Uploads from joshua_putnam

Poorly-located sharrows wear quickly

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Fri, 24 May 2013 07:50:31 -0700

Improperly located sharrows, too close to the curb, not only fail to convey their intended meaning, but wear more quickly.

Taken with a Swann Freestyle HD video camera on a Minoura Handlebar Camera Mount.

Poorly located sharrows wear quickly

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Fri, 24 May 2013 07:50:30 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

Rather than being centered in the right travel lane, this sharrow is the bare minimum distance allowed from the curb. This fails to convey the intended meaning of the sharrow -- that the lane is too narrow for a motorist to pass a cyclist within the lane. It also makes the sharrow wear out much more quickly because it's under motor vehicle tires.

Taken with a Swann Freestyle HD video camera on a Minoura Handlebar Camera Mount.

Rainy morning commute, Seattle

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Tue, 21 May 2013 12:58:59 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

Taken with a Swann Freestyle HD video camera on a Minoura Handlebar Camera Mount.

Sharrow on un-laned Seattle street

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Tue, 21 May 2013 12:58:59 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

Taken with a Swann Freestyle HD video camera on a Minoura Handlebar Camera Mount .

I-90 Bridge, Lake Washington

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Tue, 21 May 2013 12:58:58 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

Hard to think of a better place for a segregated bicycle facility -- more than a mile with no intersections or turns, next to 60mph Interstate freeway traffic. This avoids all the usual hazards of cycletracks, like intersection conflicts, pedestrian crossings, and blocked left or right turns.

Taken with a Swann Freestyle HD video camera on a Minoura Handlebar Camera Mount.

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nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Tue, 21 May 2013 12:58:58 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

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There are places you just shouldn't fly a kite...

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Tue, 14 May 2013 17:24:48 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

Cool kit with a long tail, hanging in high-voltage lines over the Interurban Trail in Algona. Hope nobody was holding the string when it hit...

Into I-90 Bicycle Tunnel, Seattle

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Fri, 10 May 2013 09:44:08 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

The I-90 Trail has its own level of tunnel, over the main lines of I-90, through the Mount Baker ridge in Seattle.

Taken with a Swann Freestyle HD video camera on a Minoura Handlebar Camera Mount.

Out of the I-90 Bicycle Tunnel

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Fri, 10 May 2013 09:44:08 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

Rider emerging from the I-90 Bicycle Tunnel to the west shore of Lake Washington.

Taken with a Swann Freestyle HD video camera on a Minoura Handlebar Camera Mount.

Into the light...

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Fri, 10 May 2013 09:44:08 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

Rider heading into the glare of sunrise at the eastern end of the I-90 Bicycle Tunnel in Seattle.

Taken with a Swann Freestyle HD video camera on a Minoura Handlebar Camera Mount.

Up!

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Fri, 10 May 2013 09:44:08 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

Climbing the high-rise bridge on I-90 heading into Seattle.

Taken with a Swann Freestyle HD video camera on a Minoura Handlebar Camera Mount.

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nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Fri, 10 May 2013 06:03:46 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

Sunrise over I-90 Floating Bridge

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 15:46:29 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

Spring sun creeps toward the ridge line of the Cascade Mountains behind Bellevue and Mercer Island, seen from the I-90 bicycle trail in Seattle.

Sun creeps over the mountains

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 15:41:19 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

The smallest sliver of sun rises over Bellevue, Washington, seen from the I-90 floating bridge between Seattle and Mercer Island.

Just before sunrise, I-90 Bicycle Trail

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 06:14:20 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

The sun just about to peek over the ridge of the Cascade Mountains behind Bellevue, WA, seen from the I-90 floating bridge.

Clear April sunrise, Lake Washington

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 06:11:24 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

Spring storm over Interurban Trail, Algona

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 17:27:32 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

Commuter dust pan

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 15:31:52 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

Above the big reflective patch, behind the PDW Radbot tail light, that yellow thing isn't a child's beach shovel -- it's a small dust pan and whisk broom, sold for sweeping out your tent when camping. I keep it on my commuter backpack for cleaning glass off the Interurban and I-90 trails.

Glass isn't much of an issue in the street -- if you ride a safe lane position, the pavement you're on has been swept by car tires that either capture the glass or throw it to the curb.

But on the trail, without car and truck traffic, a single broken bottle can take weeks to be picked up by other cyclists' tires.

Bicycle Signal Loop Layout, Bellevue WA

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 15:20:04 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

Standard layout for Bicycle Detector Marking (MUTCD Fig. 9C-7) from the city of Bellevue, Washington.

The small cyclist-on-a-line symbol is relatively new. It's a national standard symbol to indicate the most-sensitive spot for a cyclist to stop to trigger a traffic signal. This replaces obscure, non-standard markings like a small "T" or "X" previously used in some communities.

On the bottom right quadrant, you'll notice the "sweet spot" varies by the shape of the detector loop. For large, round loops, positioning the bicycle to the side of the loop puts both the front and rear wheels over the loop.

If the lane is wide enough that taking the edge of the loop could encourage illegal passing by motorists, you can stop your bike at a 45-degree angle to the symbol, putting your front wheel in the front center of the loop and your rear wheel about the middle of the loop.

Bellevue's standard layout calls for the symbol to always be on the right edge of the loop, but in left-turn-only lanes, I find it much safer to stop on the left edge of the loop, making it clear to motorists behind me that I am ahead of them and intend to turn left. (Some motorists seem to believe cyclists can't use left-turn lanes, so if I stop at the right edge of the left-turn lane, they'll crowd past me instead of taking their legal place in line.)

In Washington State, signal markings for bicycles are no longer just a nice option, they're mandated in many situations by RCW 47.36.025, which requires that

(2) During routine maintenance or monitoring activities, but subject to the availability of funds:

(a) All existing vehicle-activated traffic control signals that do not currently routinely and reliably detect motorcycles and bicycles must be adjusted to do so to the extent that the existing equipment is capable consistent with safe traffic control. Priority must be given to existing vehicle-activated traffic control signals for which complaints relating to motorcycle or bicycle detection have been received and existing vehicle-activated traffic control signals that are otherwise identified as a detection problem for motorcyclists or bicyclists, or both. Jurisdictions operating existing vehicle-activated traffic control signals shall establish and publicize a procedure for filing these complaints in writing or by e-mail, and maintain a record of these complaints and responses; and

(b) Where motorcycle and bicycle detection is limited to certain areas other than immediately before the stop line or crosswalk in the center of a lane at an existing vehicle-activated traffic control signal, those detection areas must be clearly marked on the pavement at left turn lanes, through lanes, and limited right turn lanes. These detection areas must also be marked to allow a bicyclist to leave a bicycle lane to enter a detection area, if necessary, to cross an intersection. Pavement markings must be consistent with the standards described in the state of Washington's "Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways" obtainable from the department of transportation.

Sounder platform, King Street Station, Seattle

nobody@flickr.com (joshua_putnam) — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 08:41:14 -0700

joshua_putnam posted a photo:

Descending the Weller Street stairs to the Sounder commuter rail platform, King Street Station, Seattle.

Elevated perspective from the handlebars of my Bianchi Milano commuter bike.

Taken with a Swann Freestyle HD video camera on a Minoura Handlebar Camera Mount.