OK, the message is loud and clear: Type A cyclists prefer to ride in traffic and that's fine. However they want to prevent Types B & C from ever getting BIKE LANES, which are their favorite solution. In other words that they act like the MONOPOLISTIC LION in the story, whose selfish behavior creates the jungle we live under. Well, if you don't understand, just read... ;)
Types Of Bicyclists
One important aspect in developing bicycle friendliness is recognizing that bicyclists have different skill levels, from the racer and daily bicyclist, to the child who is learning to bicycle, to the adult who is becoming re-acquainted with bicycling. The goal for North Country regional bicycle planning is to accommodate all levels of bicyclists and all age groups: from 5 to 95. This section relays the most recent, detailed description of bicyclists based on ability, and is drawn from Selecting Roadway Design Treatments to Accommodate Bicyclists (Wilkinson, et. al. 1994).
Nearly 100 million people in the United States own bicycles, however, the Bicycle Federation of America estimates that fewer than 5 percent would qualify as experienced or highly send bicyclists. Since the bicycle policy goal is to accommodate existing bicyclists and encourage increased bicycle use throughout the region, there will be more novice riders than advanced bicyclists using the Byways and other roads. Therefore, any roadway treatments intended to accommodate bicycle use must address the needs of both experienced and less experienced riders. One solution to this challenge is to develop the concept of a "design cyclist" and adopt a clbuttification system for bicycle users such as the following:
Group A - Advanced Bicyclists: These are experienced riders who can operate under most traffic conditions. They comprise the majority of the current users of collector and arterial streets and are best served by the following:
á Direct access to destinations usually via the existing street and highway system.
á The opportunity to operate at maximum speed with minimum delays.
á Sufficient operating space on the roadway or shoulder to reduce the need for either the bicyclist or the motor vehicle operator to change position when pbutting.
Group B - Basic Bicyclists: These are casual or new adult and teenage riders who are less confident of their ability to operate in traffic without special provisions for bicycles. Some will develop greater skills and progress to the advanced level, but there will always be many millions of basic bicyclists. They prefer the following:
á Comfortable access to destinations, preferably by a direct route, using either low-speed, low traffic-volume streets or designated bicycle facilities.
á Well-defined separation of bicycles and motor vehicles on arterial and collector streets (bike lanes or shoulders) or separate bike paths.
Group C-Children: These are pre-teen riders whose roadway use is initially monitored by parents. Eventually they are accorded independent access to the system. They and their parents prefer the following:
á Access to key destinations surrounding residential areas, including schools, recreation facilities, shopping, or other residential areas.
á Residential streets with low motor vehicle speed limits and volumes.
á Well-defined separation of bicycles and motor vehicles on arterial and collector streets or separate bike paths.
While other distinctions can be added, these lists support combining groups B and C bicyclists in most situations. Therefore, a "design cyclist" concept is proposed that recognizes two broad clbuttes of bicyclists: group A riders and group B-C riders.
Generally, group A bicyclists will be best served by designing all roadways to accommodate shared use by bicycles and motor vehicles. This can be accomplished by the following:
á Establishing and enforcing speed limits to minimize speed differentials between bicycles and motor vehicles on neighborhood streets and-or by implementing "traffic-calming" strategies (e.g., low speed zones, speed bumps).
á Providing wide outside lanes on collector and arterial streets built with an "urban section" (i.e., with curb and gutter).
á Providing usable shoulders on highways built with a "rural section" (i.e., no curb and gutter).
Generally, group B-C bicyclists (i.e., basic riders and children) will be best served by a network of neighborhood streets and designated bicycle facilities, which can be provided by the following:
á Ensuring neighborhood streets have low speed limits through effective speed enforcement or controls and-or by implementing "traffic calming" strategies.
á Providing a network of designated bicycle facilities (e.g., bike lanes, separate bike paths, or side-street bicycle routes) through the key travel corridors typically served by arterial and collector streets.
á Providing usable roadway shoulders on rural highways.
Given these two types of design bicyclists, a two-tiered approach to meeting their needs is proposed.
Group A riders will be best served by making every street "bicycle-friendly." This may be accomplished by adopting highway design standards that include wide curb lanes and paved shoulders to accommodate shared use by bicycles and motor vehicles. This approach will provide adequate space for bicycles and motor vehicles to share the roadway with minimum need for changing lanes or lane position. The desired outcome is to have sufficient space to accommodate shared use by bicycles and motor vehicles with minimum delays and maximum safety for all users.
Group B-C riders will be best served by identifying key travel corridors (typically served by arterial and collector streets) and by providing designated bicycle facilities on selected routes through these corridors. These key travel corridors can be identified through the type of planning process described in section 2 of this manual.
Ideally, full implementation of this approach will result in a condition where every street on which bicycles are permitted to operate will incorporate at least the design treatments recommended for group A bicyclists. In addition, a network of primary routes in each community linking schools, libraries, shopping, and parks will be enhanced by incorporating the designated bicycle facilities recommended for group B-C bicyclists (i.e., inexperienced adults and children).
