[SDCBC] Joggers in the Bike Lane - WTF

[Serge Issakov]

Good points, Trevor.  Also, if either the jogger or the motorist (or both)
was paying less attention to what was on the other side of the bike lane
stripe because they subconsciously assumed that the stripe would do what it
normally does - keep separated lines of traffic separated - then they would
be paying more attention if the bike lane stripe had not been there, and
perhaps yet another bike lane tragedy (which easily could have involved a
cyclist) could have been avoided.

I believe the concept of shared
space<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shared_space>pioneered by Hans
Monderman applies here:

(more below)

> *Shared space* is a term used to describe an approach to the design,
> management and maintenance of public spaces<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_space>which reduces the adverse effects of conventional traffic
> engineering <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traffic_engineering>. The shared
> space approach is based on the observation that individuals' behaviour<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_behavior>in
> traffic <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traffic> is more positively affected
> by the built environment <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Built_environment>of the public space than it is by conventional traffic
> control devices<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vienna_Convention_on_Road_Signs_and_Signals>(signals, signs, road markings, etc.) and
> regulations <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rules_of_the_road>.[1]<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shared_space#_note-0>This approach is considered to have been pioneered by Hans
> Monderman <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Monderman>.[2]<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shared_space#_note-1>
>
The philosophy
>
> Safety, congestion, economic vitality and community severance can be
> effectively tackled in streets and other public spaces if they are designed
> and managed to allow traffic to be fully integrated with other human
> activity, not separated from it. A major characteristic of a street designed
> to this philosophy is the absence of traditional road markings, signs,
> traffic signals and the distinction between "road" and "pavement<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sidewalk>".
> User behaviour becomes influenced and controlled by natural human
> interactions rather than by artificial regulation.
>
There is a tradeoff between traffic throughput and the slower speeds/lesser
throughput implied by shared space, so I'm not a proponent of removing all
stripes, signs and pavement (Wade, to answer your question from a few days
ago: I think fog lines and shoulder stripes have their purpose too - but I'm
wary of riding to the right of them just as I'm wary of riding to the right
of a bike lane stripe), but in the case of bike lane stripes I think
bicyclists (and joggers) are much better off if the outside lane is one big
attention-enhancing "shared space" (a.k.a. Wide Outside Lane, or WOL) rather
than the attention-inhibiting "stripe separated space" (a.k.a. bike lane).
The relatively minor reduction in throughput (caused by motorists perhaps
having to slow a bit because they're being more careful due to the lack of
separating stripe) is a valuable tradeoff, for the increased attention,
lower speed differentials and better safety.

These tragedies are practically unheard of in shared space WOLs, and are all
too common in bike lanes.  I believe this is because everyone (motorists,
bicyclists, peds and joggers) pays more attention in shared space WOLs, and
less attention around bike lanes, and every time yet another person dies in
a bike lane from yet another "inadvertent drift" into an
*unnoticed*occupant of the bike lane, I am only more convinced that
bike lanes cause
create more harm than good for cyclists.

Serge


On Thu, Mar 6, 2008 at 10:01 AM, <trevorspoke at cox.net> wrote:

> > http://www.ocregister.com/news/bake-parkway-1991108
>
> In California, at least, the law is that peds must use any suitable
> adjacent pedestrian facility. Most joggers would reasonably be expected to
> agree with each other that the concrete sidewalk is not suitable for
> jogging.
>
> The jogger was proceeding in the proper direction, facing vehicular
> traffic. In California, peds in the bike lane must yield to all vehicular
> traffic (for example, cyclists). Being in a bike lane, where the motorist is
> not allowed to drive, the ped is forgiven for not yielding to the motorist
> by getting out of the roadway.
>
> I hate the use of the word "veer" in news articles, because mostly it is
> used as a synonym for "drifted" when in fact it is a much more abrupt change
> of position. However, a ped facing motor traffic should be able to hop onto
> the curb before being run over, I'd think, unless the driver actually did
> perform an extreme and sudden swerve.
>
> -- Trevor
>
>
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-- 
NOTE: Any opinions expressed above are mine and not necessarily shared by
any organization in which I am involved.
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