Please note that the bicycle lane on Keith Ave is the first of several Caltrans-funded traffic mitigation projects intended to protect bicyclist and pedestrian safety, in response to the additional car traffic induced by the Caldecott Tunnel fourth bore project. These projects are largely supported by the residents of the neighborhoods that they run through, as they help to calm traffic speeds and make the streets safer for all modes (read more at http://www.fourthbore.org).

Within the next two years the Keith Ave bike lanes will connect to additional bikeways on Broadway, College, and Shafter, with a physically protected bikeway going up Broadway to Lake Temescal. The intersection of Keith/Broadway/Hwy24 will also be reoriented at that time to help simplify and smooth out the traffic flow.

In the meantime the Keith Ave bike lanes don't connect to anything, which is probably why you aren't seeing many bicyclists there yet. Ideally at some point the bike lane will be moved to the curb, protected by parallel parked cars to the left, which would put an end to drivers trying to use it illegally to jump the queue as you noticed.

Being a resident of the "surrounding neighborhoos" I would have to disagree with Mr. Prinz. The new configuration is really stupid as people use Keith to get onto Highway 24, therefore when the traffic light is red at Broadway, the line of cars backs up 4 to 6 cars below Presley, forcing residents to wait through more than one light before they can reach Presley and make a left turn. I have also seen people in this situation drive up the bike lane then turn left through the line of cars onto Presley. I have also never seen bikes riding on Keith. However, many, many bikes ride on Chabot, which is HIGHLY dangerous due to 2 - 3 years' worth of unrepaired potholes.

These new bike lanes were proposed and voted for as a "sop" to the objectors to a 4th bore. The cars on 24 that come through the 4th bore are not driving in our neighborhood. They are heading to San Francisco. The 25 years or more that people in the East Bay have waited for a 4th bore caused an increase in air pollution due to cars stuck in traffic generating exhaust fumes which added to carbon in the atmoshpere and air pollutants in our neighborhoods! The completion of this project is a boon to all, except for the additional "add ons" like the bike lanes, including -- wait for it -- the ones that will be put on Broadway, narrowing one of our major arteries to one lane in each directions!

This is utter nonsense Robert. The fourth bore did nothing to change the traffic patterns in the rush hour direction. There are now two tunnels for rush hour just as before the new bore opened. The only difference is in the reverse direction, which now has two tunnels as well. Rush hour traffic is exactly the same, two tunnels.

Secondly, I have repeatedly asked for and NEVER seen this so calle bike and pedestrian traffic report that the city claims is responsible for this and the upcomming boondoggle for Broadway as well. Reducing traffic from two lanes to one does not make traffic better. It adds more cars to a single lane, and backs it up further, adding to pollution and noise in the area. . Now, traffic is backed up all the way to College and into the interaction many times at rush hour. Today, it was backed up onto College itself, stopping traffic trying to turn onto this road.

And again, after spending 8 to 10 or so minutes on that road in heavy traffic, I saw not one single bike, nor one single pedestrian. There are also sidewalks in that area, so I do not see how this lane change protects pedestrians, which are also mostly non-existent.

Let's call this what it is and be honest about it. This was an attempt by some people in the area to slow down traffic and try and reroute cars to another area by making is road, and soon Broadway difficult slow methods to reach Hwy 24. Until I see is report, showing me traffic accidents, bicycle accidents, and injured pedestrians, I belevr any such future projects who'd be put on hold pending on investigation.

One other point: Oakland has a significant backlog of street and it hole repairs. The hundreds of thousands of dollars that are being spent on these silly lane reductions could and should be put to repairing the current infrastructure that is crumbling around you,

And sorry, if this offends any people in the neighborhood. But you bought there with this traffic problem exactly as it has been for a dozen years or more. It is vary short sighted to make changes that effect hundreds of motorists twice a day so your traffic can be better. As you will see, your traffic will be worse, lane reductions seldom accomplish anything but snarled traffic.

Maureen, Chabot Rd is on an existing contract to be repaved by the end of the year. The paving work will presumably start as soon as the sidewalk and utility work going on there right now wraps up.

