Sign, Sign, Everywhere A Sign

This summer Washington County put up new signs on the Eisenbahn State Trail to give users a framework in which to operate. The sad truth is that a lot of people don’t have a clue when it comes to proper conduct on a multi-use trail, and if you don’t know what you’re doing then eventually someone is going to get hurt.

So, here are a few pointers. Washington County doesn’t want to call them “rules” or “statutes” or anything enforceable by law, but as points of etiquette they’re not bad:


In my experience—and I’m on the trail several times each week—people are pretty good on those points, but there are still way too many dogs without leashes.

For some reason, the county chose to single out cyclists for an additional set of admonitions:


Three of the four points address speed but the county stops short of imposing a speed limit. "Safe and controlled speed” and “high speed riding” are different things to different people. As a cyclist, just assume that from the point of view of a pedestrian you’re going too fast all the time. And that’s because …

Most pedestrians are clueless.

And the county has failed to give them the one rule that would really do them some good:

Move right. Pass left.

A multi-use trail is not a street and it’s not a sidewalk. All users should move on the right and pass on the left. Moving against the flow of traffic is a sure way to cause conflicts. I’m happy to report that I don’t see this behavior in cyclists; walkers and runners are the culprits. And walkers must recognize that there are faster users on the trail—not just cyclists, but also rollerbladers, runners, skateboarders, etc.—and being overtaken from behind is part of the deal.

So, what about the audible warning we should give as we are preparing to pass slower traffic? Good luck with that. It’s a noble goal and I try to do it when I can but sometimes it makes no sense. If I call out, “passing on your left,” about 1-in-3 pedestrians will move to the left. Some people will stop dead in their tracks, unsure which way to move. If there are two people walking side-by-side, chances are excellent that they will split and expect me to ride between them. Also, cell phones and MP3 players seem to be growing in popularity on the trail, and their users simply can’t hear the audible warning.

I wonder if a center line would help, and/or directional arrows painted right on the asphalt to encourage the proper flow of traffic. We’re really talking only about West Bend here; the rural areas of the trail are virtually conflict-free. But as things stand, it is just a matter of time before there’s a serious accident. Sooner or later, some iPod-wearing dingbat is going to pull an abrupt 180 and get steamrolled by a bike. When that happens there will be those who advocate a ban on bicycles on the trail. Don’t say I didn’t tell you so, and try not to be the steamroller.