 "Photo: Eric Ou/The Daily Texan")
To cater to Austin’s large population of bicyclists, UT teamed up with the city to study four experimental lane designs.
The city of Austin and the UT Center for Transportation Research are studying the effects of the designs to improve the safety of bicyclists and motorists on the streets of Austin.
The designs include shared lane markings — or “sharrows” — painted bicycle lanes, signs and bicycle boxes, said Nadia Barrera, city bicycle project coordinator.
A bicycle box is a separate lane that extends across intersections to allow cyclists to stop ahead of cars at traffic signals and stop signs.
“The ultimate purpose of the study is to improve safety on roadways,” Barrera said. “We would like to add to the body of knowledge regarding bicycle markings for the country as a whole.”
The mayor’s 2007 Street Smarts Task Force and the 2009 city of Austin Bicycle Master Plan both recommended the study, Barrera said.
Barrera said installation of the devices was to begin last week, but rainy weather delayed the group’s plan. She said she hopes Tuesday’s weather will cooperate.
“The plan is to study the devices for a month before the end of the year,” Barrera said. “We will use video imagery to study the effects the devices have on highway users.”
Randy Machemehl, director of UT’s Center for Transportation Research, said the city asked the University for help studying the devices based on their previous research on bicycle safety, including work for the Texas Department of Transportation.
“The hope with all traffic control devices is that they will help provide the safest and most efficient experience for all users,” Machemehl said.
Machemehl said the project’s success could mean the devices being included in the Federal Highway Administration’s Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, which sets the standard for traffic control devices on the nation’s highways and streets.
“The manual is a living, breathing document that grows with time. If someone has an idea, they must get permission from the Federal Highway Administration to implement and test the device,” Machemehl said. “If the results show that they are effective, then in the future they can become part of the manual and all cities can use the devices.”
Rob D’Amico, president of the League of Bicycling Voters, said the devices, particularly the sharrows, are a tremendous idea for improving the safety of bicyclists.
“The sharrows are particularly effective in providing bicycle safety,” D’Amico said. “They’ve proven to be successful in other parts of the country, and we’re excited to finally have them implemented here in Austin.”
D’Amico also said he’s interested in seeing how commuters respond to the bicycle boxes, which will consist of painted boxes to clearly mark areas dedicated to bicyclists.
“I’ll be interested to see the results of the study because there are some great uses for these [devices].”
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