HAVE YOU EXPERIENCED CONFLICT?
In our May issue of The Pedal Post (eNewsletter), Bike Fort Collins posed the question: “Do you feel safe navigating the intersection of College Ave. and Mountain Ave. by bicycle?”
Thank you to those who responded. Below is a recap of the results.
WHAT HAPPENED?
In addition, for those who reported conflict, we asked them to describe their experience. Here is a sampling of the responses we received:
- “Tricky trying to share the road in the sharrow lane while also not getting backed into from cars in the diagonal parking on Mountain. You have to navigate two hazards at once.”
- “The diagonal parking has a lot of people backing out with limited view of passing cyclists. the intersection itself isn’t as clearly marked for cyclists so drivers seem to be unsure of the best way to handle bike traffic.”
- “Significant traffic on College results in sometimes inpatient drivers”
- “No dedicated bike lane.”
- “There is no dedicated bike lane on Mountain Ave.”
- “When heading west on Mountain, eastbound cars turning left don’t always yield to bikes.”
- “Too many cars, and too many drivers not paying attention.”
HOW CAN IT BE IMPROVED?
Finally, we asked respondents how they thought the intersection/facility could be improved. Here is a sampling of the responses we received:
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“Protected and more obvious bike lanes all the way through the intersection.”
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“Dedicated bike lanes would improve it so you don’t have to manage navigating a sharrow and the parking hazard at the same time. Short of that, maybe some more extreme painting or signage to make vehicles actually share the lane would help. As currently marked and signed, I still don’t feel confident to fully take the lane and trust that cars will yield it to me.”
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“More clear markings for cars and cyclists.”
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“Add a few seconds of pedestrian/cycle crossing first before changing lights to green”
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“Put a dedicated bike lane in the middle going east and to the right going west. Maybe have a dedicated bike signal that gives bikes a little time before cars.”
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“A bike box in right lanes before crosswalks would let drivers know of cyclist’s priority, and move cars back from the crosswalk.”
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“Removing one of the car lanes and replacing it with a bike lane.”
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“Advance stop lines for cyclists on Mountain to make them more visible to oncoming /turning traffic.”
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“Paint the sharrows more often and use the black background so the show up better. Add some sharrows mid-block.”
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“Stop all motorized traffic (both College and Mountain) including those making turns t allow for bikes and pedestrians to cross.”
Again, thank you to all who responded—and for sharing their experiences. Stay tuned for additional surveys inquiring about other intersections and bicycle facilities.