), there is the problem of wrong way cyclists. This can only be delt with by signage and education outreach. Some cyclists think it is better to ride contra-flow. Some just want to avoid a tricky left turn. At some point, the cyclists have to know how to correctly act on the road. I'd put effort into your local cycling advocacy group to get the word out that wrong way cycling is extremely dangerous.
EnigManiac
I know of only one street, perhaps half a km long, here in Toronto that has a contra-flow bike lane, but the lane is on the right and is necessary as it leads up to a major park and a school, so I understand why they installed it. There are other bike lanes on one-way streets here but they are clearly intended for same-direction travelling.
thatmattbone
I know of only one street, perhaps half a km long, here in Toronto that has a contra-flow bike lane, but the lane is on the right and is necessary as it leads up to a major park and a school, so I understand why they installed it. There are other bike lanes on one-way streets here but they are clearly intended for same-direction travelling.
There is a very similar setup here in chicago where the lakefront path ends on the northside. Unfortunately, this where I had my only accident. A car in the alley cut across the street and only looked in the direction that car-traffic comes from. We hit and I broke my elbow....
I oppose contra-flow bike lanes on one way streets :rolleyes:
Ngchen
I remember back in college (the University of Tennessee), how there was a contra-flow bike lane that I think was reasonably designed beside Hodges library. The road was a one-way going up the hill, where it intersects another one-way. The bike lanes were on the left, with a dashed yellow line separating the bike lanes headed each way.
ASCII art diagram:
------------------------------------------------
one-way cross street T intersection --> only
-------- ------------------------------
|v|^| |
| | |
| | | |
The contraflow traffic headed down the hill as indicated, and there was a stop sign at the bottom of said hill.
sbhikes
We have several one-way streets with bike lanes. The bike lanes are one way as well. There are signs visible if you travel the wrong way telling you so. These streets are 25 - 30 mph streets. I see nothing wrong with that. This is inside the city not out in suburbia and cul-de-sac land. Also, the one-way streets alternate directions so if one street is going the wrong way for you, you go over to the next street and use that instead.
It works well as these streets are a little too narrow to have two regular lanes with parking on both sides. Instead, one lane is the bike lane, the other is the car lane, and both are generous in width.
chocula
Thanks for all the responses so far.
We have several one-way streets with bike lanes. The bike lanes are one way as well. There are signs visible if you travel the wrong way telling you so. These streets are 25 - 30 mph streets. I see nothing wrong with that. This is inside the city not out in suburbia and cul-de-sac land. Also, the one-way streets alternate directions so if one street is going the wrong way for you, you go over to the next street and use that instead.
It works well as these streets are a little too narrow to have two regular lanes with parking on both sides. Instead, one lane is the bike lane, the other is the car lane, and both are generous in width.
The street I'm talking about is much as you've described. Urban area, narrow, similar speed limit, parking on the right side. Unfortunately, this is the only marked bike route in the area, so many cyclists feel it's OK to ride against traffic.
bragi
Is it the only one-way street with a dedicated bike lane? I assume there are other one-way streets going the opposite direction; don't they also have bike lanes? If they do, wouldn't it be just be asking for it to ride against traffic? (If they don't, then maybe it's time to find a few new traffic engineers..)
cooker
I know of only one street, perhaps half a km long, here in Toronto that has a contra-flow bike lane
Whereabouts?
chocula
Is it the only one-way street with a dedicated bike lane?
Yes.
I assume there are other one-way streets going the opposite direction; don't they also have bike lanes?
There's a southbound one-way street two blocks east. It does not have a bike lane.
damian_
We have contra-flow bike lanes here. There is a raised kerb, about 3ft wide to separate this from the road (so people don't park in the bike lane I guess). There are arrows indicating the direction of (bike-)traffic every few meters.
donnamb
I don't know a lot about contra-flow bike lanes but my gut tells me you'd have to have a lot of special markings, signage, separation from the motor traffic, maybe even bicycle specific traffic lights to make it work. They strike me as so counter the "rules of the road". Seems like it would be expensive to implement safely and a bicycle facility of last resort. Then again, I've not used one.
I agree with Brian about avoiding having bike lanes on most one-way streets.
trackhub
There a few conra-flow bike lanes in Cambridge, MA. (a.k.a. "The People's Republic", and home to some of the highest housing costs anywhere) Besides the most obvious flaw, at least two of them cause you to end up on the wrong side of the road when the lane ends.
I'm told that local cycling safety expert John Allen lobbied against this design. They (cambridge planners) went ahead and had them put down anyway.
It's a strange thing indeed. Cambridge has some very well designed bike lanes, and some that are totally wrong.
donnamb
Bicycle facilities are something of an experiment. They have to try things to see if they will work or not. We have some accomodations in Portland that are fantastic and others that aren't so great. It seems like someone has their head on straight around here, because it seems to be the good ones that get reproduced. It's kind of exciting to ride in Portland because the city wants your feedback about what they are trying out and they actually listen.
MichaelW
We have quite a few roads designated "2-way for cyclists only". They are not classed as bike lanes, simply that access is forbidden to motorised traffic. The lane markings should be as for any other 2-way road but the only traffic on one lane are cyclists.