A friend of mine was killed 11 years ago near Dupont Circle while riding in the bike lane. Garbage truck made a right turn into the bike lane and crushed her. Driver never checked the bike lane before turning and didn’t realize she was there. I won’t criticize bicyclists for not using bike lanes.

Anonymous wrote:Delivery trucks and Uber drivers park in the bike lanes. The you have to swerve into high-speed traffic to get around them.

Not on the hill. if you are an adult and can’t figure out how to bike around the Hill in bikelanes, you have issues. maybe just walk?

Delivery trucks and Uber drivers park in the bike lanes. The you have to swerve into high-speed traffic to get around them.

Anonymous wrote:Op here. Ok- so what would help bike lines become more useable? A barrier (like they have in some turn lanes) to separate bike lines from cars?
It just seems like such a waste to have a lane & not have bikes be able to use it.

Bikes can use it. The riders are just lazy or uniformed.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I usually only see this when people are biking with their kids these days on the Hill. I only do this myself if for some reason I have to go a block against traffic, although I usually try to avoid that. I might ride on the sidewalk if the road was an arterial (like Penn Ave at rush hour) but I will always opt to use a bike lane or street if it's available. I think some people are just too lazy to plan a route that enables them to stay off the sidewalk.

For the person who mentioned dooring - just ride at the edge of the lane!

If you ride on the parked-car side, the risk is that someone in a parked car will open the car door into you.

If you ride on the moving-car side, the risk is that someone in a moving car will sideswipe you.

So, OP - Why do some people not use painted (unprotected) bike lanes next to a row of parked cars? Because they don't feel safe riding in painted (unprotected) bike lanes next to a row of parked cars.

take the lane. I’ve never felt more like I was going to be hit by a car than when I was riding on the sidewalk and crossing intersections with poor visibility to cars. Sideswipe, rear end, or overtaking accidents are very rare.

Op here. Ok- so what would help bike lines become more useable? A barrier (like they have in some turn lanes) to separate bike lines from cars?
It just seems like such a waste to have a lane & not have bikes be able to use it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I usually only see this when people are biking with their kids these days on the Hill. I only do this myself if for some reason I have to go a block against traffic, although I usually try to avoid that. I might ride on the sidewalk if the road was an arterial (like Penn Ave at rush hour) but I will always opt to use a bike lane or street if it's available. I think some people are just too lazy to plan a route that enables them to stay off the sidewalk.

For the person who mentioned dooring - just ride at the edge of the lane!

If you ride on the parked-car side, the risk is that someone in a parked car will open the car door into you.

If you ride on the moving-car side, the risk is that someone in a moving car will sideswipe you.

So, OP - Why do some people not use painted (unprotected) bike lanes next to a row of parked cars? Because they don't feel safe riding in painted (unprotected) bike lanes next to a row of parked cars.

^^^I will add that nobody should be "barreling" down a sidewalk on a bike (or anything else). When you ride a bike on a sidewalk, you should ride slowly and give walkers the right-of-way.

Anonymous wrote:I usually only see this when people are biking with their kids these days on the Hill. I only do this myself if for some reason I have to go a block against traffic, although I usually try to avoid that. I might ride on the sidewalk if the road was an arterial (like Penn Ave at rush hour) but I will always opt to use a bike lane or street if it's available. I think some people are just too lazy to plan a route that enables them to stay off the sidewalk.

For the person who mentioned dooring - just ride at the edge of the lane!

If you ride on the parked-car side, the risk is that someone in a parked car will open the car door into you.

If you ride on the moving-car side, the risk is that someone in a moving car will sideswipe you.

So, OP - Why do some people not use painted (unprotected) bike lanes next to a row of parked cars? Because they don't feel safe riding in painted (unprotected) bike lanes next to a row of parked cars.

I don’t think that anyone who pushes for bike lanes does so and then doesn’t use them.

Anonymous wrote:Reiterating what some people have said above.

Paint is not protection. Not everyone has health / life insurance, so the risk of being hit or doored weighs more heavily. I know a day laborer who was hit while riding his bike. He got busted up, but he had to work through it anyway. I can imagine him riding on the sidewalk now out of fear.

I have ridden with my kids in painted bike lanes (they are on their own bikes) and it SUCKS. I want them to learn but I don’t want them to die.

If there’s no one around, or so few that it’s safe and the place I’m coming from / going to is on the block then I may pull up a curb cut to get onto the sidewalk rather than dismount in the street.

The people advocating for them use them, but some people may not know.

don't forget that it's unsafe to ride off the sidewalk at full speed. that's a great way to get hit by a turning car.

Reiterating what some people have said above.

Paint is not protection. Not everyone has health / life insurance, so the risk of being hit or doored weighs more heavily. I know a day laborer who was hit while riding his bike. He got busted up, but he had to work through it anyway. I can imagine him riding on the sidewalk now out of fear.

I have ridden with my kids in painted bike lanes (they are on their own bikes) and it SUCKS. I want them to learn but I don’t want them to die.

If there’s no one around, or so few that it’s safe and the place I’m coming from / going to is on the block then I may pull up a curb cut to get onto the sidewalk rather than dismount in the street.

The people advocating for them use them, but some people may not know.

Anonymous wrote:I usually only see this when people are biking with their kids these days on the Hill. I only do this myself if for some reason I have to go a block against traffic, although I usually try to avoid that. I might ride on the sidewalk if the road was an arterial (like Penn Ave at rush hour) but I will always opt to use a bike lane or street if it's available. I think some people are just too lazy to plan a route that enables them to stay off the sidewalk.

For the person who mentioned dooring - just ride at the edge of the lane!

I generally do, though with lots of traffic in the general travel lane to my left I am reluctant to ride right on the left stripe. Even if you don't hit the door, its scary when a door opens right in front of you. I mean there are reasons we want bike lanes that wide, including that even the best of us sometimes wobble.

I usually only see this when people are biking with their kids these days on the Hill. I only do this myself if for some reason I have to go a block against traffic, although I usually try to avoid that. I might ride on the sidewalk if the road was an arterial (like Penn Ave at rush hour) but I will always opt to use a bike lane or street if it's available. I think some people are just too lazy to plan a route that enables them to stay off the sidewalk.

For the person who mentioned dooring - just ride at the edge of the lane!

Anonymous wrote:Truly trying to understand. My commute involves about a half mile walk in Capitol Hill. I’m amazed at the number of folks barreling down the sidewalk on bikes, next to a bike line. I’m assuming bike riders push for bike lines & then ignore them? I don’t get it.

1. Sometimes the bike lane is dangerous because its next to parked cars, and there is a danger from dooring.

2. Sometimes the bike lane has a direction, and the person needs to go in the other direction. Or they are going to or from a location on that block, and they need to ride the sidewalk to get to the corner (rather than try to squeeze between parked cars)

3. Some people, esp kids, some new immigrants, some people who have biked since the bad old days when there were no bike lanes, are really afraid of cars, and will not ride in the road even when there is a bike lane. Especially if the only thing protecting the bike lane from cars is paint.

To be clear, I push for bike lanes. And I ride in them all the time. But the other day I was almost doored in one. I also often have to ride a sidewalk to get the last half block to my specific location.

Truly trying to understand. My commute involves about a half mile walk in Capitol Hill. I’m amazed at the number of folks barreling down the sidewalk on bikes, next to a bike line. I’m assuming bike riders push for bike lines & then ignore them? I don’t get it.