Advisory Bike Lanes

[S. Arlington Observer]

Thanks for starting this thread, but for the sake of those having trouble following the previous discussions, can you start off with some background on the term “Advisory Bike Lanes” and a recap of what lead to this thread. Thank you.

Actually, found this, which is a good start: http://www.alexandriava.gov/localmotion/info/default.aspx?id=84177

[sjclaeys]

Here is more on the issue: http://www.thewashcycle.com/2015/06/alexandria-installs-regions-first-advisory-bike-lanes.html#comments

[GovernorSilver]

One difference I notice in the Dutch version is that the advisory bike lanes are a different color than the motorists’ section.

I don’t know if the two-color scheme is feasible to implement on the scale of Alexandria (the City and the Fairfax county sections like). Still, I wouldn’t mind if these were added to my neighborhood.

[mstone]

@GovernorSilver 117674 wrote:

One difference I notice in the Dutch version is that the advisory bike lanes are a different color than the motorists’ section.

The biggest difference is that the Dutch don’t run them right next to parked cars. They usually don’t put them alongside cars at all, and if they have to there’s an additional buffer space between the edge of the parking and the beginning of the bike lane. See http://bikeportland.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/advisory-bike-lanes-geller-presentation.pdf

Even when US DOTs copy the Dutch, they manage to do it wrong.

[Fairlington124]

@mstone 117678 wrote:

The biggest difference is that the Dutch don’t run them right next to parked cars.

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[lordofthemark]

The dutch street in the earlier (edit, not the pic just above) picture is narrower, curb to curb, and Potomac Greens Drive. Clearly PGD should not have been built as wide as it was from the get go. I do not know if the neighborhood would be amenable to giving up the parking to get wider sidewalks, more park space, or whatever, but the major issue preventing that would likely be $$, since rebuilding curbs is considerably more costly than striping bike lanes (see also, King Street lanes)

(At this point we divert into a discussion of the City’s financial situation, and of how much it spent on its most recent large road project. )

As I said, this kind of bike infra is traffic calming on the cheap, with ancillary benefits for cycling. If folks think that accepting that is a bad approach for cycling advocates in Alexandria, I can only ask if they have had greater success in their own jurisdictions with alternate approaches.

[mstone]

@Fairlington124 117679 wrote:

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I’d guess they haven’t gotten around to bringing that street up to the current standard; even in the Netherlands they don’t rebuild all their infrastructure all at once. The question is whether they’d start a brand new project with a door zone bike lane. Look at the examples in the doc I linked earlier, or reference the design guides. In general there’s a gutter/drain pan between a bike lane and the cars, or some other separator between parking and the bike lane. Ideally the bike lane is to the right of the cars (as you can see elsewhere in the video that frame came from) and at a different grade. I think in an example like the one above they use a minimum 6 foot bike lane to compensate for the lack of other separators. That’s something that could be done pretty easily at Potomac Greens, but then they’d have to change the 17 foot car lane to 15 or even 13 feet. THE HORROR!

[Fairlington124]

Given that Potomac Green accommodates two-way traffic, you could argue that it’s effectively two 8.5-foot lanes

[mstone]

@Fairlington124 117683 wrote:

Given that Potomac Green accommodates two-way traffic, you could argue that it’s effectively two 8.5-foot lanes

Visually, it’s a 17 foot lane. Certainly the designers are advertising it as two 8.5 foot lanes, but there is no center line so the visual cue is 17 feet wide. Which is f’ing huge. I don’t see how someone is going to feel traffic calmed if they’re looking at a straightaway with good visibility and a 17 foot lane.

Also, and very interesting, the neighborhood presentation had a 7 foot parking lane and 6 foot bike lane but it looks like the final design is 8 foot parking lanes and 5 foot bike lanes (leaving the 17 foot center lane intact in both versions).

[GovernorSilver]

What is the difference between an “advisory bike lane” and a “conventional bike lane”? The two types look the same to me.

http://www.peopleforbikes.org/blog/entry/a-field-guide-to-north-american-bike-lanes

[sjclaeys]

First people say that cars should be able to cross bike lanes with solid lines in Arlington and now they are upset with cars crossing dashed lines in Alexandria, I’M SO CONFUSED!
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[CaseyKane50]

@GovernorSilver 117688 wrote:

What is the difference between an “advisory bike lane” and a “conventional bike lane”? The two types look the same to me.

http://www.peopleforbikes.org/blog/entry/a-field-guide-to-north-american-bike-lanes

Here is a video http://youtu.be/eeDDYfUP4BU made by the City of Minneapolis that might help.

[GovernorSilver]

@CaseyKane50 117695 wrote:

Here is a video http://youtu.be/eeDDYfUP4BU made by the City of Minneapolis that might help.

This is good. Thanks.

[lordofthemark]

http://www.thewashcycle.com/2015/09/the-women-speak-up.html

JH: Our bicycle network in Alexandria is far from perfect, but the City has made great strides. As a resident of Potomac Greens, I love the new “advisory bike lanes.” I am so much more comfortable on my daily commute now that I have a designated space to ride, and traffic speeds are definitively lower. I have seen young families riding together in the new bike lanes, where they previously would have ridden on the sidewalk in order to feel safe.

[Author]

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