Originally Posted by Air
I've actually wondered why bike lanes aren't next to the curb, with a 'parking' lane next to them (putting parked cars between them and traffic). The only thought against that so far would be at intersections they wouldn't be as visible.
Way too invisible, I would say. They would have to provide some safe way of getting the cyclist back into the traffic flow for intersections, and the motorists would have no warning they were about to emerge (short of providing some kind of well-marked "bike merging zone"). Also, the lane would have to wide enough to allow the cyclist to ride out of the passenger-side door zone, the parked car would have to respect the line (right!), and the cyclist would then be open to pedestrian conflicts as passengers leave and enter the vehicle or just jay-walk between cars. (And a jay-walking ped coming from the street probably wouldn't see the cyclist coming.)