Bike Lanes?

Rich158

This may sound daft but are bike lanes a good idea?

Yesterday I was on my daily commute through south London, in a bike lane going past a line of stationary traffic, when two girls stepped out from behind a van into the bike lane without looking. Luckilly i managed to avoid them, but couldn't avoid swerving, hitting the kerb, and being thrown over the bars, all at about 15 mph. There was an unmarked crossing, indicated by a couple of slabs of tactile paving either side of the road, which I hadn't seen, so obvioulsy the girls in question thought they could walk between the stationary cars without paying any attention to other road users, namely me.

Sorry if this is all a bit rambling, but the point my other half made when I got home was that I should have been paying greater attention and that the bike lane had made me complacent.

This got me thinking, and I think she has a point, rather than riding along looking at the car drivers thinking 'suckers, I'm quicker than you', I should have seen the crossing and expected someone to walk out in front of me.

Would be better off without bike lanes in this case? Many are very poorly implemented and not observed by cars/lorries/busses anyway. If we got rid of them it may make everyone more aware of the space needed by other road users.

Bassjunkieuk

Cycle lanes are often a personal choice. In the case of your accident I think it is a case of the blame could fall either way.
The girls should have been checking for other road traffic as they crossed, after all just because the big cars can't move, motorbikes, scooters and bicycles can still filter down between the stationary traffic.
As for yourself you always have to be very careful when filtering through traffic as people can step out or car doors can be thrown open with no warning! I've had a few near misses as people have tried to cross between what appears to be stationary traffic.

The important thing to remember is that just because a cycle lane is there you aren't required to use it. There is a rather stupid one that I always avoid in central Croydon that takes the cyclist off the main carriageway and spits you back out on the tram lines, which you then have to cross to get to the bus lane! I stick with the main carriageway, normally taking a primary position to avoid the poor road surface and join the bus lane from there.
If you think that using the cycle lane is going to put you in a more vulnerable position then don't use it, your much better off where car drivers and other road users will pay attention to you! With bad traffic I normally find it easier to follow the same route that most motorbike riders use; down the right hand side :-)

spen666

Rich158 wrote:

This may sound daft but are bike lanes a good idea?

...

This is as contentious as the helmet debate or the shimaNO v Campag debate or the marmite debate

ansbaradigeidfran

Or the Marmite vs Nutella debate...

Rich158

to be honest I hadn't realised this was such a contentious issue being a newbie. What brought it home to me was driving accross Blackheath this morning I noticed there is a bike lane, and plenty of room for the traffic. However 90% of the cars straddled the bike lane for no good reason at all, I always wondered why nobody uses it.

As for the location of bike lanes etc, I do honestly wonder if anyone in the councils traffic department has ever ridden a bike on the road. Although LA traffic departments are something I could rant about for hours

And for the record

Helmet worn at all times
Shimano
Nutella

Squaggles

Of course they have never ridden a bike otherwise they wouldn't design such terrible 'facilities' for cyclists .

Eau Rouge

Rich158 wrote:

As for the location of bike lanes etc, I do honestly wonder if anyone in the councils traffic department has ever ridden a bike on the road.

Don't they design cycling facilities for what I term "pedestrians on bikes". People who are, for all intents and purposes, pedestrians who just happen to be on a bike, doing about 5mph, and perfectly happy to stop and wait to cross traffic and use the path on the other side of the road, as opposed to 'cyclists' i.e. vehicle drivers without an engine.
How else can anyone explain the terrible "multi-use path"

spen666

Eau Rouge wrote:

Rich158 wrote:

As for the location of bike lanes etc, I do honestly wonder if anyone in the councils traffic department has ever ridden a bike on the road.

Don't they design cycling facilities for what I term "pedestrians on bikes". People who are, for all intents and purposes, pedestrians who just happen to be on a bike, doing about 5mph, and perfectly happy to stop and wait to cross traffic and use the path on the other side of the road, as opposed to 'cyclists' i.e. vehicle drivers without an engine.
How else can anyone explain the terrible "multi-use path"

an interesting observation. I suspect you may well be very accurate with this view