Sharrows — Biking on Rice Street

By Tommy Noyes

The sharrows on Rice Street indicate the best line of travel for people riding bicycles. Riding too close to the right edge of the travel way puts bicyclists at risk of crashing into opening car doors and encourages motorists to pass them in a no-passing zone. Motorists are asked to be patient as they follow bicyclists. Bicyclists should be alert to drivers following them and when to appropriately pull over to avoid impeding the flow of traffic. Photo by Tommy Noyes

Revisions in Līhuʻe’s Rice Street vicinity are nearly complete. Encouraging more walking and bicycling in the heart of Kaua‘i has been a central theme for the project. Here are a few recommendations on best practices for sharing the road with bicyclists or bicycling there yourself.

Many people are unfamiliar with the sharrow, a painted roadway marking now seen on Līhuʻe’s new pavement. The sharrow — a mix of the words share and arrow — is a visual reminder that bicyclists and motor vehicles are expected to share the same travelway. Unless specifically prohibited, bicyclists are entitled to share travel lanes, with or without sharrows.

Why should a bicyclist travel on the street instead of riding on the sidewalk? Kaua‘i County ordinance (Sec. 16-16.4) states that riding a bicycle on a sidewalk in a business district is prohibited. In practical terms, sidewalks are designed for pedestrians, not for bicyclists’ speed of travels and limited maneuverability. Bicyclists are considered to be operating vehicles, and so when traveling in a lane they legally have the same rights and responsibilities as other drivers.

Bicyclists know that things flow smoothly when everyone is courteous to others on the road. That requires being aware of other road users, observing how fast are they traveling, where they are going, and making sure that others can clearly see you and can tell where you’re headed.

Sharrows indicate preferred lines of travel for bicyclists to take on the street. They are typically placed eleven feet from the curb if there is on-street parking. That guides cyclists away from the “door zone,” the area where abruptly opened car doors become collision hazards for cyclists. Without on-street parking, sharrows should indicate bicycling four feet from the curb. Riding in the travel lane keeps bicyclists away from debris at the edge and discourages unsafe passing by motor vehicles.

A street marked with sharrows is not the same as a bike lane. It simply marks a lane commonly shared by motor vehicle drivers and bicyclists.

On Rice Street, sharrows are being used to span the gaps between the designated bike lanes at the mauka and makai ends of the business corridor. Augmenting Rice Street, Puaole and Malae streets use sharrows and link Ho‘olako Street to bicycle friendly Hardy Street, and the new shared-use path between the War Memorial and Wilcox Elementary School. Those quiet streets comprise an alternate travel route for bicyclists reluctant to ride on the more heavily trafficked Rice Street, especially when pedaling up hill.

Bicyclists making left turns need to deliberately change lanes from the bike lane or sharrow marked lane and get into a left-hand position to safely complete that turn. Many of the above-mentioned scenarios are addressed in the Smart Cycling Quick Guide, published by the League of American Bicyclists, and available upon request from Kaua‘i Path, Inc. under a highway safety grant from the Hawai‘i State Department of Transportation. Contact the author at (808) 639-1018 to request a free copy of the 28-page pamphlet.

• Tommy Noyes is Kaua‘i Path’s executive director, a League of American Bicyclists Certified Instructor and active with the Kaua‘i Medical Reserve Corps.