Construction Begins Raising San Francisco Bike Lane

ABC 7 reporter Amy Hollyfield reports from Market Street on Monday (Oct. 19) on the construction that has begun to raise the protected, green bikes lane a few inches for two blocks between Gough Street and 12th Street in the eastbound direction

Just as with protected bicycle intersections, the idea comes from similar lanes in Amsterdam. The purpose is to increase safety by more clearly delineating where cyclists and motorists use the road in addition to the buffer and flexible plastic bollards that separate the modes now. However, some cyclists interviewed expressed concern about the vertical separation between the auto and bike lanes.

Transportation officials aren't worried about people falling off of the raised lane "At this point, we think this is going to be a beneficial and positive thing for people riding bikes, people who are walking and people who are driving as well because it organizes the streets. What we're seeing here is just how high is comfortable and how low makes a difference," Muni spokesperson Paul Rose said.

Paolo Cosulich-Schwartz of the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition provides additional information on the safety objective of the raised lanes.

Regardless of what one may think about the usefulness of the measure, it's clear from the video that the bike lane is heavily used. "Transportation officials say since the number of people on bikes has grown 200 percent since 2006, they think something new is necessary," writes Hollyfield.

"Last year, California passed bill AB 1193 which formally defined raised bikeways and protected bike lanes as a new kind of bike facility in the California Vehicle Code," writes Bob Redell for NBC.

The Raised Bikeway Demonstration Project is also one of 24 priority safety projects that San Francisco promised to complete by February 2016 as part of Vision Zero, the city’s commitment to eliminate all traffic deaths by 2024.