Are green bike lanes the precursor of safer, better bike infrastructure?
Perhaps, yes.
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These green painted portions of the bike lane are only in "conflict zones" in the Adam's Point/Lake Merritt area. The image above is on Grand Avenue just past the Harrison Street intersection. There is a wide right turn through lane, where cars barely have to slow down to veer right onto Grand Avenue. This type of cars-first infrastructure is common all over Oakland. This particular area here is a danger zone for both bicyclists and pedestrians. Even though there is a light, which apparently turns red on occasion for drivers, I rarely see it red. I both walk and ride my bike in this area on a daily basis. This can be a tricky area for bicyclists and pedestrians, and we often feel unsafe with cars barreling by us at unsafe (and illegal) speeds.
Hopefully, this green bike lane paint will be one step (along with many others) to democratize our city streets. Everyone owns our streets. It's time that we all have access to our fair share of the street. People driving vehicles do not have any rights above those on foot or on bike. I hope that we will begin to see real design changes to our community infrastructure that make us ALL safer, happier and healthier.
