Fast Streets W/Bike Lane or Side Streets?

I went for a ride yesterday using a city specific, bike specific map. I knew where I wanted to go, how to get there by car, and how to get there on main, high volume traffic roads that have dedicated bike lanes. The bike lanes are really nice and the routes are direct, but you really have to pay attention and be very focused because traffic is going at 45 in some places and occasionally there may be gravel in the bike lane. I rode my bike 'to' my destination on quiet, lower traffic through streets which did Not have dedicated bike lanes. It was nice because I could relax a little, look at people's yards and admire the neighborhoods. It also took me through neighborhoods that I've never been through before (I live in a suburb of Portland, OR where the population is about 85,000 or so). On the way home I took the high traffic/bike lane routes and got home in about half the time it took me to get to my original destination. Cars/trucks/buses were loud and fast. Not as pleasant, but I definitely got home quicker. I guess what roads I ride will depend on the reason for my ride. If it's an "adventure" ride where I'm exploring some new place, then the side streets could be better. When I was riding on the side streets I had to stop often to check the route since I'd never gone that way before. On the busy roads I already know the way.

So, how do you plan your ride? Do you trust drivers and yourself on big, 5 lane roads with dedicated bike lanes or do you take the quieter, scenic routes? How do you decide?
Thanks.

I prefer quiet. It's more relaxing.

I will go out of my way to get on the quiet side streets.

I feel safer riding in the road than in a bike lane, and much prefer sharrows on quiet streets to bike lanes on arterials.

But then, I live in a city that has pretty heavy bike traffic year 'round and many traffic calmed streets with bikes and busses given right of way.

I tend to be riding a bit on the faster side when I'm in the city as I'm usually riding to get somewhere and I prefer arterials (faster streets) with no bike lane, to side streets. I am not comfortable going faster than about 12-15mph on the side streets here - most of the intersections are uncontrolled, with either nothing or a small round about and visibility usually doesn't extend very far. That means cross traffic (which is often speeding....) doesn't have to stop so to be safe I have to be able to stop fast - so no riding very fast unless I want to risk being T-boned. (or worse yet hit head on by some bone head going around the traffic circle the wrong way.... this almost happened to me once)

If I'm out in the arterial I can go much faster - the lanes are wider, and there are more of them. There is also less curb side parking on arterials, which I think is inherently dangerous as it blocks your and entering drivers' views. Traffic entering from side streets always has to stop, either for a stop sign or a light and drivers have to be more alert because they know they have to expect traffic, so I don't have to worry as much about someone pulling out in front of me - and if they do I there is more space (more lanes) that could be a possible escape route. I think I get harassed less on multi lane streets too....

City streets are one thing, but on highways with an actual speed of 55+, I feel safer when I don't have to share a lane with traffic. The highways aren't nearly as pleasant as the back roads, that's for sure (except for the shallower grades, which is definitely worth the traffic on a day when I'm sore), but IMO they're safer, and obviously they're quicker just by being direct.



I know the difference between 15 and 23 is enormous when you're on a bicycle, but when you're in a car doing 55, I don't think that difference between bicyclists is significant at all.

@Oakleaf, the streets I'm talking about aren't "highways", but "arterials" where the speeds range fro 30-45 mph.

Overall I will try to take side streets, even if I have to get somewhere in a hurry. I feel safer on quiet side streets. Only problem is that some cars also feel "safer" and they don't always completely stop at stop signs, etc. My average speed around is typically 10-14 mph.
I think, in my case, it wouldn't have been so bad taking side streets if I hadn't gotten completely LOST! Seriously, I have NEVER gotten lost while using a street map. I have a natural ability with "directionality". It was cloudy and I couldn't get a clear idea of where the sun was. I seriously thought I was having a stroke or something because things weren't where they were supposed to be. I am going to DRIVE this route and figure out where I went wrong because I do want to be able to ride it without having to look at my map 20 times.

Velo, you're on the road to becoming a member of the "bold 1%", a phrase I first heard from Portland's own Mia Birk.

I suspect that with time, experience, and confidence, you'll evolve toward simply seeking well paved roads and traffic speed will become a secondary consideration.

On a recent trip to Sarasota, I rode a couple hundred miles, mostly on roads with designated bike lanes. It was a gut check for me since their straight and flat roads allow for traffic regularly going 50-70mph in the dense urban areas...three feet from me! I remember one spot where I had to merge from a bike lane through five lanes (at an interstate interchange) as the road quickly went from 5 lanes to 1 lane...I stuck to the rules, signaled often, and it went well:cool:

That's what I meant. If the posted speed limit on an "arterial" is 40 or over, the actual "ambient" speed is usually closer to 60-65. It isn't the speed per se, but the likelihood that drivers won't be paying attention precisely because they're on a road that feels and drives like a limited access highway, even though in fact it isn't. And if we're talking about commuter hours, then we're talking about people who are so distracted that they can't even be bothered to remember if they left their baby in the back seat, let alone look at the road when they're driving.

Mr. B., I don't know Sarasota at all, but I'm a little surprised that Indianapolis doesn't have similar roads - I know Columbus has many, and used to have more until they added bike lanes on some of the east-west connectors.

Mr B. is in southern Indiana, though he can be in Indy in about an hour. Indianapolis has arterials, of course, but not many like he described in Sarasota. Generally speaking they are two lanes (each direction)'with lots of lights. There are a few with three lanes each way but typically anything more is one of our four interstates. I can only think of a few exceptions in the city - I build travel model simulations of the area in my job.

