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Augsburg on March 24, 2019 at 10:35 pm

Hi, I ride both protected and unprotected bike lanes all the time.  My wife and I each put about 100 miles a week on our bikes.  I ride with a conventional bike, an e-assist cargo bike, and a 3-wheel recumbent trike (due to physical limitations).  I've learned first hand that many bike lane designs do not accommodate anything other than a narrow racing road bike - even though most states classify 3-wheelers as legal bikes.

To get to your question, of course, a protected bike lane is a great improvement, but I do see regular abuses on a daily basis.  Delivery and service vehicles constantly park in the bike lanes to save the driver a couple of steps - forcing cyclists out into high speed traffic.  Broken glass and road debris litter the bike lanes and any protection for the lane results in less frequent street sweeping.  Similarly, garbage and recycle bins are placed in the bike lanes on garbage day and mail boxes are often placed at the curb, resulting in USPS "driving" the bike lane to deliver mail.  

I agree it is more difficult for service vehicles to park in a protected lane, whether it has the typical plastic pylons, or the plastic wave as shown in this article.  That said, the drivers of service and delivery vehicles know they can drive right over the plastic protection and do so.  Garbage and mail service to properties abutting the bike lane is another problem that the plastic wave design will face.  

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