Sharrows recommended for MUTCD adoption

[JohnBrooking]

Someone mentioned this in a recent thread, but a fellow bike commuter friend of mine locally found this online document (http://members.cox.net/ncutcdbtc/sls/slmtoncjan07.pdf) last night that has the details. I thought people here would be interested in knowing this, if you don't already.

To summarize the document: the Bicycle Technical Committee of the National Committee on Uniform Traffic Control Devices has recommended inclusion of sharrows in the FHWA MUTCD manual. The document includes a discussion summary, findings of a 2004 San Francisco study, the proposed additional language to Part 9 of MUTCD, and a recommended stencil.

[Bekologist]

sharrows should be endorsed as one tool in a bagful of integrated road infrastructure that supports bicycling as transportation.

good to see the formalization process going forward on sharrows.

sharrows, wide lanes, buffered bike lanes, uphill passing lanes, signage, etc, all should be part and parcel for design of public rights of way to include bikes in the transportation mix.

[donnamb]

I heard about that from our city's bicycle coordinator. He says the whole process will take a few more years, but he thinks it might be enough to be able to use sharrows more often in places in town where they would be helpful. I'm looking forward to it. :)

[Daily Commute]

This is one area where people on all sides of the faciltiy debate can agree, although my guess is we agree on the result, not the reasoning. But hey, I'll take what I can get.

Sharrows will be an especially welcome substitute for door-zone striped lanes. Some state and local policies (Complete Streets) require special recognition for cyclists, and sharrows will meet that requirement without having to paint a line. Also, having sharrows line up in the right tire track is a great way to show less experienced cyclists (as well as drivers) where cyclists should be riding.