Rent a bicycle for the day in European cities such as
Amsterdam and
Stockholm, and chances are your trip around town will be interrupted by bicycle traffic lights. Once a very odd and rare sight across the pond, bicycle traffic signals are now becoming more common here in the U.S. as
bicycling is on the upswing.
A recent joint study of the Federal Highway Administration and the Oregon Department of Transportation has found that more cities are installing the signals to enhance not only bicyclists’ safety, but that of pedestrians and commuters. At least
16 American cities, from Seattle to Washington, D.C., have aggressively installed the lights. So why are they becoming more common, even in intersections where bicycle lanes do not exist?
As fuel costs increase and more Americans seek healthier lifestyles, bicycling is catching on.
Dangers, however, still lurk for those who are on two wheels. Many drivers are either reticent or clueless about sharing the road, with collisions between motorists turning right--and smack into cyclists moving straight ahead--unfortunately, too frequent of an occurrence. At the same time, many bicyclists are not aware of, or disregard, local traffic laws. Others do not use proper hand signals. Finally, standard traffic signals often do not give cyclists enough time to cross an intersection (though yellow really means do not cross for bicyclists as well as motorists).
The installation of bicycle traffic devices can
reduce such accidents and help make traffic more seamless all the way around. According to a
USA Today article, there is still no national standard for how municipalities can effectively use these signals; and while some are automatic, akin to signals dedicated for city buses, others require a bicyclist to activate the signal--similar in function to the decades-old pedestrian signals in your local town.
Salem, Oregon is one city installing these bicycle traffic signals at more intersections. Last year’s passage of statewide legislation added bicycle signals to the state’s kit of required traffic control systems. To that end, Salem has installed the lights at 10 railroad crossings throughout the city.
For Salem, the bicycle-specific traffic lights are a cost-effective way to keep traffic moving and all commuters safer; their average cost is about $1,000 per light; new traffic lights can cost
a minimum of $80,000. Weigh those costs against the (human and monetary) price of dealing with a traffic accident, and such investment makes sense. Watch for more of these signals to appear across the U.S. as more citizens grasp the benefits of bicycling.
Published earlier today on Triple Pundit. You can follow Leon and ask him questions on Twitter or Instagram (greengopost).
Image credit:
Science Museum (UK)
About The Author
Leon Kaye
Leon Kaye is the founder and editor of GreenGoPost.com and its advisory division,
GGP Media.
Contact him to discuss how he can work with your organization or event.
His focus is making the business case for sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR).
He writes for San Francisco-based
Triple Pundit,
Inhabitat and now
The Guardian, for which he writes about corporate responsibility, water, and green building. He has also written for AIA's
Architect Magazine.
Leon works out of Fresno and Silicon Valley, California, and when he has free time, he enjoys hiking, gardening, cooking, weightlifting, and planning his next trip to one of the 60 countries he has visited. He has an MBA from USC's Marshall School of Business and is also a proud graduate of the University of Maryland-Baltimore County (UMBC) and Cal State-Fresno.
Rent a bicycle for the day in European cities such as Amsterdam and Stockholm, and chances are your trip around town will be interrupted by bicycle traffic lights. Once a very odd and rare sight across the pond, bicycle traffic signals are now becoming more common here in the U.S. as bicycling is on the upswing.
A recent joint study of the Federal Highway Administration and the Oregon Department of Transportation has found that more cities are installing the signals to enhance not only bicyclists’ safety, but that of pedestrians and commuters. At least 16 American cities, from Seattle to Washington, D.C., have aggressively installed the lights. So why are they becoming more common, even in intersections where bicycle lanes do not exist?
As fuel costs increase and more Americans seek healthier lifestyles, bicycling is catching on. Dangers, however, still lurk for those who are on two wheels. Many drivers are either reticent or clueless about sharing the road, with collisions between motorists turning right--and smack into cyclists moving straight ahead--unfortunately, too frequent of an occurrence. At the same time, many bicyclists are not aware of, or disregard, local traffic laws. Others do not use proper hand signals. Finally, standard traffic signals often do not give cyclists enough time to cross an intersection (though yellow really means do not cross for bicyclists as well as motorists).
The installation of bicycle traffic devices can reduce such accidents and help make traffic more seamless all the way around. According to a USA Today article, there is still no national standard for how municipalities can effectively use these signals; and while some are automatic, akin to signals dedicated for city buses, others require a bicyclist to activate the signal--similar in function to the decades-old pedestrian signals in your local town.
Salem, Oregon is one city installing these bicycle traffic signals at more intersections. Last year’s passage of statewide legislation added bicycle signals to the state’s kit of required traffic control systems. To that end, Salem has installed the lights at 10 railroad crossings throughout the city.
For Salem, the bicycle-specific traffic lights are a cost-effective way to keep traffic moving and all commuters safer; their average cost is about $1,000 per light; new traffic lights can cost a minimum of $80,000. Weigh those costs against the (human and monetary) price of dealing with a traffic accident, and such investment makes sense. Watch for more of these signals to appear across the U.S. as more citizens grasp the benefits of bicycling.
Published earlier today on Triple Pundit. You can follow Leon and ask him questions on Twitter or Instagram (greengopost).
Image credit: Science Museum (UK)
