Q: I was driving on a street that had no adjacent bicycle lane but instead had a bicycle symbol and arrows pointing in the direction of travel. A bicyclist pulled into the lane of traffic but instead of staying as far right, near parked cars, insisted on pedaling as near the center of the lane as possible at a leisurely pace, preventing following motor vehicles from passing him. I’m retired and wasn’t in a hurry but can imagine that people on an errand or in a rush might do something foolish and/or dangerous. Was the bicyclist correct or should he have been traveling more to the right-hand side of the lane?
A: To start with, let’s talk about those arrows with a bicycle symbol. They have a name. And maybe you know the name but couldn’t get yourself to put it in print. I don’t blame you. They’re called “sharrows.” It’s a portmanteau of share and arrow. Yeah, silly, like all those celebrity name mash-ups. But their purpose isn’t so silly; sharrows indicate to drivers and cyclists that the road is a preferred cycling route.
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