For cycling, it doesn’t matter whether Barack Obama or Mitt Romney is president
THIS WEEK (!!!) the most important vote for cycling in Delaware in 2013 will happen. In Dover. By contacting your state senator and representative in Dover today,...
Making the case for open or dashed taper lines
Delaware 2013 Bicycle Friendly State “Report Card”
The most important vote of 2013
This week (week of June 17) the most important vote for cycling in Delaware in 2013 will happen. By contacting your state senator and representative today, you...
We need 7 votes for cycling in 1 week
Next week, a committee of the Delaware General Assembly will vote on whether to authorize funding for cycling improvements by the Delaware Department of Transportation...
Bike Delaware has been working overtime to develop a tool for sharing Right Turn-Only Lanes (RTOLs) with bike lanes. As Delaware cyclists are all too familiar, shoulders (and even newly installed bike lanes) are routinely cut off by solid white taper lines beginning at RTOLs or left turn bypass lanes. As stated in the USDOT’s Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices:
* A SOLID line usually indicates that crossing the line is discouraged. [MUTCD Section 3A.01] Edgelines are SOLID lines [MUTCD Section 3B.06], and a lane line is a SOLID WHITE line in portions of a road where lane changing across the line is discouraged. [MUTCD Section 3B.04]
Therefore, riding down any shouldered road and constantly crossing solid white lines is not what’s expected of a vehicle by Delaware code, which bicycles are defined as, and could have legal implications. That said, a top priority for this kind of facility is correctly striping it, especially where the bike lane or shoulder meets a RTOL or bypass. We are advocating that this be included in all new bike lane installations and retrofit projects. Below are some examples of what we envision:
A) Red Lion Road (Rt.71) en-route to Lums Pond. Newly installed bike lane is cut off by a left turn bypass lane.
B) Same road with taper line removed, providing for a safer, continuous, legally acceptable facility. The dashed line still indicates cars may enter the shoulder as a bypass.
C) RTOL on Marrows Road in Newark with taper line electronically removed. The simple addition of symbols would validate this shoulder as a well marked bike facility.
If DelDOT is unwilling, or unable to grant removal of taper lines, dashing them would also validate entering the RTOL (albeit suggesting a merge) as a continuous shoulder. A broken white line means that you can cross it. A solid white line means you shouldn’t cross it. Further: A BROKEN (dashed) WHITE line indicates that it is permissible to cross the line to change lanes to move into an adjacent lane moving in the same direction. A complete description of road striping, and what it all means can be found HERE.
BIKE DELAWARE is a member-supported nonprofit organization dedicated to making bicycling a safe, convenient and fun transportation option in Delaware.
Recent Articles
News Journal: Markell proposes casino bailout from tax revenue windfall
by Doug Denison and Jonathan Starkey The News Journal June 18, 2013 State officials announced Monday that higher personal income tax collections helped produce...
League of Women Voters Calls for Bike and Pedestrian Improvements by DelDOT
Dear Senators and Representatives: On behalf of the League of Women Voters of Delaware, thank you for your support of the Bike and Pedestrian Improvements...
If you’ve never contacted your state senator or representative before, now would be a good first time
If you care about cycling in Delaware but you’ve never contacted your elected representatives in Dover, today would be a good day to do that for the first...
[Public Workshop] City of Wilmington Bike Facility Improvements
![[Public Workshop] City of Wilmington Bike Facility Improvements](http://www.bikede.org/wp-content/themes/academica/scripts/timthumb.php?h=80&w=165&zc=1&src=http://www.bikede.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/wilmingtonLogo.jpg)
There is a Public Workshop regarding Bike Facility Improvements for Wilmington. We encourage anyone who can attend to please do so. The more people who attend...
2 Comments
California is doing the same thing at highway on/off ramps. The bike lane hits a solid white line. Theyd never design a car lane like that, so why is it mandatory to do that for bike lanes?
It also sends the wrong message to motorists. By nature, most tend to follow lines. When the taper line curves off to the right cutting off the shoulder (starting the right turn-only lane), there is no thought process involved – they just move over with it. Removing these taper lines and relying instead on a dashed section of shoulder line is a better indication of a shared use lane. It also provides better legal protections should there be an altercation.
Good luck in CA – forward this on if you think it will help.