Sharing the road and promoting bicycling

Bikesharing at Adams Morgan Day 2008

From "A roadway to share" in the Huntsville Times (Alabama):

Motorists should be aware that it is not lawful to harass bicyclists, to run them off the road or to throw things at them. Motorists should also be aware of the roads and streets officially labeled as bike routes. (One of those runs through Research Park.)

I have been thinking about this lately, that there need to be more reminders of this--questions on the test for drivers licenses, information on maps.

I happened to receive in the mail yesterday the combined walking/cycling/public transit maps for the City of Melbourne, State of Victoria, in Australia. Victoria has one of the best transportation demand management programs in the world, called TravelSmart.

Anyway, the two maps, one focused on "National Ride to Work Day 2008" and the other the everyday map, have great information on cycling in traffic, the famed "right hook" and other defensive bicycling information, and loads more information about transit, bicycle user groups, etc.

So, since I picked up a number of other bicycle maps from the region, compliments of the Washington Area Bicyclist Association booth at Sunday's Adams-Morgan Day street festival, I discovered that most have similar information, even if I think the Australia info is better.

Still, it leads to the next point, which is that we need to have bicycle maps converted into signage that can be displayed in bus shelters and subway stations, as well as at SmartBikeDC stations!!!!!

SmartBikeDC station, 7th and F Streets NW, Washington, DC (@ Arts on Foot)

And each SmartBikeDC station needs explanatory signage about what it does.

Explanatory temporary signage for bikesharing at Arts on Foot, 2008, 7th and F Streets NW.

I understand make-shift promotion efforts, but if someone like me and a good designer can make great wayfinding signage on our own time and money, certainly the DowntownDC BID, the DC Department of Transportation, or Clear Channel, the contractor for the bikesharing program, could manage to do this as well.