Yes and no. State laws make no distinction, but many cities and towns add restrictions, usually to protect pedestrians. I compared the laws of four area communities: Chicago, Elkhart, Mishawaka, and South Bend.

Yesterday, however, convinced me to seek other solutions.

I had plans to join a geological field trip of the IN Dunes National Lakeshore area, and I was glad to realize that, rather than drive, I could bike to the airport, take the South Shore to Beverly Shores, and then (for the first time!) ride along the Calumet Trail most of the way to the field-trip-starting-point at the Dunes Learning Center.

Everything worked out well, but as you can see in the photo, the crushed-limestone surface of the Calumet Trail is quite flooded in some sections. The expansive puddles weren’t deep, but without fenders I would have arrived at my destination a muddy mess. The fenders, however, did their job, and I stayed clean and dry. It was a beautiful day, and the ride was a lot of fun.

Although I don’t often ride on flooded trails, this ride convinced me that fenders are indeed essential for my utility cycling and, accordingly, I’ll need to seek other options to put the monkey bike on a diet. Much to my wife’s chagrin, however, I’m starting to lean toward a wholesale upgrade to a new folder!

“In recent weeks, Indiana has experienced an unsettling spike in the reports of bicyclists and pedestrians struck by automobiles. Last week’s crash involving a team of cyclists in Bloomington was only the latest in a string of incidents resulting in everything from minor injuries to fatalities.  

By pointing this out, I don’t mean to suggest that anything sinister is at work, or even that we are experiencing a trend.  But the headlines do point to one clear and simple truth: We all must be vigilant when two-ton motor vehicles share the road with runners, cyclists, workers and others.

That’s why Bicycle Indiana and other cycling groups and enthusiasts across Indiana are encouraging our state’s lawmakers to enact a “Vulnerable Road Users” law in the coming legislative session.

A “Vulnerable Road Users” law outlines penalties for careless, negligent or distracted driving that results in injury or death to a “vulnerable road user,” a category that would include not only bicyclists, but also pedestrians, motorcyclists, construction workers and others who share the roadway with cars and trucks. Oregon and Delaware have passed such laws, and other states are developing the legislation as well.

When coupled with laws that define the rights and responsibilities of the vulnerable road users – for example, laws that describe the measures cyclists must take to ensure their own safety – a vulnerable road users law could help protect everyone on the road.

However, as important as this law can be, we know it will do little to save lives unless it is complemented by a real desire to share the road safely. We must all – cyclists, drivers, pedestrians and anyone else on the roadway – remain vigilant and alert at all times.

As cyclists, we at Bicycle Indiana expect our peers to ride safely, to obey the laws of the road and anticipate dangerous conditions. As drivers, we expect our peers to remain focused when driving. Tragedy is only a quick distraction away.

 No law can anticipate every situation, and no amount of vigilance can prevent every tragedy. We understand that not all accidents are the result of carelessness or negligence. But also know that, if we all strive to truly share the road and do all we can to put an end to distracted and reckless driving, then we can avoid seeing as many tragic headlines as we’ve seen in recent weeks.”

http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid30317506001?bctid=89320847001

I’d imagine that the practice is officially illegal, potentially dangerous, and probably not LAB-approved, but those are true of a lot of well-established, practical cycling techniques.  The hard fact is that currently if you want to ride to Wal-Mart and you’re not prepared to take arterial traffic sewers, parking lot skipping is the only way to go.

When you start looking at infrastructure that way, you really start to notice details about the landscape, like the lack of any bridge over Juday Creek under 4 lanes.  Or which parking lots link together, which require off-road curb hopping, and which are unfortunately impassible.  Or which parking lot entrances are directly opposite each other and which require the dreaded right-to-left.  (I myself cut through two lots every commute to round off an ugly right-to-left!)

This all ties into a greater facet of bike infrastructure that I think is perhaps obscured from recreational cyclists and other would-be advocates:  Often the greatest benefits to utility cyclists come from careful planning and tiny changes to stuff that will be built anyway.

What do you think?  Do you ride through parking lots?  Which ones are your favorites?  Which are the most heartbreaking non-connecting lots?

So what does this have to do with biking . . .

This afternoon, I biked up to Buchanan, MI, from South Bend. A pretty traditional route out of the River Park/Sunnymede neighborhood: Wayne to St. Louis to Madison to Niles to Northshore to the new River Trail. Then on up Riverside Dr. to Darden to Lilac (in Michigan, Lilac turns into Copp) to Bertrand Road. West on Bertrand to Mayflower, north on Mayflower to Chamberlain, west to Rynearson, and north on Rynearson into downtown Buchanan.

I want to write about Chamberlain . . . Buchanan’s “back door” for bicyclists entering from the south. Chamberlain has to be the worst stretch of road I’ve ridden in some time. And that’s the problem. See, we bicyclists don’t enter towns via the pristine automobile routes. We enjoy (OK, we are forced by our desire for safety) the backways and byways of Indiana and Michigan’s county roads and enjoy finding a quieter route from place to place. But often, these back door entries are not in the best shape.

Buchanan, MI, just happened to be the town I visited today. But I’m sure many of you could point to county road entry points into many small towns surrounding the South Bend metropolitan area and could provide details of how those roads surely need some attention.

So how about it small towns? If back door friends really are the best, how about you do a bit of sprucing up of those roads we back door friends travel to visit you? I know I’d appreciate it.