02.2 - Bike Lanes - DCC-UMX

Where are bike lanes proper?

Low traffic roads

Slow streets/roads

Speeds less than 30 km/h

Local streets

Inside neighbourhoods we can use bike lanes to form a network.

The direction of bike lanes

• Regular bike lane - same direction as car
• Counterflow bike lane - opposite direction to car turning a one way steet into 2 ways street
  • Watch out for intersections

Separating from other road users

We need to look at bike lanes from the cyclist's prospective

Separation on the left

When the bike lane is situated on the right side of the car lane, this refers to the separation between car traffic and bike lane.

Separation can be obtained in 3 ways:

• Dashed line - cars are allowed to enter the lane if needed
• Solid line - cars are not allowed to enter the lane
• Buffer - greater separation between bike lane and car lane

Separation on the right

When the bike lane is situated on the right side of the car lane, this refers to the separation between the bike lane and the sidewalk.

Make sure that the curb does not cause a risk to cyclist.

Sometimes, there can be a parking lane between the bike lane and the sidewalk.

• Separation on left should be a dashed line to allow cars to park
• Separation on right should have a buffer to allow drivers to open the car door without hitting cyclists (avoid dooring)

Specifications

What to look for

• Good and sufficient width
  • 170 to 225 cm. 180 cm is safe as it allows for enough separation to car traffic
• Symbol of a bicycle
• Surface color
  • Can be any color (red, blue, green) as long as the same color is used on the entire network

Pros and cons

• [p] Easy and cheap to apply

• [p] Ideal for slow, quiet streets

• [p] Unlocks streets and networks (especially for counterflow)

• [p] They take limited amount space

• [c] Safety risk - bikers are very close to car traffic

• [c] Exposure to emissions

• [c] Too-easy to apply: cities may apply them when other types of infrastructure would be more suitable