Yellow No Stopping Lines in Cycle Lanes

In the February 08 newsletter, we reported that Christchurch City Council had decided to mark yellow no stopping lines again in cycle lanes that are adjacent to the kerb. Spokes has enquired with Council on progress. Here's what Michael Ferigo, the Council's cycle planner, has to say:

The Council has recently finished a trial over the performance of several sections of kerb side cycle lanes that haven't any broken yellow lines (BYLs).

When the new Road User and Traffic Control Devices rule became operative in 2004, cycle lanes gained legal status for the first time in New Zealand - as Special Vehicle Lanes. A number of mandatory behaviours were then prescribed, which included no motor vehicle parking in cycle lanes. Up until then the only effective way of legally stopping parking was to add broken yellow lines. Thus the legal need to install BYLs on all kerb side cycle lanes was replaced by the recognised cycle lane markings.

The Council in general terms has a default stance of preferring to use less rather than more markings on the roads as each marking costs money, needs a maintenance programme and affects friction / stopping behaviour and distances. This along with the fact that the new status of cycle lanes made the BYLs legally redundant combined to weigh against the
option for continuing with BYLs in the cycle lanes.

It was decided that a trial should take place once a number of the changes were operative. Four sites were chosen. The illegal parking levels were monitored throughout the trial. All sites received focused education (pamphlets on windscreens, discussions) for a short period to start with, followed by a short period of both education and enforcement.

The results showed that whilst there was less offending, it wasn't significant enough to justify the extra risk to cyclists in the short to medium term particularly as the level of resourcing the trials with education/enforcement could not be sustained as an extended term across the city.

The Council is now reinstating the BYLs in kerb side cycle lanes - this will be done as a priority on areas that are experiencing high levels of conflict or on the back of the maintenance programme across the city. In detail, the progress is:

• Kotare Street has already been done.
• Maidstone Rd, Centaurus Road and Strickland Street have been requested to be done by the maintenance contractors as a priority.
• The remaining locations should be done on a rolling basis over the next 9 months.

The Council staff are also taking this opportunity to ensure that the all existing BYLs in cycle lanes have the required political resolutions to make them legal and we will need to establish the most effective way to achieve this hence relevant staff including our legal section are meeting later this week.

The New York Times reported on 4 May 08 about similar problems in NY.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/04/nyregion/04bikes.html?_r=2&th&emc=th&o... has the article, and the video clip shows at the beginning how local advocates deal with the issue over there. Worth watching!