Maybe it's just me, but I hate the "share the road" signs. The implication is that cars are supposed to share a lane with bikes, which isn't really true. They should never try to occupy the same space. I think it encourages cars passing too close or yelling at us to get on the shoulder.


I am not sure what other slogan should be used. What do you think is a better slogan?

Some one on here has the sign "bike has right to full lane" for their avatar, I always liked that.

But with the proper training, "Share The Road" makes perfect since. We have just as much right as they do, so we should share.

Some lanes are wide enough to share and some are not. We don't have any share the road signs around my area, but I wish we did. I think it would help our motorists understand that we do belong. Since they hardly ever see a cyclist on the road in the lane, they figure we don't belong there.

"I Share The Road"

Many cagers think the "share the road" signs are to remind the bicyclists that the road is for cars also.

Maybe the sign should simply say "watch for bicycles".

Yes, I've heard stories about bicyclists having cagers yell "share the road!" at them. A simple change to the signs would suffice: "Drivers: share the road!". Anyone up for making "Drivers:" stickers to put on these signs? Not sure about the legality of doing this, but it would certainly help to clear up the confusion.

How about spending the energy it would take to do this, putting it toward actually getting the locales to change their signs? It's a good message, but it would be even better to get the "lawmakers" behind it.

That would be a much better idea, and would likely cause less anti-cyclist feeling among the cagers and their ilk. Don't want them thinking we're all just a bunch of vandalising hippies (with apologies to the actual vandalising hippies out there ).

No offence taken or granted. If you you want to change it, go to your rep.

Here we have the caution sign with a picture of a bike and below that the sign that says share the road. So the whole thing reads “Bikes share the road.” I had a very “energetic” SUV driver point that out to me and he “politely” offered the following advice: “So get out of my way!”

I prefer if those signs were used separately or if they used the sign “Share the road with bikes” but overall I think the signs help.

As for what signs I like (that avoid the share the road slogan):

Watch for bikes
https://www.marylandroads.com/busines...f/W11-1(1).pdf

Or the more standard:

Caution bike (symbol)
https://www.marylandroads.com/busines.../pdf/W11-1.pdf

Thanks.

And to me, "share" is something you do voluntarily with stuff you own, often against your wishes ("You need to share your toys with your little brother.")

Sharing the road is not voluntary. It's the law. And it's not "your" road to share. It's everybody's.

+1 for "Bicycles allowed use of full lane" on signs.

Exactly! Sharing sounds too voluntary. Drivers of cars seem to think we don't belong in the road. They need something more than the subtle "share the road" signs. They need to be told we belong in the road. The "...use of full lane" signs do this well.

Last year I suggested to the local Bike-and-Ped-group, that "Share the Road" came across more like, "Share the Lane" to motorists, because I found that motorists try to squeeze themselves in the lane with the cyclist. They completely lambasted me. To me it's a shame that we can't all agree about this, because we're such a small group to begin with, that divided we have no weight to throw behind any action we might resolve to take.

I agree. Something like, "Same Roads, Same Rules, Same Rights" seems much better.

Or what about something with 'folk' appeal like, "This Lane Is My Lane", ala Woody Guthrie.

I'm pessimistic about any change, however. Motorists tend to ignore most signs, Speed 'Limit' for example.
Drivers won't alter their behavior unless laws and regulations are adequately enforced.

Funny this should come up now. I was just on vacation in northern NY state and saw for the first time a lot of signs that said simply "Shared Roadway" with a picture of a bike. I realized that I liked that so much better than "Share the Road". It's the difference between a statement of accomplished fact versus a mere request. I'm really interested in these signs now. Anyone else seen them?

Certainly. I'll start by recommending it to the Bicycle Coalition of Maine (BCM) a bicycle club which not only has members in Maine but in other states and Canada.

Maybe it is me but when I see those signs, it usually means it is going to be a bad road for a bike to be on with plenty of traffic. I know when I toured through Milledgeville, GA, when I saw that sign, the shoulder disappeared and traffic increased megafold.

I never see these signs on quiet backroads.

I haven't liked that one since a motorist yelled it as he buzzed me. Lots of motorists believe that cycling on the road is vaguely illegal, and it's too easy to turn that around into two wrongs make a right; i.e., "that cyclist shouldn't have been riding in the lane so I brushed him -- same roads same rules, after all!"

I'd like a slogan that conveys that cyclists have the right to use the road. Something like "Cycling is not a crime."

Exactly. It'll never be as easy as a new sign. Whatever the message, it's getting the word out about the law that will make the difference.

I like "This Lane is My Lane" though.

I found out that in Delaware most of the Share the Road signs were erected after a cyclist was injured/killed on that section of road. Some of the signs are on heavily trafficked arterials and some are on quiet backroads.

I think Share the Road signs fail as they come across as merely a suggestion, just like those speed signs on on/off ramps that are completely ignored. And some motorists interpret them as a warning to cyclists to move over out of their way (a small, but vocal minority). I'd prefer an official sign telling cyclists to use the full the lane and telling motorists to pass on the left. Not a warning, not a suggestion. DO it.

How about, "Change Lanes to Pass Bicyclists"?

Best one yet. I'd like to see that on some of my roads.