Bike Lane Changes around Bend
Bend has always been "Bike Friendly" and as such come the hazards of Bikes and Cars not always interacting well. Recently the City of Bend has begun a project to enhance bicycle safety and awareness for auto drivers. This project has consisted of some bike lane areas be painted green in order to make them more visible to the bike rides and especially the auto drivers. Bike Lanes are just that, for the bikes. They are not passing lanes or Right Turn lanes for cars.
As part of the project the intersection at Galveston and Riverside (by Drake Park) was changed from a 4 way stop to a through street for Galveston. This was done to provide better safety for all traffic including Bikes and Pedestrians. This work also included changes in the parking along Drake Park and the placement of a bike lane between the parking strip and the traffic lane.
There are also 5 "floating" parking spaces just west of Wall St. on Franklin St. for EB traffic. In this area the bike lane is along the curb with auto parking between the bikes and the traffic lane. When using these spaces please make sure you are "in your space" and look before you open your car doors to assure you don't have a bike coming up on your right or a car on your left.
So next time you drive down Greenwood at 8th, 3rd St at Mt Washington or down Franklin through town and along Drake Park, pay attention to the green lanes and the different pavement markings. They tell you where to go or not as a bike rider and an auto driver.