Safety Bollards for Contraflow Bicycle Lanes

Safety bollards have always been useful for marking bicycle lanes.  Now, with the popularity of contraflow bike lanes, using bollards is more important than ever to ensure the safety of both cyclists and motorists.

Contraflow Bike Lanes: a Growing Trend

Contraflow lanes allow bicycles to travel in the opposite direction of motorists.  In cities with substantial numbers of one-way streets, these lanes benefit cyclists in many ways, including the following. They:

•     Reduce motorist/cyclist conflicts
•     Allow cyclists to safely enter the flow of traffic at all points
•     Provide safe, easy access to popular destinations
•     Reduce the distance cyclists must travel on roads used by motorists
•     Offer cyclists safer, more pleasant routes of travel without interfering with motor vehicle traffic

To maximize the safety of everyone who uses public roads, contraflow bicycle lanes should only be placed on streets with the following characteristics:

•     Low volumes of vehicular traffic
•     Sufficient room to construct a contraflow lane to the left of motorists’ direction of travel
•     Substantial current use by cyclists
•     A minimum number of intersecting alleys, driveways, or streets
•     Enough room for signs advising motorists that a contraflow lane is present

Impact of Existing Contraflow Lanes in Major Urban Areas

Contraflow lanes have existed in cities like Cambridge, Massachusetts; Madison, Wisconsin; and Portland, Oregon, for well over a decade.  In each city, they have significantly improved traffic flow, reduced the number of bicycle/motor vehicle accidents, and enhanced the usability of public roadways for everyone.  They’re especially helpful around large colleges and universities where hundreds or even thousands of students commute to and from classes on bicycles.


The Role of Safety Bollards in Marking Contraflow Lanes

Safety bollards, with their high visibility and sturdy construction, are extremely useful on streets with contraflow bicycle lanes. They remind motorists to watch out for bike riders. They also remind cyclists to stay within the lane’s boundaries. Together, these two safety measures can help both motorists and bike riders stay safe on the nation’s roadways.

To learn more about varieties of safety bollards, call Impact Recovery Systems today at 1-800-736-5256.

Parking Lot Safety for Motorcycles

One of the most important yet most neglected skills motorcycle riders should learn is parking lot safety.  While few motorcyclists drive at blinding speeds in areas with parked vehicles, these places nonetheless present unique hazards when it comes to clearance, visibility, and road surfaces.

This article will outline the fundamental skills all bike riders should possess in order to navigate the average parking lot accident-free.  While it will certainly be of interest to motorcyclists, it will also prove useful to public safety officials and others concerned with promoting vehicular safety.

Equipment considerations

Proper equipment use is just as important while riding through parking lots as it is when going 65 MPH down a major highway.  In particular, riders should keep the following points in mind:

• Keep the helmet strap secured.
• Use suitable eye protection, whether this includes goggles, a face shield, or shatterproof glasses.
• Wear a jacket made of cowhide, corduroy, denim, nylon, or other durable material.
• Wear long pants, knee protection, and suitable foot protection.
• Use gloves at all times the bike is in motion.
• Wear high visibility gear.  This is especially important in parking lots, where motorists are usually less alert than when driving on public roads.  Many a biker has been side-swiped by an inattentive driver who pulled out of a spot without looking both ways first.
• Operating the bike’s controls
• Use hand or mechanical turn signals when in the parking lot.  This will further increase the biker’s visibility to auto drivers.
• Apply the front and rear brakes at the same time when parking, just as on the open road.  Remember that up to 70% of your bike’s stopping power depends on the front brake.
• Lean into turns in a parking lot, just as bikers do anywhere else.  It takes very little momentum to upset a modern bike, even at very low speeds.

Using the SEE system in parking lots

The SEE system is used by millions of motorcyclists to get them safely from Point A to Point B.  It can be broken down into the following steps:

1. Search for possible dangers.
2. Evaluate all potential hazards, including turning cars, loose or uneven road surfaces, rain or other precipitation, etc.
3. Execute the proper action to avoid the hazard.

For example, in parking lots, riders should be alert at all times for vehicles pulling out from spots.  Motorcycles are far less visible than the average car or truck, so cyclists should never assume that a motorist sees them.

Just as important as watching for vehicles pulling out of spots is being alert for those pulling into them.  Some drivers focus completely on getting the best spot available, as if it were a competition with others.  No motorcycle rider should ever get hurt because some inattentive person chooses to whip around her in order to park six feet closer to a building.

