Eyes on the Street: More Hazards for Cyclists on Howard Street

The bike lane has also become a car lane on Howard Street. Photos by Bryan Goebel.

DPW crews tearing up Howard Street have once again given short shrift to bicyclists, failing to put up proper signage and creating a dangerous mix of bicycle and car traffic on Howard just before 10th Street. As we’ve reported, crews are working on a sewer replacement project, and are tearing up the road, which is a major bicycle corridor. I dig the new smooth ride on portions of Howard Street, even though the bike lane markings have not been repainted, presumably because of that tired excuse we call the injunction.

The latest obstruction on Howard is just before 10th Street, where two lanes of traffic have been closed, and cyclists are forced to merge with cars in the bike lane on the north side of the street, a particularly dicey and confusing situation for bicyclists, and drivers. I pedaled by Friday and snapped the photos you see here, and also questioned a DPW worker donning a white hardhat. 

He informed me that most of the “Bicyclists Allowed Full Use of Lane” signs have either been lost or stolen, and that the agency was apparently trying to order more.  To his credit, he said he would ask the crews on the scene to see what other measures could be taken, and sure enough, he went out right away and started talking to the other hardhats.

DPW has a policy to prioritize the repaving of transit and bicycle corridors, but as indicated by the reconstruction of Howard, the agency is not fulfilling its responsibility to permit cyclists to safely pass while this kind of work is going on. I’d suggest you to call them and urge them to do so: 415-437-7038.