Photos below, from various Monterey County locations, indicate: This is an increasingly bicycling-friendly place. Looking for evidence? The signs are everywhere!

We’re looking forward to the improvements ahead for Broadway between Fremont Boulevard and General Jim Moore Boulevard in City of Seaside (https://www.tamcmonterey.org/ctc-allocates-12-million-for-seaside-s-broadway-avenue-complete-street-project). Until then, we appreciate that “Bikes May Use Full Lane” signs accompany the sharrows painted on Broadway, as well as the “3 feet min” signs that remind motor vehicle drivers about California’s Three Feet for Safety is a law in California, enacted September 16, 2014.

Likewise, another a reminder about sharing: here’s a sign reminding that on sidewalks—and likewise, in this case, on the city of Monterey section of the Monterey Bay coastal trail—bicycles are to slow down and yield to pedestrians. Listen to our related 90-second audio, and learn more, in our post “Bicycling on Sidewalks: Misconceptions and Advisories. Also: Crosswalks, and ‘What Pedestrians and Bicyclists Want Each Other to Know.’” With the increase in e-bikes, many enthusiastic riders haven’t yet learned how to bike polite and share multi-use trails safely, where e-bikes are allowed. Also see our post “Regulations for E-Bikes / Electric-Assist Bicycles and Other Non People-Powered Bikes — in Monterey County and Elsewhere.”

The photo below was taken at a relatively quiet time on the trail, in the evening on 6/29/21. But traffic on the trail often does get heavy here.

Biking polite, with a mindfulness for the comfort and safety of people who walk, roll in wheelchairs, run, skate, scoot, or use other people-powered transportation, is important anytime!

Below: City of Monterey, a street that regularly includes much truck traffic, and is near Monterey Peninsula College.

Below: City of Salinas, on East Market Street,  which added Class 4 bike lanes in 2017.

Below: Carmel Valley.

 Below: City of Monterey

 Below: Carmel Valley

Above: Salinas Valley

Below: Pacific Grove

 Below: City of Salinas

The first sign below is a visual reminder to share the trail in a way that promotes harmony and safety.  (See “CA Bike Laws and Personal Safety–Tips for Kids and Adults” for more about that!)

• People who bike: ride slow near pedestrians (save race training or other fast riding for wide, open places).
• People who walk: keep to the right, to avoid unnecessarily slowing or stopping the travel of people on bikes.
  

Below: City of Monterey

Below: City of Monterey

And the newest “share the trail” sign (newest as of spring 2017, anyway)…

And of course, reminders are appropriate when away from the multi-use/bike path too!

Out on the roads, there are reminders for people driving motor vehicles about the likely presence of people on bicycles.

“Same roads, same rights”–remember to share the road.

Below: California State Route 68,

the Monterey-Salinas Highway

Below, California State University Monterey Bay campus

Below, City of Monterey

The above sign of a bicycling-friendly Monterey County was seen in Salinas on October 6, 2013. And not only was this a sign of bike friendliness, but of friendliness and support for all people-powered transportation! Walking, jogging, running, skateboarding, rollerblading, and biking too were given Open Streets–Monterey County’s first, and one of only a dozen such locations in all of California–at the inaugural Ciclovia Salinas!

Thanks to the City of Salinas officials who caught the vision of youth and helped it become reality.   Learn more about city leaders’ support; click here.

Watch for this sign of a bike-friendly county too, posted at some of the participating HER Helmet Thursdays locations countywide:

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This post was first published July 17, 2010, and has since been partially updated.

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Visitors

If you live out of the area and wish you could ride your bike in such a bicycling-friendly place, come visit us!  BYOB (bring your own bike) or rent one here.   Tips for Bicycling Monterey County will help make your visit more fun.  And when you return to your home, maybe you’ll have a renewed commitment not only to bike more at home, too, but to also help your own municipality copy Monterey County’s best bike-friendly practices.

And for those very fortunate visitors who live in communities that are even more bike friendly, let us know some of the things you have at home that you’d love to see in Monterey County.  Thank you.

