3.4 Bikeways

3.4L Buffered bike lanes, unprotected

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Buffered bike lanes provide additional horizontal separation between the bike and travel or parking lanes, increasing comfort and separation for people biking.

Introduction

Buffered bike lanes provide additional horizontal separation between the bike and travel or parking lanes, increasing comfort and separation for people biking.

Bike lane buffers should be considered in scenarios where excess roadway space allows for bike facilities wider than 7 feet. Bike lanes or buffered bike lanes may be considered with any street retrofit project that overlaps with the All Ages and Abilities Network. Unprotected bike lanes should generally not be used for street reconstruction projects as they are not low-stress All Ages and Abilities bikeways.

Figure 3.4L.1:
Buffered bike lane dimensions graphic

Related chapters

Design Considerations

Dimensions	Buffered bike lanes should be considered when there is space to implement bike facilities exceeding 7 feet in width (inclusive of the gutter pan) if there is not an adjacent parking lane. Buffers should be a minimum of 1.5 feet wide. There is no maximum buffer width, although buffers wider than 4 feet are rare.
Cross hatching	Buffers wider than 2’ require cross hatching at 20’ to 60’ spacing. 2-foot or narrower buffers do not require cross hatching.
Width considerations	Due to the lack of vertical delineation, buffers may be considered part of the overall bike lane width.
Maintenance	Reliable snow and ice clearance/removal for buffered unprotected bike lanes is challenging, especially when located adjacent to a parking lane.
Intersection guidance	See also bikeway intersection design guidance.

3.4K Bike lanes, unprotected

3.4M Contraflow bike lanes