{"id":236407,"date":"2013-08-04T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2013-08-04T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sdnews.com\/opinion-aug-2013\/"},"modified":"2013-08-04T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2013-08-04T07:00:00","slug":"opinion-aug-2013","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/opinion-aug-2013\/","title":{"rendered":"Opinion Aug. 2013"},"content":{"rendered":"

A lesson in sharing the road<\/span><\/h1>\n

Courtesy of the San Diego County Bicycle Coalition<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
A “sharrows” installed along 30th Street in South Park. (Photo by Morgan M. Hurley)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What are Sharrows?<\/b><\/p>\n

Sharrows, shorthand for Shared Lane Markings, are state-approved, forty-inch-wide, white bicycle images with two forward pointing arrows painted on some streets.<\/p>\n

Where are Sharrows?<\/b><\/p>\n

<\/b>\u2022 Sharrows are painted on streets primarily where a travel lane is too narrow for side-by-side sharing \u2013 too narrow for motorists to safely drive next to bicyclists within the same lane.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Sharrows were recently installed all the way down 30th Street, from Normal Heights into Golden Hill, in advance of CicloSDias and can now also be found in Encinitas, Leucadia, Solana Beach, and Oceanside in North County, as well as the San Diego communities of Ocean Beach, Point Loma, and Downtown. As need arises sharrows will be used in more places.<\/p>\n

Why are there Sharrows?<\/b><\/p>\n

\u2022 Sharrows recommend where it is generally safest for bicyclists to ride, positioned toward the middle of a lane. This position reminds bicyclists to ride far enough away from parked vehicles to avoid being struck by suddenly opened car doors.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Sharrows also guide bicyclists toward the center of the lane to discourage unsafe passing within the same lane by motor vehicles.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Sharrows serve to alert motorists that bicyclists may be using the full travel lane. To pass a bicyclist who is using a full lane or a lane with sharrows, a motorist should wait for a safe opportunity to move entirely into an adjacent lane.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Additionally, \u201cBicycles May Use Full Lane\u201d signs remind all of us that people have the right to use the full travel lane, using a bicycle or a vehicle.<\/p>\n

\"Bike-Lane-Sign-X-R3-17\"<\/a>What is a Bike Lane?<\/b> <\/b><\/p>\n

A Bike Lane is a part of a roadway marked by a solid white line and frequent bicycle symbols and arrows painted along many streets. Bike Lanes are usually accompanied by \u201cBike Lane\u201d signs.<\/p>\n

Where are Bike Lanes? <\/b><\/p>\n

Bike Lanes are usually to the right of travel lanes, but sometimes between the rightmost through-only lane and a right-turn-only lane.<\/p>\n

How should we use Bike Lanes?<\/b><\/p>\n