Eye on Infrastructure: Salinas, California

Photos by
JLR
Salinas teen and bike commuter

All bicycling facilities are not equal when it comes to helping keep people who bike safer!

Here’s one type that is genuinely helpful: Bike Boxes.

A BIKE BOX is an area at the head of traffic lanes that is designated for people on bicycles. It gives bicyclists a way to get ahead of cars in a safer, visible manner while waiting for a traffic signal to turn from red light to green light.

The bike boxes in the three photos below are on East Alvin Drive and on El Dorado Drive in Salinas, where the two roads intersect.

The photo below shows a type of bicycling facility that is not that effective in keeping people who bike safer: SHARROWS on pavement (partly visible at left), and a bicycle “MAY USE FULL LANE” sign.

Although these do remind drivers that people who bike have the right to share the road, the “full lane” sign and the sharrows painted on pavement offer no real protection to the person on a bike.

Also shown in the same photo is a “BIKE ROUTE” sign. Bike Routes are also referred to as Class 3 bikeways. Bicycles share the roadway with motor vehicles; there is no separate bike lane.

The photo below was shot near the intersection of Chaparral Street and Linwood Drive, Salinas.

The two photos below are near the intersection of Chaparral Street and Linwood Drive, Salinas.

Bicycle Parking Facilities

To learn about the many types of bike racks and other bike parking facilities, refer to the BIKE PARKING resources linked in Bicycling Monterey’s section on Bicycling ADVOCACY: What you can do.

The bicycle parking rack pictured below is at El Dorado Park, Salinas.

Learn more about bike infrastructure, then
ADVOCATE FOR BETTER INFRASTRUCTURE!

“Bicycling ADVOCACY: What you can do” features a bullet list of over a dozen resources, which include a bilingual (Spanish-English) bike audit tool kit, a bilingual glossary of transportation terms, a bikeway design guide, where to report a bikeway maintenance need, how to participate in advocacy actions, how to find local bike advocacy partners, bike-related meetings, and more. Check it out!