Perhaps the most dangerous part of a parking lot is at the ends where vehicles make turns to go down succeeding rows.  As riders approach these ends, they should look twice for cars coming from either direction.  Also, riders should signal their intention to turn well before doing so.  This could save their lives.
Special parking lot safety hazards to be on the alert for any of the following circumstances can make parking lots especially dangerous.  Bikers should be extra careful in case they spot any of them.

• Pot holes, loose road material such as gravel, or rises/bumps in the road.
• Slick spots caused by oil or other fluids.
• Dark conditions, including periods during or just prior to rainstorms.
• Hazard markers or other warning signs.

By following the above recommendations, motorcycle riders can safely share parking lots with other bikers as well as drivers of passenger vehicles.

Originally posted at www.impactrecovery.com

Traffic Safety Products that Help Ensure Cyclist Safety

Originally Posted at:  www.impactrecovery.com

Traffic safety products play an integral role in ensuring the safety of bicyclists in urban areas.  Their use is part of a specialized sub-discipline known as bicycle transportation engineering.  It seeks to create bike-friendly areas along and within existing roadways.  It also focuses on the layout and construction of dedicated paths for cyclists as well as pedestrians.

Some of the ways that transportation engineers have tried to make streets safer for cyclists include the following modifications:

• Shared use paths – These are bikeways that run parallel to conventional roadways, yet are physically divided from them by delineators or safety signs.
• Bicycle lanes – These are portions of roadways meant specifically for use by cyclists.  They’re normally marked by a solid white stripe on the pavement.  They’re much narrower than motor vehicle lanes and run alongside the edge of the road.
• Shoulders – These are traditionally used as a place for inoperable vehicles to pull over.  However, in many areas, they have been modified for use by cyclists and those on foot.
• Wide outside lanes – One of the chief complaints motorists have about sharing the road with cyclists is having to slow down to accommodate them.  Wide outside lanes are intended to eliminate this problem by giving vehicles more room to pass bicycles safely.  They are chiefly used in rural areas where shoulders are frequently underdeveloped and unsafe for bicycle traffic.
• Shared bus lanes – These are dedicated bus lanes that also permit cycle traffic, depending on the local public transport schedule.  These are especially popular in France and the UK.
• Shared space streets – These are simply public streets that give equal priority to all types of vehicles.  Motorists must accommodate the rate at which cyclists travel.  While widespread in parts of Europe, they have only recently been introduced to the United States.
• Bike paths – Often built on the sites of abandoned railroad tracks, these paths are completely independent of public roadways.  They’re normally shared by cyclists and pedestrians, as well as horses in some locations.  Bike paths are also popular features of greenways.

Other Bicycle Safety Measures
In addition to creating special routes for bicycles, transportation engineers are taking other measures and developing additional traffic safety products to ensure the safety of bike riders.  These include:

• Modified traffic lights that are able to detect the presence of cyclists, taking their presence into account when issuing signal changes.
• Modified road surfaces that move potholes, surface markings, storm drains, and other impediments to bikes away from their path of travel. 
• Bicycle parking lots that allow bike owners to secure their cycles to secure metal stands, discouraging theft.  Some of these parks have staff members on-site, while others are routinely patrolled by law enforcement.

Factors Involved in Creating Bicycle Safe Zones
Not all urban roadways can be converted to bike-friendly areas with the same degree of ease.  Planners normally give priority to those zones that can be transformed with minimal effort.  Some factors that guide the decision process include the following:

• The level to which motor vehicle traffic in the area can be reduced.
• The prospects for establishing traffic calming measures.
• The level to which danger zones for cyclists, such as junctions and crossways, can be monitored and improved.
• The prospects for establishing reasonably secure bicycle parking facilities in the area.

The Role of Traffic Safety Products in Ensuring Cyclist Safety
Infrastructure features that promote bicycle safety fall into two categories:

1. Signage that alerts motorists to the presence of cycles.  These often feature messages like “share the road” along with a graphic showing a bicycle. 
2. Elements like raised curbs, walls, fencing, and bollards, which create physical barriers between motorists and cycles.

The trend towards greater cycle use is part of a new emphasis on physical fitness and a greener environment.  As such, it has the potential to do great good and should be encouraged as much as possible.  Modest infrastructure modifications and new traffic safety systems are small prices to pay in exchange for creating a healthier, more active populace, which is what cycling is all about.