New Bike Lane On Columbus Ave.
Written by Boston Biker on Aug 26I have gotten some reports that a new half mile of bike lane was painted on Columbus ave in the back bay/south end area last night. From what I hear they are not stenciled yet (the bike symbol isn’t on them, just the lines, which from what I understand are done by different people), anyone got any pictures?
EDIT: Hurray BostonBiker.org Bloggers! Not only did you produce pictures of the new bike lane almost as soon as I had posted this, but I think you are all awesome as well!
From chic cyclists’s blog.
Tags: bike lane, columbus ave, new
Posted in advocacy, news | 10 Comments »
By dtewfik
on Aug 26, 2009 | Reply
I saw this today on my way to work. And it looks awesome. Columbus has been sitting a while with a two lane road with one almost always used for parking. Thank god!
By m2mayer
on Aug 26, 2009 | Reply
chiccyclist has pics on her page
By Paul
on Aug 26, 2009 | Reply
Thank god is right – now those pesky cars will be parked in the bike lane rather than a travel lane!
Seriously, though. I’d rather see a bike lane there and be misused than no bike lane at all.
Although I definitely have issues with bike lanes (main argument: they make drivers think cyclists are *relegated* to the bike lane only), I think they help in that they show drivers (especially newer, younger, more impressionable ones) that the road is there to be shared, and they should expect to see cyclists on pavement rather than concrete.
By mms
on Aug 26, 2009 | Reply
I loved seeing this new lane this morning! Though, I have to mention, there was a strange stretch where is appears road lane markers (the dashed white lines) are on the inside of the bike lane. Any idea why this is? Ill try to post pics!
By daisy
on Aug 27, 2009 | Reply
How come the lanes begin/end at Dartmouth Street? Why don’t they continue on Columbus Avenue to Park Square?
By BostonBiker
on Aug 27, 2009 | Reply
daisy I have no idea, you would have to contact the city of boston, but my suspicion is it a mix of the following concerns:
1. budget
2. street size
3. safety concerns
4. local opposition (it happens more than you would think)
5. other (for instance they may plan on putting in more sections when that part of the road is repaved etc.)
I have no idea if that is true, if you wanted to know for sure you would have to talk to the city. I would start with Nicole Freedman as she is pretty in the know about these sort of things.
By G Money
on Sep 9, 2009 | Reply
I noticed the new bike lane on Columbus and think this is a potential disaster for bikers — the entire lane is squarely in the door zone of the parked cars! It is much safer for a biker to be in the lane, away from car doors, but now people will claim we should be in this dangerous bike path instead of taking the lane, which is a right guaranteed by state law.
By Adam
on Sep 9, 2009 | Reply
Another death trap for cyclist – car door flings open, cyclist hits it and bounces into the street and then gets run over.
Hey why don’t we just swap the bike lane with the car lane so that the bike lanes are in the middle and the car lane is right next to the parked cars?
The civil engineers who designs these kind of bike lanes need to consult bike commuters before painting death traps in the road.
By JRR
on Sep 10, 2009 | Reply
That bike lane is right in the door zone. Honestly, I’d avoid it and ride in the traffic lane if there were any parked cars there at all.
I like the idea of putting a CAR lane next to parked cars. Then when people fling their doors open without looking, they lose a door instead of killing a cyclist.
By Paul Schimek
on Sep 17, 2009 | Reply
At least the North Harvard Street project gives you new pavement and more width (due to removal of parking lane). This was a street that already had plenty of room for lane-sharing (thanks to historical accident, where the right lane was designed as a travel lane, but it is parking except for a few hours a week – during street cleaning). They painted lane lines right over holes and broken glass.
As others have noted you have to be on the left stripe dividing the bike lane from the travel lane (“car lane” now), no further right, to avoid opening doors and cars pulling out of side streets. But don’t tell any of the novices who will be attracted by the new lane. It’s a secret.
And although the fine is now $100 instead of $45, there is still chronic double-parking, with no apparent enforcement. Why do people double park? There is absolutely no space at the curb, because PARKING IS COMPLETELY UNREGULATED. You could park for a week (you would only have to move the car for weekly street sweeping). Between Dartmouth & Arlington, parking is metered and limited to 2 hours during the day, and resident only parking at night. There are plenty of empty spots there when I pass on my way to work. But along the rest of the length of the bike lane, all delivery and work vehicles have to double-park.
Did they not think of doing anything with parking regulations, or was it dismissed as too difficult to change?
The police have promised in the past that they will not ticket double-parkers.