My point was that Keith Ave is just the first of a number of projects to be built within the next few years, adding bike infrastructure, widening sidewalks, adding crosswalks, and reconfiguring intersections and signals in the area (which will help with the traffic flow issues). If you think this is a bad use of road space and resources you are certainly allowed that opinion, but you can't reasonably expect many people to bike there until the pavement is fixed and the improvements on upper Broadway are installed, as the area there is currently terrifying to bike through. In fact, I am very surprised that Keith Ave was the first of these projects to go in, as it isn't very useful on its own.

Thanks Ribert. I understand that more of these "needed" changes will take place over time. I'm aware.

My point is that there is zero indication at this time that it is needed at all. If there were dozens and dozens of bikes in Keith and Broadway now, I would agree 100%. So even if not "complete" there are no indicators that it is necessary. I just do not see a problem with bikes and pedestrians on any of these streets in need of being fixed. Would there not be dozens of incident reports of bike and pedestrian accidents? Not that I can find.

I object to snarling traffic in exchange for large bike lanes in the first place. As a car driver, I pay a lot of taxes for roads. Bikes pay ZERO.

Sorry, we will just disagree. This is a solution looking for a problem that does not exist.

Thanks for being respectful in your disagreement with me Owen.

With regard to your comment about how streets are paid for, all people contribute toward the cost regardless of how they get around, as local streets and roads are mostly paid for by non-user fees. In California less than 35% of the cost is covered by user fees.

You can find more specifics online at http://taxfoundation.org/blog/road-spending-state-funded-user-taxes-and-fees-including-federal-gas-tax-revenues.

Robert, we agree there as well. All people contribute if they pay taxes. So that is a zero sum argument. All people pay. However, remember that car drivers pay a great deal more in car registration fees and gasoline taxes. Those taxes, which contribute greatly to the upkeep of roads are not paid for by bicycle riders. Thus, my point that bike drivers pay zero is not incorrect. Their "regular" tax contribution is the same for all, so that zeros out. Gasoline and registration is not. Perhaps we need a road tax and registration fee for bicycles if they plan to displace so many cars on the roads.

The design of this bike lane is hazardous, and actually increases the risk of bicycle / auto accidents. The problem is that the bike lane is simply too wide and looks (to impatient motorists that either aren't really paying attention or simply don't care) like a lane that's available for autos and trucks when traffic backs up from the stop sign where the Hwy 24 off-ramp intersects with Keith. Given that this is on an uphill slope, that means that we will have slow-moving bicycles directly in front of impatient motorists -- and the motorists are likely to be either not paying attention, or they will be watching the cars they are passing, to see if one of them will be moving into the lane in order to bypass traffic or to make the right turn onto Broadway. Either way, it will be easy for a motorist to simply miss SEEING a bicycle, but not miss HITTING the cyclist.

The bike lane needs to be made smaller, with a larger buffer from the automobile traffic (perhaps with delineators http://www.ntsigns.com/index.php?page=flexible-delineators-2 ), AND should be painted green to clearly indicate that its use is restricted to bicycles.

Then again, adding the delineators will make it impossible to access the parking spaces -- which can only be accessed by crossing the bike lane -- so that won't work very well.

I believe the "final" design which will spend even more money for this will put the side walk and bike lane inside large physical delineators, with the parking spaces moved to the street side of and outside the delineators/ Bikes will ride between the parked cars and the side walk.

Bikes will indeed be safe. My point was that the change to the road is unnecessary. Bikes do not use this road much, and there are plenty of alternative roads that are safe for bikes.

This is a major exit road for BART, and a major through road for getting to 24. The elimination of a lane is already backing up people trying to exit BART well into the parking lot, backing traffic ONTO College Ave now during rush hour times, and causing a great deal of stopped, idling cars just sitting, increasing pollution.

AND THEY WANT TO DO THIS TO BROADWAY! Broadway, also a major through road to get on and off the freeway is slated to change to one lane with the same delineators and large bike lane. So the only other major road to and from the freeway will also be strangled.

You need to contact the city and tell them to stop this. This is a boondoggle by a group of residents that bought houses on major throughways that now want the city to pay for road changes to make their road more difficult to use, thus making their house values go up, and the traffic hopefully go away. (I can't wait to hear all the complaints about pollution, noise, and idling cars on these roads when it is all done.) THIS IS JUST STUPID and not in the best interests of motorists.

Totally agree with original poster. Keith just needs a stop sign at Presley (even more so now!) and maybe a couple of speed bumps.