My trainer has been riding all of his life and couldn't be bolder on road or mountain bike, and has told me that urban riding in Indianapolis isn't like other places he has lived - he thinks the lanes tend to be more narrow. We do have bike lanes, but few outside downtown and most roads don't have a shoulder, not a real one, and often are filled with cr*p though I imagine that is the case in most areas. Thankfully the Mayor just announced plans to really increase the number of bike lanes in the city this year - by next spring we will have quite a few more miles of lanes :)

Hmmm, no wonder I prefer my country roads!

It must be nice to even have bike lanes as an option. I don't think I've ever seen any in my town. I wonder if the town where I move to on Monday will have any? Luckily I have two weeks before I start work to figure out a good commuting route so I can make bike commuting a real possibility for me. Even if there aren't lanes though, traffic doesn't bother me. I cycled on busy streets in Berlin, Germany one summer (although admittedly they are a lot more bike friendly there than they are here in Texas) and didn't die, and since then... I just take the lane a lot, act predictably, signal, wear visible clothing and look like I mean business.

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Originally Posted by westtexas

I just take the lane a lot, act predictably, signal, wear visible clothing and look like I mean business.

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This.

As all my close calls with cars in the past year have come when I was using a bike lane, my tendency now is to avoid bike lanes and use side streets. The way they're laid out in my town is not very smart-- you're often in the door zone of a lot of parked cars. Also, there's no prohibition of parking in or otherwise blocking bike lanes here. So it's side streets a lot of the time, or taking a general traffic lane whenever I don't feel the bike lane is safe, which is most of the time.

But the conditions in every city are different, as are folks' risk tolerance...

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Originally Posted by Catrin

Mr B. is in southern Indiana, though he can be in Indy in about an hour. Indianapolis has arterials, of course, but not many like he described in Sarasota. Generally speaking they are two lanes (each direction)'with lots of lights. There are a few with three lanes each way but typically anything more is one of our four interstates. I can only think of a few exceptions in the city - I build travel model simulations of the area in my job.

My trainer has been riding all of his life and couldn't be bolder on road or mountain bike, and has told me that urban riding in Indianapolis isn't like other places he has lived - he thinks the lanes tend to be more narrow. We do have bike lanes, but few outside downtown and most roads don't have a shoulder, not a real one, and often are filled with cr*p though I imagine that is the case in most areas. Thankfully the Mayor just announced plans to really increase the number of bike lanes in the city this year - by next spring we will have quite a few more miles of lanes :)

Hmmm, no wonder I prefer my country roads!

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I don't disagree with your trainer, but by the same token, I've ridden from either downtown or Broad Ripple to nearly every other side of town without too much difficulty. There are ways to do it that avoid the worst of the high volume arteries; you just gotta know where to go. I was fortunate in that I was taken under the wing by a group of cyclists who know their way around the city by bike. Now, these routes aren't necessarily great from a commuting standpoint as they zig and zag quite a bit, but from a recreational standpoint, they aren't bad.

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Originally Posted by indysteel

I don't disagree with your trainer, but by the same token, I've ridden from either downtown or Broad Ripple to nearly every other side of town without too much difficulty. There are ways to do it that avoid the worst of the high volume arteries; you just gotta know where to go. I was fortunate in that I was taken under the wing by a group of cyclists who know their way around the city by bike. Now, these routes aren't necessarily great from a commuting standpoint as they zig and zag quite a bit, but from a recreational standpoint, they aren't bad.

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All he was saying was the lanes were more narrow than in other places he has lived - and that is an interesting combination with distracted drivers. He does ride locally, I am the one avoiding more urban traffic :)

I commute on side streets with bike lanes. The major arterials between my home and work all have bike paths alongside the roads, and they scare me. "real" cyclists ride in the roads there but I'm not fast enough. I prefer side streets.

Where I live and ride, there are no roads with designated bike lanes. There are a few roads that are designated as "bike routes", but there are no marked lanes for cyclists...so you're just out there with the traffic and have to be careful.

I don't have much of a choice when it comes to riding on the roads. I've done it now for 3 years and have gotten to the point where I'm comfortable and not afraid of traffic. I ride on roads where speed limits range anywhere from 25 - 55mph, and most have nothing but a 1.5 foot "shoulder" (if you want to even call it a shoulder)...some have no shoulder...just a white line and the end of the pavement. I just make sure that I'm always visible, signal my intentions, and like another poster said...look like I mean business and belong out there.

In my area, there are so many stop signs, traffic signals, and busy intersections, that you literally can't go even a 1/2 mile before you have to stop. Taking side streets would be even worse, as every side street in these neighborhoods has a stop sign at every block. It would take forever to get anywhere if I stuck to using only side streets. Unfortunately, I don't have all the time in the world to ride...so I have to make the best of the time that I do have and that means riding some busy, congested, and often dangerous roads. I'll take my chances and hope for the best.

I enjoy reading everyone's answers to this.
I'd say I'm not afraid of bike lanes on busy streets. I actually giggled as I rode on the busy street, in the bike lane, cars/trucks wizzing by at 45 mph, AND I was riding up a huge, steep hill and I'm still in "2" in the front!
Thanks everyone who shared.