I gave up on considering Bicycling Magazine a legitimate source for decent bicycling reads a long time ago. Their website is even worse. The articles are of low quality, usually with clickbait titles, the desktop version nags users for using ad-blockers, and there are tons of “sponsored content” and articles masquerading as advertisements. If the content was actually of quality, readers would consider whitelisting the site in their ad blockers. Outside of the website annoyances, most of the advocacy and safety articles written for Bicycling are written from a segregation and cyclist inferiority viewpoint.
See below for the case of “Check out This Gutsy Cyclist Riding on a Narrow Median” by Matt Bevilacqua.
First of all, what does “upgrading” egg nog have to do with bicycling?
Note the title of the “article” is actually entitled, “When the Bike Lanes Weren’t Good Enough, This Gutsy Cyclist Rode on the Median”
Bevilacqua’s article shows a picture of a bicyclist riding the k-rail/Jersey barrier type concrete structure the divides the two directions of travel on the MacArthur Causeway between Miami and Miami Beach.
The photographer distracted motorist took the photo while operating his her automobile. Bevilacqua claims the cyclist made the choice to ride on the barrier due to the danger of using the lanes themselves and attempts to use this story to push for bicycling facilities. He also claims the causeway does indeed have a bike lane but it’s “right of way” is “interrupted” and it’s not “protected” with physical separation.
This “shocking, unexpected, and pretty hilarious” (his words, not mine) image Bevilacqua pasted off the r/bicycling subreddit apparently helps support his argument that “safe,” “protected” facilities are needed for bicyclist safety and the situation on the MacArthur Causeway is so dire that this is how far some bicyclists go to get away from all those dangerous cars. Midway down the article is a link to another article, also on Bicycling by the same author, about a “human barrier” formed to create a “protected” bike lane. As if squishy flesh and bones can stop a speeding car.
Apparently Bevilacqua took the time to track down the photographer distracted motorist and credited him for the photo but failed to take the time to really research the story behind why the cyclist was up on the barrier in the first place. Perhaps the motorist didn’t know but it would not have been that hard to ask around the internet, say on a local Miami-based group or in that reddit post itself for the actual story.
Deep toward the bottom of the original reddit thread is a link to a YouTube video posted a few days after the Bicycling article was published. The video, along with an annoying soundtrack, shows a large group of mostly BMX riders riding a “critical mass” down the streets of Miami. Several scenes of the video show poor and/or illegal riding that does not follow the rules of the road. This behavior irritates all other road users and gives us a bad reputation. At around 1:24, the bicyclist from the photo can be seen and at 1:26, he and another bicyclist are shown riding on the barrier on the MacArthur Causeway. The cyclist’s decision to ride here does not appear to be due to the “danger” posed by riding on the road itself.
This is a stunt – not some cry for “safer” infrastructure.
The group is not only using the bike lane but they are also using the full width of the right-most travel lane. Faster moving traffic wishing to overtake simply does so by using an adjacent lane to pass. A solo bicyclist could do the same on this roadway by positioning themselves in the center of the lane.
The barrier the cyclist uses start after the intersection with Bridge Ave. The process to get on top of the barrier would involve crossing all three travel lanes, plus the merge lane, dismounting from the bike, lifting it (plus yourself) onto the barrier and remounting. I doubt the two cyclists in the video, especially the road cyclist (with road shoes) started here.
From the start of the barrier to the climb onto the last bridge before entering Miami Beach however is quite narrow and ridable by only the most skilled bicyclist stunt person. It widens to what appears to be two Jersey barriers side by side filled with concrete between. To give an idea of the dimensions for width of these structures, Florida DOT’s standards for concrete barrier walls are here. This wider section on the bridge itself is probably still less than three feet wide which is narrower than even the worst bike lane standards. It’s also worth noting there are no “bike lanes” on the bridge itself. For those suggesting the cyclists use the cattle chute sidewalks should have a look here. The right hand lane however does have shared-lane markings (sharrows) that indicate where a cyclist should ride. Even without these markings, the center of this lane would be the correct, safest, and legal position for the bicyclist.
The photo itself captured from the car was most likely in this area. I wonder if Bevilacqua or any of the segregation-happy redditors noticed the left turn only markings on the pavement. The pro-segregation crowd often praises “protected” infrastructure that causes directional conflicts with straight and turning traffic at intersections which are where most auto-bicycle collisions occur.
If the bicyclists were to actually use the barrier to ride into Miami Beach, they’d find themselves up here. Unless they wanted to go right of course but that would mean dismounting (or jumping) off the barrier into 45+ mph motor traffic, negotiating lane changes, and riding happily to their destinations.
So, Bicycling Magazine, how is this supposed to be a better alternative to simply controlling the lane?
Start by properly researching your articles and down use a bogus stunt to promote your agenda.
Biking in the Middle 