City of Minneapolis, MN Biking in Minneapolis, 29 Mar 2012

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From YouTube: Minneapolis Know the Road: Shared Bike Lanes

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Riding a bike is one of the most popular ways to get around Minneapolis. See why it's important for both cyclists and drivers to know the road in this video about shared bike lanes.

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Wherever you go in town you'll find people on bikes they can ride on any Street in town, which is why there are so many bike lanes of Minneapolis. They give bike riders a little more space to pedal, which makes it easier on drivers too, but some streets are just not wide enough for bike lanes.

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Although there's space for cars to drive and park along the curb there's very little space beyond that, so what can we do to help bike traffic along streets? Where there's no extra room for bike lanes?

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The answer shared lanes, a place for both by cyclists and drivers. You'll see these markings on shared lanes in town. They tell drivers that they can expect to share the road with bikes for bicyclists. They show the area on the street that's best to ride in.

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In some cases, the shared lane is green to better emphasize the biking area. The green does not mark a bike lane, it's still a shared lane, so it's okay for cars to be there too, but drivers should keep their speed in check and watch out for bikes.

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If a car needs to get by a bike in the shared lane, the driver should make sure that there's enough room, the law says at least three feet and then pass at a safe speed and distance away from the bike on some shared streets in town. You'll see one of these on the road. It tells you that you're riding on a bike, Boulevard you'll, find bike boulevards, just a block or so off some of the busier streets in town.

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The idea is to give bikers a quieter safer place to ride that goes to the same place. The busier Street goes since the bike. Boulevards don't have a lot of traffic. The emphasis can be put on bicycling, not driving. That means fewer stop signs, so bikes can keep moving as well as medians and speed bump. So the cars slow down again cars and bikes share bike boulevards. If you're driving a car there's usually a major street nearby that may be better for you to use and a reminder to everyone.

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Typewriters are allowed on all city streets, so watch for them and they'll watch for you.