It's the little things that count—especially when it comes to building safety infrastructure onto streets so that they better serve all modes of transportation.
According to Jonathan Maus, "the City of Portland Bureau of Transportation is using an actual curb to separate bike-only lanes from standard vehicle lanes." The so-called "Tuff Curb" is the solution to the need for quick and easy physical separation between cars and bikes along protected bike lanes.
The Portland Bureau of Transportation has experimented with other forms of separation before:
They’ve tried using plastic wands but those rarely last more than a few days before they’re hit and ripped out by people who can’t control their cars. PBOT’s most recent attempt to help separate the bike lane from encroachment by motor vehicle operators came in the form of “rumble bars.” Those failed too.
The new Tuff Curb has already been installed "to separate a bike lane on SW 13th just before Clay," reports Maus. The post also includes images and more information about the cost of the new complete streets technology.
FULL STORY: City debuts new ‘Tuff Curb’ to create physical separation for bikeways
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Economic & Planning Systems, Inc.
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research