Advocacy & Safety - holding up traffic in the bike lane

The other day as I was making my way into work I ran into a rucurring problem, but with some new spice.

On Sea Island, where the Vancouver International Airport is located, and where I work, YVR has installed a nice big bike lane alongside a busy, multi-lane, commuter road that feeds onto a bridge leading to downtown Vancouver. It'ss often backed up in a jam because all this traffic has to filter down to one lane to the bridge.

Anyway, there's a side street that some people use to by-pass the jam, but some drivers jump the line-up by driving in the bike lane to make a right to get to the side street. I see it all the time and on occasion some drivers follow right behind me while I'm riding in the lane. Some times I slow down and occasionaly, I've even stopped and blocked the lane to try to get the driver to get back into the traffic lane.

This time, I slowed right down to a crawl to try to get the driver to move back, but he wasn't going to do it. More cars in behind the following bike lane driver started to honk. I guess I was going to slow for them.

I was almost at the turn off for the side street so I moved over to the left to keep going straight while the driver came up to make the right so I can give him the WTF look. I couldn't get the drivers attention but as he passed and made the right, all the other drivers that went by me honked and yelled at me.

I guess I was going to slow for the bike lane because all the drivers were being held up in the bike lane by someone on a bike. Imagine that. My bad.

Just curious, in BC are drivers allowed or even required, to merge into BL before making a right turn? In California they can up to 200' before the right turn.

Whether or not of course is no excuse for being impatient.

Al

No auto can ever use a bike lane. They can only cross them at the corner for a turn

No auto can ever use a bike lane. They can only cross them at the corner for a turn
That's consistent with most US states, but not all.

Al

Sheesh. Is the bike lane poorly marked, so maybe they didn't realize it is one? Or did you just find the winners of the 'JAM of the day' contest?

That's consistent with most US states, but not all.

Al

Really? From what I've seen, most states have no laws at all about turning with a bike lane present. Assuming it's part of the roadway, motorists are to drive in it to make a right turn since right turns should be made "as close as practicable to the right hand edge of the roadway". Do you have a link to what different states require for making right turns with a bike lane present?

Sheesh. Is the bike lane poorly marked, so maybe they didn't realize it is one? Or did you just find the winners of the 'JAM of the day' contest?

They were definitely JAM's.

Cops try to control this but the only way they can is to place a cruiser by the lane so that when a car turns into the lane, the cop can get 'em.

Even if I pull out my cell to call the cops while the car is in the lane, they can't get there because the traffics so bad.

Previously, they sloved this problem by placing barriers at points in the lane so a car couldn't drive in it, but they recently opened a new aeronautics campus on the lane before the barriers and now people can cut through the campus parking lot to access the short cut so now there's a steady steam of traffic down the bike lane to get into the campus lot.

I wrote our 2 local newspapers about this and today, one paper printed it, and the other may print it in the next edition. The editor actually replied to my letter and understood what I was talking about because he had seen it, so I think they'll print it. I said, maybe a little publicity might light a fire under the authorities a**es to try to do smething about it.

I thought I was "taking the lane", riding straight down the middle of it, but the drivers seemed to be annoyed and not respecting my rights! I'm pretty sure they saw me though.

Maybe I should lobby for a new bike lane, within the existing bike lane?

;)

Sounds like that bike lane needs to be made a bit narrower.

Barriers on both sides of the lane need to be put in.

Before they built the campus the same thing happened but it stopped when barriers on both sides were put in at the turn. When a barrier was only put on the traffic side, cars would simply move further to the right of the lane and drive half in the dirt.

One time, while riding in the lane, I was passed on my right by a car in the bike lane.

Maybe I should lobby for a new bike lane, within the existing bike lane?

;)


That's the only sensible solution. Anything less is a half-measure.

The other local paper printed my letter today.

I'll call some more people on Monday about this. Maybe someone noticed the letters and are willing to do something about this.

Maybe I should lobby for a new bike lane, within the existing bike lane?

;)

This just made my day :D

At least in California, the correct way for a motorist to negotiate a right turn is to merge into the bike lane for the final 100 feet, 200 maximum. Properly designed bike lane demarcation stripes either disappear on final approach to an intersection or at least become dashed. My biggest problem is getting motorists to merge properly into the bike lane, instead of trying to turn right across the bike lane, making a perfect setup for a right hook. Of course, my other problem is teaching clueless cyclists to move away from the curb on approaching an intersection.

I've had this happen to me (Riverside Blvd, for you Sacramentans). I've just kept slowing, slowing, slowing. They eventually get the idea, although they don't like it much. I can't wait for the day I'm riding my fixed gear because I'm just going to trackstand all day.

In the absence of continuous enforcement, local bus and bike lanes quickly become another row of cars.

Sheesh. Is the bike lane poorly marked, so maybe they didn't realize it is one? Or did you just find the winners of the 'JAM of the day' contest?

This is a classic case of drivers doing something illegal so often that they think its their right to do it.

...kinda like speeding?

At least in California, the correct way for a motorist to negotiate a right turn is to merge into the bike lane for the final 100 feet, 200 maximum. Properly designed bike lane demarcation stripes either disappear on final approach to an intersection or at least become dashed. My biggest problem is getting motorists to merge properly into the bike lane, instead of trying to turn right across the bike lane, making a perfect setup for a right hook. Of course, my other problem is teaching clueless cyclists to move away from the curb on approaching an intersection.

that's generally the case up here and also the problem with the barriers that were put in before they built te campus to stop the right turning motorists from driving in the bike lane.

Traffic is usually moving slow so it helps as you're approaching to watch drivers to look for any signs that they may make to see if they may possibly turn as you ride straight through the interection. Often, I'll merge into the traffic lane before the barriers, take the lane directly in front of the motorist so they can't right hook me.

Of course the amount of right-turners is way down at the barriers because now most of them are driving in the bike lane to turn through the campus parking lot to access the road instead of turning at the barriers.

...kinda like speeding?

zigzactly.

Ha, and I thought this was going to be about the slow ass lycra road bike dudes burning reds! They don't seem to like it when I actually stop at red lights! And I catch up to them so fast after, methinks if they did red light intervals they wouldn't be so slow after a few weeks. Thankfully winter does away with them.

But this one made ma laugh, I'll have to +1 Allister as what "Sounds like that bike lane needs to be made a bit narrower."

The other local paper printed my letter today.

I'll call some more people on Monday about this. Maybe someone noticed the letters and are willing to do something about this.


I made the call and got a reply.

Apparently, there's been a bit of a buzz about the situation and I haven't been the only one to bring up this problem.

They're going to put in new barriers.

Awright CB!!!

The last time I blocked (car) traffic in the bike lane, the driver decided to get revenge by pulling out from behind me, and then repeatedly swerving into the bike lane in front of me, presumably to teach me a lesson..?

And you don't want to know about the time before that.

I think maybe what I should do is take my camera with me.

Now that the cops know about this, and the camera is so small, I'll just whip it out and take a pic to email to the contact I made in my calls.

Put up a couple of these.

http://www.humanart.cz/art/517/517_1167850372.jpg

I Didn't check but i assume you can get them off ebay, if not you just need some angle Iron.