Lane Control in San Luis Obispo, CA

League of American Bicyclists certified traffic cycling instructor Kevin Christian controls lanes in the downtown area of San Luis Obispo, CA, in August of 2006. He demonstrates that when he acts safely and legally as a driver by preventing motorists from squeezing by within the lane, the other drivers treat him as a driver by either waiting behind or making lane changes to pass. Kevin also makes lane changes, and left turns from left turn only lanes, as would any other driver. You may also notice that he avoided a bike lane in the early part of the video. He did this to avoid the door zone of parked cars, and crossing crashes at driveways and intersections. For more about crossing crashes see: http://www.cyclistview.com/ITC-Intro/index.htm

Category:

Education

Tags:

• San
• Luis
• Obispo
• Bicycle
• Lane
• Splitting
• Heavy
• Traffic
• Driving

[slodude7]

There is a huge bike lane there. Now I am an avid cyclist but there is no reason to take a lane when there is a bike lane, especially one that large on marsh st.

[CyclistLorax]

@slodude7 - Apparently not avid enough to avoid door zones and crossing conflicts. I suggest you read CVC 21208(a)(3) [to avoid hazards such as the door zone] and CVC 21208(a)(4) [to avoid right hook turns at places where right turns are authorized]. In simple English, it makes no engineering sense to stripe bike lanes in the door zone, or in places with frequent driveways and intersections such as Marsh. Worse still in CA, all bike lanes are mandatory segregation, which is bad for cyclists.

[jlf2032]

another arrogant bicyclist who can't use the bike lane. use it or drive a damn car if you're going to take up a full lane.

[rockyismyfriend]

go bikers. good for you for taking the lane . i am a biker i get cars guting me off all the time!!! i hate it.

[LunarDSO]

Cyclist -- Take ownership of the lane

[CycleMan2200]

I live in Toledo, Ohio, not at all a bike friendly city. in fact far from it. Also, I have been threatened to stay to the curb or on the sidewalk, or they will cite me for impeding traffic. A 100 dollar ticket in which i cannot afford. I ride to the right to let people pass. Im all for safe cycling but here riding in the middle of the lane just doesn't cut it.

[CyclistLorax]

It's not the size differental that determines whether a car driver is a threat; it's your lane position. If a driver thinks he can squeeze by, he typically will dlo so, even if it is hazardous to you the cyclist. Riding at the edge encourages the car drivers to squeeze by. This is why we teach cyclists not to encourage too close in-lane passing as Kevin so nicely demonstrates in this video of his home turf.

[CycleMan2200]

I used to ride in the middle of the road. I got kinda tired of it especially when cars behind me can get freaked out when they cant pass. i ride on the white line or close to the curb to let people pass, no matter how close they get to me. if I am hit, then there will be some issues. Bottom line here, let people pass, don't make them mad, especially when they have a 3,000 pound weapon!

[dougeroonie]

Great video and I concur on lane positioning. One thing I've done recently is add a rear view mirror the the h-bar of my Schwinn cruiser/commuter fun bike (that and some other stuff like Continental Sport Trac 1.6" tires that are "fast as hell") The mirror is killer! Being able to glance down and in seconds see a car is the best, ESPECIALLY in a lot of traffic/downtown riding. Get your mirror today and be even safer!! :D

Have a good one, looking forward to living/riding in SLO!!

[CyclistLorax]

You wrote: "...if he's in the bike lane, vehicles must yield to his right of way. In other words, they have to wait for the bicyclist in the bike lane to pass, for them to complete a right turn..." The point of (a)(4) is to allow bicyclists to avoid passing on the right. Also note that a motorist is NOT supposed to stop near the intersection, outside the bike lane, and wait for bicyclists to pass on the right. Motorists must merge into the bike lane per 21717/21209 when making right turns.