United States Department of Transportation
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Evaluation Of The Blue Bike Lane Treatment Used In Bicycle-Motor Vehicle Conflicts Areas In Portland, Oregon
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2000-08-01
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[PDF-605.79 KB]
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TRIS Online Accession Number:00808853
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Edition:Final Report October 1997 - July 1999
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Abstract:Many European cities use colored markings at bicycle/motor vehicle crossings to reduce conflicts. To determine whether such colored markings help improve safety at American bicycle/motor vehicle crossings, the City of Portland, Oregon studied the use of blue pavement markings and a novel signing system to delineate selected conflict areas. The University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center (HSRC), under contract to the Federal Highway Administration, analyzed the project data. From 1997 to 1999, Portland marked 10 conflict areas with paint and blue thermoplastic and an accompanying "Yield to Bikes" sign. All of the sites had a high level of bicyclist and motorist interaction, as well as a history of complaints. The crossings were all locations where the bicyclist travels straight and the motorist crosses the bicycle lane to exit a roadway (such as an off-ramp situation), enters a right-turn lane, or merges onto a street from a ramp. The study used videotape analysis and found most behavior changes to be positive. Significantly more motorists yielded to bicyclists and slowed or stopped before entering the blue pavement area, and more bicyclists followed the colored bike-lane path. However, the blue pavement also resulted in fewer bicyclists turning their heads to scan for traffic or using hand signals, perhaps signifying an increased comfort level. The overwhelming majority of bicyclists and close to the majority of motorists surveyed felt that the blue areas enhanced safety. Colored pavement and signing should continue to be used and evaluated in bicycle/motor vehicle conflict areas.
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