BroMax

What can this sign mean?:

No turns from bike lane

I saw one today in Salem, Oregon on Commercial Street, south side of Trade Street intersection. What could it mean? If I'm in the bike lane, am I required to stay on Commercial, even if I really want to turn right onto Trade? Or does it mean that motorists, who usually begin a right turn in the lane closest to the curb are expected instead to start their turn while they are to the left of the bike lane so as to clear the lane quickly? If that's the intent, then implicit in that is the idea that traffic control signs don't apply to bicycles.

This would be clearer to me (if it is indeed what the sign is supposed to mean):

No motor traffic in bike lane.

That would allow traffic to cross the bike lane just as it crosses a railroad track but it would keep the rights-of-way separate except at crossing points.

Or is it just me?

here and there

If it applies to bicycles then I'm guessing it means that if you want to turn right you have to merge into the proper traffic lane to make the turn. Doesn't make much sense though as that would defeat the purpose of having a separate bike lane. I'd contact local authorities and find out what their intention is with that sign.

operator

It probably means you are not allowed to turn left out of the bike lane since that requires moving across the lane and probably another one which = dangerous.

johnny99

If there is a right turn only lane to the right of the bike lane, then the merge out of the bike lane idea makes a lot of sense. Obviously, a cyclist should merge into the lane to the left before turning left. Can the OP post a photo of this intersection?

randya

Assinine sign. Complain to someone to clarify.

CommuterRun

It means if a motor vehicle operator is turning right, they do it from the motor vehicle lane and cross the BL. They shouldn't pull into the BL to execute the turn.

The legalities of using a BL to execute a right turn vary by location.

I could be wrong for your location.

SamHouston

I've seen them, they are usually accompanied by a graphic depicting a 3-point left turn using pedestrian facilities. Usually at large, busy intersections with fast moving traffic where local bikelane dispensing commitees think people might be at risk attempting lefts as vehicles. Bloor & Sherbourne here in Toronto for example, though that intersection has a better sign than the one you describe. Without the graphic it would make less sense, with graphic it still makes no sense as it wouldn't be kosher to turn left from a bike lane in any circumstance I'm aware of. I guess it could be for right turns if you come to a bike lane street where car traffic is restricted from making right turns. In TO bicycles are excepted from restrictions against turning right at many intersections (Bay & Bloor) but not all (Queen & Yonge)

2manybikes

Sign should be corrected to read

No one understands bike lane

Cyclist0094

I have seen that sign before in other places. it is intended to prevent motorists from using the bike lane as a curb lane to pass other motorists on the right when making a right turn in stopped traffic.

Nermal

You're probably right, velonomad. Still, the best thing anyone (bike or motorist) can do in traffic is to be predictable, and avoid confusing people. This sign is not a part of the solution.

alanbikehouston

I won't ride on a street that has a bike lane. And one of the reasons is vehicles must either get into the bike lane to turn right, or must pass you on the left and then turn directly into your front wheel to turn right.

In my city, marked bike lanes are placed only on streets where the flow of traffic is heavy, and the average speed is near 40 mph. The bike lanes are filled with pot holes, storm drains, dirt, mud, glass, and broken metal. The mirrors on trucks come within inches of your left elbow. There are many ways to commit suicide, but riding in a Houston bike lane would be one of the messiest ones.

Instead, I learn how to get from "A to B" on the narrowest streets possible. The inner city where I live is full of streets too narrow for driving fast. These streets are filled with parked cars, speed bumps, and lanes so narrow trucks avoid using that street.

The only folks driving on these narrow back streets live in the neighborhood, and they assume a cyclist is one of their neighbors, or perhaps member of their own family. They don't mind driving at 15 mph behind a cyclist for a half a block or so, because their destination is close by, and the average speed on such streets is around 20 mph anyway.

Sadly, in the newer neighborhoods in Houston, cycling from "A to B" is impossible. Each neighborhood can be entered only from a major street that has four, six, or eight lanes of high speed traffic. Cars moving bumper to bumper at 40 mph to 50 mph. It is impossible to go from one neighborhood to another without using such a street. You never see anyone ride a bike in such neighborhoods. Nor do you see anyone walking in these neighborhoods. There are no sidewalks. And walking in the road would mean instant death.

BroMax

This is the most plausible explanation. The city needs a bigger sign, so they can explain it as lucidly as you have done here.

I will see if I can get a traffic engineer from the city/county to read this thread. If I wanted to be scrupulous about not committing a violation at that intersection, I'd avoid making any turns, either as a bicyclist or a motorist. The sign fails to solve whatever problem prompted it to be posted there.