Investigation of Alternative Bicycle Pavement Markings with the Use of a Bicycle Simulator

The past decade has seen increased public interest in sustainable transportation modes in the United States. However, there is a relative lack of guidance regarding standards and specifications for bicycle facilities compared with the highway mode. This project sought to address this deficiency through the investigation of alternative pavement markings for bicycle wayfinding and proper bicycle placement at signalized intersections as part of the federal Nonmotorized Transportation Pilot Program in Columbia, Missouri. This evaluation was accomplished with a bicycle simulator study and postsimulator survey with 27 participants. A network of 37 intersections with characteristics similar to intersections in Columbia was created with the ZouSim simulator. The survey included questions regarding bicycling habits and preferences for the alternative markings. For wayfinding, two alternative types of pavement markings and the signage recommended by the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) were evaluated. Both the survey and the simulator results indicated that the Type 2 wayfinding markings with a green circle performed better with respect to visibility and delineating the bicycle route. The bicycle placement portion of the study investigated three alternative types of markings as well as the MUTCD markings and signage to help riders position their bicycle at the correct location to receive a green signal. The bicycle placement results indicated that the Type 1 and Type 2 experimental detector markings resulted in the fewest number of missed detections, while the Type 1 marking was the preferred alternative of the survey participants.