Locals

Tips for Bicycling Monterey County, originally put together for visitors, has expanded into a 20-section guide for locals too.

Although most locals who bike look forward to continued improvements in bike infrastructure, it’s easy to take for granted how much is already in place—signage, bike paths, bike racks, bike maps, and more—to help make it safer and easier to bike here.  These things may seem small to some, for it’s easy to forget that they don’t exist everywhere.

Special thanks to Monterey County municipal leaders for your work that has led to the signs pictured above.  

To get in touch with infrastructure leaders, see the main resources page of this site: Monterey County Bicycling Resources: Bike Shops, Services, Clubs, Events, Infrastructure, and More.

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Below are some sign that could be helpful to add at appropriate locations throughout Monterey County…

“Do not enter, except bicycles” or

“One-way, bikes excepted” or “Wrong way, bikes excepted.”

Where can you see such signs in California? Here are some examples:

In Santa Cruz, on Pacific Avenue—where a new contraflow bike lane was added in 2017. How does that work? See dos and don’ts for people who drive, bike, or walk: http://www.cityofsantacruz.com/home/showdocument?id=60388

(Note: That City of Santa Cruz document states “Riding on the sidewalk is illegal in commercial areas.” That’s true for that particular city, and the sidewalk ordinances vary around the state. See Bicycling Monterey’s post “Bicycling on Sidewalks: Misconceptions and Advisories.”

In Santa Cruz, off Mission Street near Epicenter Cycling, see the photo directly below.

Below, along the south side of the Upper Newport Bay Ecological Preserve, Newport Beach, California.  The trail is part of the Mountains to the Sea Biking and Hiking Trail. Photo provided courtesy of  The Cycling Dude. http://www.cyclingdude.com

You’ll find that same message on signs in bike-friendly places around the USA and other parts of the world.

Coming soon to a Monterey County bikeway near you?

Why not just do it?

Sounds simple, eh! Just add a sign such as those in the three photos directly above, right?

And until more Class I (off-road) bike paths are built, signs like “One-way, bikes excepted” (or others, such as “Bicycles may use full lane” or “Share the road”) can be a more affordable way to make bicycling on roads safer.

But it isn’t just a matter of sticking up a sign.  California law requires the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) be adhered to.  Traffic Controls for Bicycle Facilities are included in the MUTCD.

Traffic planners must consider both safety and legality, of course.  And when a sign like this is  allowable by California law, it makes sense that local traffic planners and engineers are usually best equipped to decide what’s most appropriate locally. Still, they need and welcome input from people who bike.

Who to communicate with

Are there places where “one-way, bikes excepted” signs would mean you’d bike, rather than drive? Suggest those locations to the Bicycle and Pedestrian coordinator at the Transportation Agency for Monterey County. 

Ask whether “one-way, bikes excepted” would work well in places such as the following:

• Scenic Drive, Carmel – The coastal views are so beautiful, returning via the same route is a common preference among people who bike. See more info below.
  
• Houston Street between Webster and Pearl, Monterey.
• Numerous  Seaside streets, such as Kenneth.
  
• Some tiny streets  barely used by cars, such as many of the “alleyways” in Pacific Grove, Seaside, and elsewhere.)  Many of these make very comfortable bike routes, especially when traveling with children.

Scenic Drive, Carmel

A public workshop on plans for Scenic Drive  provided an opportunity to learn more about the City’s goals for Scenic, and to share ideas.  Contact Carmel City Council members if you would like traffic planners and the Council to consider “one-way, bikes excepted” signage as a possibility for making Scenic more bicycling friendly. Already planned by the county is to make more room on Scenic for bicycling by making Scenic Road from just south of Martin Way to Carmel River State Beach one way.

Be aware that sections of Scenic outside Carmel’s city limits will be a matter for Monterey County to decide.

Below, Carmel-by-the-Sea police officers on bikes temporarily change their course (and bike the wrong way on a one-way stretch of Scenic Drive) in a brief demo of how residents and visitors might benefit from “one-way, bikes excepted” signage here.

This post was first published on July 7, 2010 and has been only partially updated.