Filed under: On Two Wheels, Green Daily
Portland's "bike boxes" make the city even more bike-friendly
I've been a biker ever since my college days. I've used a bike to commute through Michigan (and northern Japanese) winters, hot times in Georgia and up steep residential streets in Hawai'i. But I've never biked in a place as bike-friendly as Portland, Oregon. I've only spent a few days there, but damn if that city doesn't put a premium on encouraging two-wheeled, human-powered transportation.
Still, whenever bikes and cars share the road, accidents are likely - and bikers almost always suffer for it. Following six bicycle deaths on city roads last year, new "bike boxes" will be added to 14 busy Portland intersections, according to The Oregonian. These boxes are common in Europe, but Portland is likely to be the first place in the U.S. to use them. The blue-painted areas are intended to give bikers a place to rest in front of automobiles at traffic lights and prevent accidents due to "right hooks" (where cars turning right hit a biker using the right side of the road). Cars will also be prevented from making right turns on red. The boxes make a lot of sense when bike are able to get to the bike box when the light is red, but they'll still need to be extra careful once traffic is moving.
[Source: Andy Dworkin / The Oregonian via Worldchanging]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
gsolman6 12:46PM (1/07/2008)
In case anyone is wondering "right hooks" are a common occurance. What makes it worse is the fact that vehicles come up behind you - so they can't say they didn't see the cyclist - and the turn right in front of the cyclist continuing to go straight. I think this is definitely good for at least a trial run in this country.
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why not the LS2LS7? 1:47PM (1/07/2008)
Taipei has these for scooters. Lots of scooters.
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Brian 2:22PM (1/07/2008)
Last time I checked my hometown of Victoria, BC was still part of North America. We have had bike boxes for at least 4 years.
They have generated some controversy here, although they seem to be quite common in europe (I have even seen them in London, England in areas I would not normally consider cycling).
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MarkR 2:38PM (1/07/2008)
As an avid cyclist and civil engineer, I wish they were on my commute. That's probably the best thing I've seen for cycling on the road in a long time. I'd probably rather have Bike boxes than bike lanes after seeing the concept.
In fact I oppose Bike lanes because in my experience I believe they encourage accidents and road rage against cyclist. Not to mention road debris builds up, causing flats, in bike lanes because cars won't/can't drive in the bike lane.
But thats just my 2 cents as a Civil Engineer that commutes to work via bike 3 days a week and puts on about 100-300 additional miles a week just for the fun of it.
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Andrew 9:09AM (1/08/2008)
@ Brian:
The article says "but Portland is likely to be the first place in the U.S. to use them." Last time I checked, Victoria, BC is not part of the U.S.
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Wildgoosechase 4:41PM (1/08/2008)
That sounds great, I don't have a problem with sharing the road with bikes if they stay in the bike lanes. When they enter parts of the road other than the bike lane, I believe that they should be registered and insured. If a bicyclist hit a parked car, there is no insurance to pay for damages. If we are to share the road, share responisbility as well.
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JB 11:46PM (1/12/2008)
Most cyclists have a general liability insurance policy with their insurance carrier and in terms of the law motorists are required to share the road with cyclists, check your state for details. Remember it was our cycling ancestors before the turn of the century whom we have to thank for their advocating better roads which in turn lead to the paved roads cyclists share with motorists! Both the Federal Highway Administration and CalTrans were founded in response to cyclists requesting better roads. Learn your history and respect your elders.
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