Why you should be aware of bike lanes when parking in Cedar Rapids

CEDAR RAPIDS — A white Cadillac is parked on the Third Avenue Bridge, its front end extending out past the end of the parking space and fully obstructing a bike lane running between the curb and parking stalls.

A sign on a nearby parking meter warns motorists to 'keep bike lanes open,' with a diagram of how to park.

A ticket sits under the windshield wiper of the Cadillac, but it's simply a 'courtesy warning.'

'Lane by curb = bike lane ... Please pull back,' the ticket reads, with boxes checked for 'improperly parked,' 'parked in a no parking zone,' and 'blocking bike lanes.'

Parking in bike lanes violations are common in downtown Cedar Rapids and could net a motorist a $25 fine, according to parking enforcement officials. In recent years, however, a violation generally has resulted in a warning and information rather than a fine.

'We find it, I'd say systemwide — not just downtown — daily,' said Jon Rouse, Park Cedar Rapids manager. 'We've been doing warnings for five years now. We really want to focus on, especially with bike lanes, education more than enforcement.'

The approach appears to be working, though, he said. Compared to years past, violations are much less frequent, he said.

But around 3:30 p.m. on Thursday, half a dozen vehicles were parked obstructing bike lanes on Third Avenue SE alone. Several had received warnings. On Wednesday afternoon, a white pickup truck was double parked with its hazard lights on in the bike lane on Third Avenue SE, and a similar obstruction occurred on Fourth Avenue SE on Thursday afternoon.

'It can be dangerous,' said Briar Kleeman, 25. 'You have to go out into traffic or onto the sidewalk, and then it's another reason for drivers to be angry with bikers.'

Others are more pointed, and say it's time to trade out the warnings for fines.

'From the bicyclists' perspective, the bike lanes don't mean squat if drivers don't keep their cars out of them,' said Jeffrey Martin, a daily bike rider. 'Keep in mind, one or two illegally parked cars makes that bike lane less safe for both drivers and bicyclists for the entire duration they are parked. Often, it is not isolated or short-term parking either.

'Education means little without enforcement.'

Cedar Rapids has three main configurations for bike lanes. Protected bike lanes put cyclists closer to the curb with some kind of buffer, such as parked cars or planters between bike travel and vehicle travel. Traditional bike lanes have bikes adjacent to motor vehicle lanes with no buffer and others have no designated bike lanes and are simply shared roadways.

The Third Avenue Bridge has protected bike lanes, while farther up Third Avenue SE, the bike lane weaves from protected to traditional with the bike next to the vehicle lane with parked cars and the curb on the other side. Third Street SE also has traditional bike lanes, as does Fourth Avenue SE. Other streets, such as Second Street SE and Fifth Street SE have no bike lanes and cyclists merge with traffic.

'The system varies whichever block you are on and it gets confusing to remember,' said Brad Roggow, of Cedar Rapids, who was parking his vehicle on Fourth Avenue SE on Thursday. 'The system is disjointed. It is frustrating for drivers. Do you keep your eyes out for bikes on your right or your left?'

The city added bike lanes to keep cyclists and motorists separated and safer by allocating designated space for each on the road. Traffic engineers have been experimenting with protected bike lanes as an added safety measure, but space is not always available to accommodate that layout.

Advocacy groups, such as the League of American Bicyclists have praised Cedar Rapids for adding bike lanes, saying it makes streets more accessible for different modes of transportation.

As Cedar Rapids continues converting one-way streets to two-ways on Second and Third avenues, the configuration of bike lanes is being evaluated, but pavement width and the number of driveways and intersections on the route can be a barrier, said Matt Myers, a Cedar Rapids traffic engineer.

'We are trying to eliminate the different configurations where possible,' he said.