Why This Pedestrian Loves the Cycle Track

King Street Cycle Track crossing Ke‘eaumoku.
Photo credit: Hawaii Bicycling League (hbl.org)

The King Street cycle track opened with a lot of moans and groans late 2014. Many people, namely drivers, were confused by the two-way protected bike lane. I was super excited. Super excited. As a former commuter bicyclist in Tucson, the new lane provided hope that Honolulu would finally get the cycling infrastructure it deserved as an overcrowded city.

I knew the cycle track would be exciting as a cyclist. I never knew I'd appreciate it so much as a pedestrian.

Just so you know, I am a pedestrian. Sure, we all are at some point of life, even if it's just to walk to our cars. But, me, I'm like a permanent pedestrian. Long story short (ask me in person sometime and I'll tell you; it's really not at all exciting), I don't drive places, I walk, run, bicycle or get a ride from someone else there.

As a perma-pedestrian, I have come to observe some pretty terrible driving manners. I've had cars edging IN to driveways as if I was somehow a burden walking quickly on a designated sidewalk. I've had cars edging OUT of driveways forget that while you need not look both ways for car traffic, pedestrians could, indeed, be walking in both directions on a sidewalk. I've had to look twice crossing a street on a green, looking for cars taking right-hand turns too quickly with no regard to pedestrian signals. The worst is when a car patiently and kindly waits for me to cross a driveway, only for the car behind it to honk angrily.

A couple of weeks ago, I decided - probably out of pure laziness, believe it or not - that I would start running home as my exercise. The run from work to home clocks in about 3.3 miles. It's short enough to walk if I need to and long enough to get a minimum 30 minutes of cardio in.

My running commute takes me along 1.3 miles of the 2-mile cycle track, about 65% of the protected bike lane. I thought the thing I'd notice most was more bad driving etiquette (sorry, drivers, I've seen how you treat even us law-abiding cyclists). But instead, I've noticed how great the cycle track is - not just for cyclists - but for pedestrians on the sidewalks!

Cycle track between Alapa‘i and Ward. In the past I've had
to battle with cyclists riding where I walked. Now we
all - pedestrians, cyclists, and cars have our own spaces.
Photo credit: C&C of Honolulu (honolulu.gov)

I no longer have to worry of cyclists bowling me over on the sidewalk. I've noticed that drivers are not just more alert to cyclists, but also to pedestrians. After five or six runs along King Street, it's a rare occasion for a car to edge in or out without checking for both cyclists and pedestrians. I don't worry about cars taking a left-hook without looking for pedestrians and cyclists. Cars seem a bit more patient and cautious all around. And in turn, I feel a lot better about following the rules too, waiting at the intersection when the hand is blinking to let the patiently waiting cars make their turn.

There have been the occasion outliers, like the guy today who blocked not only the entire sidewalk, but also part of the cycle track to try and get out of a Jack in the Box, nonetheless (btw, he went from Jack in the Box to a Zippy's - at least he went up in the world). But, there are always those guys. And, nothing's ever perfect.

When it comes to running and cycling, I can be defensive in the loudest way possible, yelling and throwing my hands up. But, I think in large part due to the cycle track, when I run home now, the only throwing I'm doing is of shakas to say mahalo to all the drivers and cyclists alike who manage to travel on King Street with some semblance of harmony. It's nice. It makes the run home as pleasant as any run mostly uphill can be.

Thanks, King Street cycle track. This shaka's for you.