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Cycling in Waterloo Region
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As a Strasburg resident, this honestly isn't anything new. It's not a neighbourhood with a high level of respect for this mode...
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Go watch what happens when traveling Southbound, just South of Eagle on Concession sometime.  It's pretty bad.  I keep thinking I ought to make a video some day to bring some attention to the problem...

https://goo.gl/maps/1dUN7x7sUy32

   

(Explanation:  the railway crossing here is one of the roughest in the Region.  The vehicle lanes deek to the left, along with the bike lane, for a bump-out around parking which starts just South of the tracks themselves.  Since the pavement is the worst where the cars regularly travel, people have figured out that the pavement is smoother if you stay to the right, crossing over the bike lanes, and into the parking lane.  It would be solved if the city or railway would fix the crossing.)
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Just driving home along Victoria near Ira Needles, it would be SOOOOOO easy to put concrete curbs over top of the bike lane line to offer some segregation. And the difference it would make.

I can't even imagine that would be that expensive.
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The issue with bike lanes at intersections is there is no consistency across the region in how it's painted. For example, in the 3 years since the road diet and bike lane installation on Westheights, at Highland (east end) the bike lane has been painted in a different configuration each year, including solid lines, dashed lines, inside of the turn lane, and as the outside lane.

When the "suggested" rules keep changing, how are drivers going to understand how to interact with then elsewhere?

(The answer is don't drive in bike lanes, but in the locations where there are dashed lines at the intersection, the impression is different)
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Just to add to the confusion, I thought best practices was to pull over into the bike lane when turning right to avoid cyclists filtering up alongside a right-turning vehicle. This is clearly the intent with the dashed lines, but I thought it was also recommended in the cases where it's just a solid line too.
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For the record, on Strasburg it's solid lines all the way. These are over a decade old now.
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(10-04-2018, 08:55 PM)Canard Wrote: (Explanation:  the railway crossing here is one of the roughest in the Region.  The vehicle lanes deek to the left, along with the bike lane, for a bump-out around parking which starts just South of the tracks themselves.  Since the pavement is the worst where the cars regularly travel, people have figured out that the pavement is smoother if you stay to the right, crossing over the bike lanes, and into the parking lane.  It would be solved if the city or railway would fix the crossing.)

Better yet, keep the bicycle lane straight, and use the parking lane to separate it from the motor vehicle traffic.

But also the crossing should be fixed. Major roads should have smooth railway crossings.
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(10-04-2018, 10:06 PM)timio Wrote: The issue with bike lanes at intersections is there is no consistency across the region in how it's painted.  For example, in the 3 years since the road diet and bike lane installation on Westheights, at Highland (east end) the bike lane has been painted in a different configuration each year, including solid lines, dashed lines, inside of the turn lane, and as the outside lane.

When the "suggested" rules keep changing, how are drivers going to understand how to interact with then elsewhere?

(The answer is don't drive in bike lanes, but in the locations where there are dashed lines at the intersection, the impression is different)

Who is technically responsible if they were to be put in, city or region?  I always thought city.
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I strongly prefer it for cars to enter the bike lane to turn right. It's WAY safer than them cutting across the lane. It clearly communicates their intent and it prevents them cutting cyclists off, or cyclists riding into them while they turn. It's what's recommended by the MoT. Turning right from the right most lane is the most correct action in the vast majority of cases, regardless of the paint. White paint is to discourage lane changes, not to indicate that they are illegal.
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(10-04-2018, 11:43 PM)Spokes Wrote:
(10-04-2018, 10:06 PM)timio Wrote: The issue with bike lanes at intersections is there is no consistency across the region in how it's painted.  For example, in the 3 years since the road diet and bike lane installation on Westheights, at Highland (east end) the bike lane has been painted in a different configuration each year, including solid lines, dashed lines, inside of the turn lane, and as the outside lane.

When the "suggested" rules keep changing, how are drivers going to understand how to interact with then elsewhere?

(The answer is don't drive in bike lanes, but in the locations where there are dashed lines at the intersection, the impression is different)

Who is technically responsible if they were to be put in, city or region?  I always thought city.

Whoever is responsible for the road. With Westheights, it's the city.
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From: https://cyclingsavvy.org/cycling-law/



I came across this video on Facebook and if you have the time, it's an excellent explanation of why a cyclist may position themselves somewhere other than the right-most point on the road.
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(10-05-2018, 10:46 AM)timio Wrote:
(10-04-2018, 11:43 PM)Spokes Wrote: Who is technically responsible if they were to be put in, city or region?  I always thought city.

Whoever is responsible for the road.  With Westheights, it's the city.

That's always bugged me, that some roads are regional responsibility, and other city.  

Argument for amalgamation?
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(10-05-2018, 08:57 AM)robdrimmie Wrote: I strongly prefer it for cars to enter the bike lane to turn right. It's WAY safer than them cutting across the lane. It clearly communicates their intent and it prevents them cutting cyclists off, or cyclists riding into them while they turn. It's what's recommended by the MoT. Turning right from the right most lane is the most correct action in the vast majority of cases, regardless of the paint. White paint is to discourage lane changes, not to indicate that they are illegal.

I thought continuous lines were illegal to cross. Are you sure they are only advisory?
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(10-05-2018, 01:20 PM)ijmorlan Wrote: I thought continuous lines were illegal to cross. Are you sure they are only advisory?

Apparently (as of 2015) all painted lines in Ontario are advisory, so it's not even technically illegal to cross a yellow line, even the double yellow line.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-dr...e25498287/
https://www.ontario.ca/document/official...t-markings

It's often not safe to pass the lines, and they should be followed (and the G&M article states that signage is legally binding).

The MoT's language on all of this is really fuzzy, which I find deeply frustrating. I'd love a clear answer, but it doesn't exist that I've seen. The handbook does explicitly state:

Sharing the road with other road users Wrote:Bike lanes are reserved for cyclists. They are typically marked by a solid white line. Sometimes you will need to enter or cross a bike lane to turn right at a corner or driveway. (See Diagram 2-12) Take extra care when you do this. Enter the bike lane only after ensuring that you can do so safely, and then make the turn.

https://www.ontario.ca/document/official...#section-1

The section on Right turns is somewhat contradictory though:

Changing directions Wrote:Unless signs or pavement markings tell you not to, always begin and end a right turn close to the right side of the road.

To make a right turn, signal well before the turn and move into the right-hand lane when the way is clear. If the right-hand lane is not marked, keep as far to the right of the road as possible. Look ahead, left, right and left again before starting to turn. If you have not seen any smaller vehicles or pedestrians, check your right rear blind spot. Let cyclists, limited-speed motorcycles, or moped riders go through the intersection before you turn. When it is safe, complete your turn into the right-hand lane of the road you are entering.

From a safety perspective, if a car takes up the bike lane while turning right, cyclists can't be there. That results in much less concern about right hooks, a term I learned from the video jamincan posted. It's well worth watching, though doesn't specifically address this topic. The video also recommends cyclists take the lane when going straight to reduce the likelihood of right hooks and other intersection collisions, a practice which I'm likely to start following.

On a personal note, I also stay around 3 cars back at most intersections, even when there is a bike lane (and often even when there's a bike box, which I feel are poorly understood by most road users), to allow the intersection to clear before I ride through and to afford any vehicles turning right the opportunity to do so, but I haven't seen any information explicitly suggesting this practice it's just something I do that makes me feel more comfortable.

Edit to add this article from 2017, which took me a bit to find but is the one that originally changed my mind on cars in bike lanes when turning right (and only when turning right): https://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-dr...e34015444/
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