A Move To The Left Too Late?

Most streetside bike lanes I've seen on one-way streets are on the right side of the street and demarcated by painted lines and arrows.

The latter feature makes them only marginally, if at all, safer than the street itself for cyclists.  That is something those of us who cycle on a near-daily basis have long known and some planners are beginning to acknowledge.  On the other hand, the hazards of the other part of the equation--lane placement--haven't been as well-recognized.

The fact that the Spruce Street bike lane runs along the corridor's right side may have cost 24-year-old Emily Fredericks her life.  The pastry chef was pedaling to work in Philadelphia's Center City when a garbage truck moving in the same direction turned right from Spruce to 11th Street.

Ms. Fredericks discovered, the hard way, what makes crossing a busy intersection from a bike lane on the right side of the street so hazardous.  Too often, drivers--who, in the US (as in most of the world) are on the left side of their vehicles--have difficulty seeing cyclists or anyone else to the right of their vehicles.  That is especially true if the vehicle is large, like a garbage truck. 

Now Philadelphia city officials, who say they aren't merely reacting to Ms. Fredericks' death, are looking to "flip" bicycle and parking lanes:  the former would move to the left, and cars would be parked on the right.  According to Sarah Clark Stuart, president of the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, such a change would allow drivers to "see the bicyclist better because the blind spot is going to be much narrower."  She also wants to see physical barriers constructed but the city's proposal doesn't call for that.  But, she says, her organization supports it because at least the new lane configuration would provide some safety benefits quickly while allowing additional protections later on.

That does indeed sound like a good idea, at least as far as it goes.  While a cyclist crossing an intersection or making a left turn from a left-hand lane wouldn't be in as much danger as a cyclist making the same moves from a right-hand lane,  painted lines aren't going to protect cyclists (or, for that matter, pedestrians) from a driver that swerves or veers out of the motor lane.  Also, I don't think "flipping" lanes negates the need for cyclists or pedestrians to cross intersections ahead of motorized traffic.  That is really the only way a motorist who is turning in the same direction as the location of the lane will see a cyclist (or pedestrian) who is crossing an intersection.

So, for now, it looks like the City of Brotherly Love is embracing cyclists--with one arm.

A New Low In Bike Theft?

Adding insult to injury

Stealing from the grave

No honor among thieves

Any one of those dreary cliches applies, at least somewhat, to what I'm about to report.

In Fullerton, California a 65-year-old woman was walking her bicycle across Brookhurst Street, just south of Valencia Drive (one of the area's main corridors), the other morning.  A 2015 black Mazda sedan was traveling southbound on Brookhurst and had just crossed Valencia when it smacked into the woman.



To her credit, the driver--a 26-year-old woman--has cooperated with investigators.  She did not appear to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol.  And, in her defense, looking at a map and street view lead me to believe eyewitness and police accounts that say the woman with the bicycle wasn't in a crosswalk when she tried to get to the other side of Brookhurst from the Fullerton Armory.

Here is where the story gets considerably murkier:  When police and paramedics arrived, the bicycle was missing.  According to police Sergeant John Radus, it was stolen.  He says that his department wants it for evidence.

Of course, being the skeptical New Yorker that I am, I have to ask:  When, exactly, was it stolen?  Did the driver--who remained at the scene--see the theft or, more to the point, the thief?  

Since it seems unlikely, to say the least, that the bike simply vanished, I would believe that it was stolen by somebody.  

That woman with the bicycle was was crossing just after 6 am:  when residents of the Armory, which is a homeless shelter, are required to leave.  If that woman was homeless--as seems likely--she may not have had much else besides that bike.  

Could this be a new low in bike theft?

Into Daylight--More Of It

How do you know it's Spring?

Well, the weather hasn't been in tune with the season, at least in these parts.  But I can see more daylight in each day--to the point that early morning commutes beginning in darkness pass through the sunrise and end in early morning light, all within the space of not much more than half an hour.

So, you ask, what am I doing on such early commutes?  Well, two days a week, I have 8 am classes and I like to arrive early to prepare my lessons, and myself.

The early morning ride certainly helps!