The Responsible Bicycle Commuter

Last week there was a local news report concerning supposedly inadequate bike lanes on Rio Grande Boulevard. The lanes were identified as inadequate based on a federal standard for width from sidewalk to road and identified as a danger when combined with reckless speeding drivers. The lane was measured in one place on Rio Grande and pushed as an example of other, unspecified, problem areas about the city of Albuquerque.

Perhaps because of the time constraints inherent in a half-hour local news program, there was much left out of the report. Implicit in the comparison to the federal standard was the idea that Rio Grande is out of compliance in some illicit way but never mentioned was whether or not the standard was binding or just some kind of guideline. Also missing was information regarding whether or not Rio Grande Blvd is required to adhere to the standard, when that portion of bike lane was constructed and if that construction date predates the standard.

Most troublesome in this story was the complete ignorance of the bicycle rider as having any responsibility whatsoever. As a bicycle commuter myself I find myself disappointed because almost every news story in regard to the subject ignores the culpability of the rider. It could be argued that in this case, this story, it was not at all about the rider, just a too-small lane on a traffic heavy road. There’s a point there, just not a very strong one.

As a bicycle commuter, one must always be aware of their surroundings and consider every motorist as a menace to their very existence. If they feel that the lane on Rio Grande is too small and that traffic conditions make riding on it unsafe they should pick another road. The Bosque trail for example is less than half a mile west of Rio Grande and runs parallel to it. Looking at Google maps, there are multiple residential surface streets that run nearly parallel to Rio Grande, a careful rider could easily plan a route that takes them through quiet, low traffic neighborhoods.

Not all drivers are careless but an experienced commuter must assume that every car is a second away from careening towards them uncontrolled. Many motorists do not use turn signals and with experience bicycle commuters can make informed judgments in regard to directional intent but those judgments can be wrong, motorists can change direction suddenly and very often don’t look for bicycles (the oft-quoted line that bicycles are hard to see is tripe) so the rider must always assume the worst. It’s the only way to always be sure.

Maybe the news story was meant as an appeal to officials to improve conditions for the cyclist, which is always welcome but not always practical. That intent, as beneficial as purported to be, doesn’t really help anyone. Truth is there are some roads in Albuquerque that are impractical for bicycle commuting regardless of the size of their bike lanes. Take for example Academy Road, between Wyoming and San Mateo Boulevards. Large bike lanes were recently added to Academy to welcome commuters but it’s still dangerous because the posted speed limit is 45 MPH and many drivers exceed it. Cyclists are much better off traveling down Burlison, Harper or even Osuna Road instead where the traffic is lighter and slower.

It’s not desired to find myself at odds with the bicycle commuting community; I find it necessary to bring this different perspective because it isn’t a black and white issue. Bicyclists can be irritating and careless on the roads as well. Pretending that bicycle commuters are pure as the wind driven snow ignores reality and emboldens irresponsibility, not to mention that it can’t help motorist-cyclist relations. If it’s practical to widen the bike lane on Rio Grande, perhaps it should be done but it should take more than a sanctimonious reporter with a tape measure lecturing us to make it so.