Jacksonville Dangerous City for Biking
Beaches and warm breezes are nice. But bike safety is nicer.
Last week, I posted about the bike-friendliness of Jacksonville Beach. Sadly, bike-friendliness begins and ends there. The rest of Jacksonville is dangerous for bikers. This article states that Jacksonville is one of the most dangerous places to bike in Florida, up there with Orlando, Tampa and Miami.
This is bad. If you bike through Jacksonville, you already know this. But people who have not yet visited or moved to Jacksonville do not know this. Can you imagine what a rude awakening someone might get if they came here from out of town and tried biking through our streets? I think that would be tremendously unfair to that person.
Moreover, bikes are the future. Gas is expensive, car culture is unsustainable, and people are tired of being out of shape. The popularity of biking and bike commuting is spreading. If our city isn’t bike friendly, it will be left behind.
How Can We Improve Bike Safety in Jacksonville?
So what do we do? The first thing you have to do is get out and ride. I know that’s hard when it’s not safe. But the only way to force motorists to take notice of and care about cyclists is to make them see us. And we can only do that by getting on our bikes and taking to the road.
Once we’ve established some strong numbers and a vocal community of bikers, we can begin to lobby our city council for improvements. When we do, we have to cite both the stats on the benefits and popularity of biking, and the dangers that bikers face in our city.
Ride Safe
Until things change, it will be up to us cyclists to make the roads safer for each other. You probably know what you need to do to stay safe on the road but it never hurts to refresh your memory.
- Wear light colored, reflective coating.
- Remember to signal when turning or changing lanes.
- Ride in the center of the lane so that cars have to see you. Yes, you might get honked at. And have epithets hurled at you. But that’s better than getting sideswiped.
- Wear a helmet. Yeah, their uncomfortable and unfashionable but given the state of things, it’s not worth the risk.
Photo credit: Boston Public Library / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)
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I thought you could only ride in the center of the lane when it is too small to allow at least 3 feet between you and a passing vehicle and there is no bike lane available? It’s not a bad thing to wear a helmet but don’t think that it could stop a 1 ton vehicle from crushing your head. The helmet is for when you fall off your bike and hit your head. In Florida if your under the age of 16 you have to wear a helmet. Now for me I wear a helmet mainly because you can never tell when you might get doored or some pedestrian or other animal think it’s okay to walk out in front of you. I like to say when riding a bike be obvious and aware of things around you. Don’t assume they see you because most likely they don’t. Also get yourself a mirror. Mirrors are great if used properly they can give you clairvoyance to tell when your about to get run over by the Bubba truck barreling down on you. Just joking they just make it easier especially for new riders to look behind them to see what is coming. New riders have a tendency to swerve when they try to turn around to see what is behind them. Also be ready to make an evasive maneuver. Practice what if’s at home during your down time. Most of this sounds silly but it has saved me many times. Anyway riding in Jacksonville is not as simple as say Portland, OR but it is not impossible if you pay attention and don’t take unnecessary chances. Take your time when you ride don’t be in too much of a hurry. Give yourself more than enough time to get to where you want to go. I have been commuting in Jacksonville, FL for several years now so I am proof that it can be done. Now for the things I would help Jacksonville to become more bike friendly.
1) Bike lanes that actually take you somewhere. I mean bike lanes that actually had a destination in mind when it was built.
2) Protected intersections for both cyclist and pedestrians. It is just stupid to allow cars in the intersection at the same time that cyclist and pedestrians are also trying to cross.
3) Better education for all Vehicle operators and pedestrians alike. Bring back the Share the Road tv spots. Put questions on the driver license test.
4) Better more readable signage showing cyclist may use the roadway.
5) Does every road have to be 45+ MPH in Jacksonville, FL? Slow the F… Down!
6) Bike lanes and sidewalks added to the bridges.
7) Bike Share.
8) More infrastructure so that our kids can ride bikes to school. Wider sidewalks with a lane designated for bikes. It would lower the number of cars entering and leaving schools. I go by a couple of these and they suck with all these frantic parents trying to get their kids to school on time. They don’t care if your using the road.
9) More bike parking and better more protected bike parking.
10) Showers for cyclists.
Anyway I kinda struggled for the last few but there is my list.
When exactly does tbe lobbying begin? I commute weekdays down Blanding Blvd for a 4 mile stretch between home and a bus stop, and have a 10 mile commute to a part time job down 17 otherwise known as Roosevelt. I’d love to see a bike lane on these roads, but as near as I can tell, I’m the only one. If we’re going to lobby, we need presence, and it has to be more than me risking my life to make a point that is obscured by traffic.
Would you be ok with me using your comment for a blog post? We may be able to find others who share your concerns that way. I think that would be a good place to start.
Ok, so with all that said earlier, where is the safest place to ride? I am coming from out of town to visit family at New Years and I want to be able to ride. I have seen some Strava routes that take you over the Acosta Bridge and around downtown. How would that ride be? It can be anywhere, really. I will be visiting mostly on the West side of town. I want to do about a 25 to 30 mile ride. I can loop if I need to. Any suggestions? Thank you for your time.
For what it’s worth, I live in the Atlanta area and it’s not the best for biking, but there are some actions being taken. We already have the “Rails to Trails”, which turns old railroad tracks into paved trails for biking, running, or walking. One in particular is the Silver Comet Trail that is 90 miles in length and starts in Smyrna, Ga and goes to Anniston Alabama. In Alabama it’s called the Chief Ladiga Trail. Another project going on right now is taking a trail that’s already in use near Stone Mountain and connecting it all the way into Downtown Atlanta at Centennial Olympic Park. Not sure how long it’s going to take for that one.
However, as far as commuting to work, I don’t know anyone who does or is able.
This is T.Giles again….after some further searching I have found a “Rail to Trail” out in the Baldwin area. The Jacksonville-Badwin Rail Trail looks great and it’s very near where I will be visiting. Thanks for your time and sorry to have “littered” your comment section.
No worries! I hope you enjoy your visit and get a chance to ride!