In our original post about the new Yesler Way bike connection, I noted that something seemed off about the revamped 1st and Yesler signal: The walk signal showed a Don’t Walk red hand when the light was green even though all turns were supposed to be banned across the new bike lanes and the crosswalk. So I went back and checked SDOT’s post announcing that new lanes were open, and it included a diagram showing that both right and left turns onto northbound 1st Ave were indeed banned. I also double-checked the 100% design plan (PDF) posted on the project webpage, and it also showed that both turns would be banned:
Yet in every video I watched, people were making right turns across the bike lane when the signal is green, a dangerous situation that is not supposed to be allowed when there is a two-way bike lane. I assumed that either the signage was poor or people driving were just breaking the law. However, that didn’t explain why the walk signal showed a red hand. If no turns were allowed, why wouldn’t the walk signal show Walk?
I asked SDOT about the signal confusion, and they replied that at some point late in the process (after “100% design” it seems) the plan changed to allow right turns.
“Westbound vehicles do not have turning restrictions during green lights (except for combination trucks which cannot turn right onto northbound 1st Ave due to space limitations),” an SDOT spokesperson wrote in an email. “Some of the early project materials from before we decided to create an all-walk signal did indicate additional turn restrictions, but this was changed during the project design phase in response to community feedback.”
SDOT’s design assumes that people biking will stop when there’s a green light and wait until the all-walk phase, thus preventing the conflict with right-turning cars across the bike lane. “The traffic signal is functioning as intended,” the SDOT spokesperson wrote. “Bikes should cross when the walk signal is displayed during the all-walk phase. At that time, the walk signal will display in all directions at once while cars see a red light in every direction.”
There is simply no way anybody is going to stop when there is a green light. There is no bike signal, so the only indication that someone biking is supposed to stop is a sign that says “Bikes Use Ped Signal.” But does that mean that bikes MUST obey only the ped signal or that bikes MAY use the ped signal to cross? A reasonable person could read it either way, and there are other places in the city, such as the stop-controlled intersections along Bell Street in Belltown, where it presumably works as a “may” rather than a “must.”
Don’t just take my word for it, though. I biked through on the green light when I rode there, and so did Bob Svercl and Hanoch Yeung, both bicycling experts who create city cycling videos and lead rides. Hanoch even provides his stream of consciousness narration and says, “Just follow the green light and go, there’s no specific bike signals here.” We all assumed we were supposed to ride through on a green light. If people highly tuned to bicycle infrastructure did not pick up on the city’s intent that we stop and wait through a green light, then I find it highly unlikely that a regular person is going to stop either.
“We’re still putting the finishing touches on the intersection and keeping a close eye on how people behave so that we can learn and make adjustments if needed,” the SDOT spokesperson wrote. “We appreciate you letting us know that some people have been confused about when bikes should travel. Our crews are planning to install ‘no turn on red’ signs very soon, and we will consider whether any other signage or adjustments might help clarify the rules for travelers.”
I hope SDOT does go out and observe behavior. They will see that people walk and bike on the green light. This is just how people naturally engage with the intersection. They could try to add more signs in an attempt to get people to learn how the engineers want them to use the intersection. Or they could figure out how the design can be adjusted to embrace and protect people’s natural use of the intersection. A safe road design is one where people intuitively interact with the road in a safe manor. An engineer can design a method for everyone to be safe, but if people do not intuitively act the way the engineer would like them to, then it is still a dangerous road design. Vision Zero, Safe Systems, both these concepts are built on the assumption that people will make mistakes, so safe road designs must account for people’s actual behaviors rather than a set of hoped-for behaviors.
SDOT should put the turn restriction shown in the 100% plan back in place due to this clear safety issue. I’m sure whoever convinced them to keep the turns will be upset, but they tried it and as at least three videos immediately demonstrated it didn’t work. So let’s fix it now before someone gets hurt. People’s safety is more important than making it easier to drive cars. If they want to safely allow turns, then they are going to need a lot more infrastructure, including bicycle signals. I cannot see how the “Bikes Use Ped Signal” signs can ever work at this intersection where there is only one green light phase. If there were turn signals, then people might be more likely to figure out that they should wait for the ped signal to avoid those turns. But for a general green dot phase, the most obvious conclusion is that you should go.