Hey don't make me into a villain! I think bike lanes are a solution to a problem that shouldn't exist. Don't be naive, cycling advocacy has always been political, that's why people advocate. But the sad reality of it all is that not enough "cycling aged people" vote in this country for it to make a difference.
Re: Bike lanes though. This article highlights many of my concerns.
1. People should be sharing the road.
This starts with both motorist AND cyclist education of how the traffic system works. Frankly, there is none of that and it would solve SO many more problems than just how a bicycle and a motor vehicle should or COULD coexist.
2. Bike lanes do NOT promote bicycle safety.
They instead promote a false sense of security and in fact generally create a greater divide between the motoring and cycling community. You see many small businesses complaining that parking had to be removed to place a bike lane on one road (in that article) as well as the difficulty of deliveries. In a city, people should recognize that delivery trucks don't just park in a parking lot, they "parallel park" to drop off their goods. A bike lane restricts this by offering the motorist the option of blocking the bike lane (and getting a hefty fine) whether its in use or not, or blocking the road and pissing off tens of dozens of people?
If instead they left the road as is and both cyclists and motorists were properly educated, they could simply conduct "business as usual" and a cyclist would meander along on their merry way. No motorists would be cursing the lack of parking, no business owners would be cursing the fact that they had to have their customers park 2 blocks away so that 1 cyclist could go by every 20 minutes, etc. etc. etc.
Furthermore, since bicycle lanes are often simply added without any form of instruction or understanding, motorists have no idea how to operate with them. This CREATES the situation for one of the most dangerous crashes between a motorist and a cyclist, the right cross. If there were no bike lane, the motorist would operate the same as they were taught (after all, why would someone be passing on the right
) and the cyclist (who accepts much greater risk) would operate as they should, cautious of a large piece of machinery.
My point all around is that while there are many good reasons for a bike lane, many of them are a reactive afterthought. If someone simply took the time to educate themselves on how to safely and legally operate both a motor vehicle and a bicycle people would understand exactly what was happening and many fewer people would be enraged by a spot on the road (that oh by the way, every cyclist wants to tout at every moment they possibly can that we should be "sharing") that is "only for cars" and "only for bicycles".
I'm not "against" a bike lane for any other reason than I think I have good, logical reasons why they don't help out and may in fact hinder what we're all trying to accomplish.
We're trying to have a society here people!