On Sharrows and Bike Lanes

Bikecommuters.com has a post about the new sharrows in Long Beach, CA.

A sharrow (share + arrow) is a visual representation of where a bike might be in the shared space of a lane. It differs from a bike lane in that a sharrow doesn't indicate dedicated space for bike riders.

I've seen mixed reviews about the uses of sharrows. On the one hand, it's a fairly inexpensive way to remind drivers that they might encounter bikes. Inexpensive, that is unless your city does it like Long Beach and they paint the entire length of the sharrow lane green.

That seems like overkill to me. Not only is that sure to be a tax burden, but it can't be safe when it's wet.

Personally, I'm a fan of the bike lane. I know there is a movement to treat bicycles like every other vehicle on the road, but that just doesn't make sense to me. Bikes are nothing like cars, except they get you from A to B, but so do my feet, and I don't expect to be treated like a car when I'm walking.

If cycles are treated like autos on the road, we'll just end up with more congested traffic and frustrated drivers. Look, I choose to convert my 40 minute round-trip car commute to a 2-hour bike commute, but should my decision impact to poor sucka who has to tail me in the sharrow lane? Road heckling is sure to ensue.

Ideally, in JoCo, I'd love to see all major roads have bike lanes, such as Metcalf, 95th, Quivera, and the like. A good alternative are mixed-use trails. On my commute, I get to experience all the above, except for sharrows. We ain't got those in Kansas. Whoooo-wheeee!