Dude on the bike should’ve just held his key out to his right side and not filmed while he did so 
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Not only that but also change the law that says that people can park in “no parking zones” on Sunday.
This is a design we need to see more of:
This design would be the safest but may not be an option depending on ROW:
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Yup. this is exactly it. The ‘No Parking’ signs actually give them the ability to park there.
Sec. 11-2172. - NO PARKING ZONES.
When signs are erected or painted on the street giving notice thereof, no person shall at any time, except during church services on Sundays, or other times designated in official Traffic Schedule No. 13, park any vehicle within the areas designated as “no parking” zones; provided, use of such areas for church services on Sunday shall not be construed to permit parking where parking is otherwise prohibited by this article. The Transportation Department shall erect or paint signs at locations designated as “no parking” zones. Locations designed as “no parking” zones shall be as set out in official Traffic Schedule No. 13, “No Parking Zones.”
We either need to make it impossible to park in bike lanes (with concrete) or we need to change the law here. We have two lanes for traffic and one lane for bikes. They can use one of the two car lanes for parking if need be. Bike lanes shouldn’t be unusable on Sunday mornings. I’m sure there are people commuting to church on bike as well.
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All of these lanes seem to be designed/constructed by RDOT too instead of consultants, that’s another reason why we’re probably getting the bare minimum. I’m sure there are budget constraints given the fact that the city is overly sprawled out.
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There are a lot of awesome people in RDOT and above (e.g., @JonathanMelton) who absolutely want more than just paint on the bike lanes, so I have to think the holdup is budgetary.
Even flex posts here would do a lot to prevent folks from parking in the bike lane. They usually get the job done on West/Harrington streets.
Hoping that the upcoming Downtown Mobility plan will refine a strategy. IMO, every existing buffered bike lane should be protected with concrete, planters, etc., then put flex posts on the “regular” bike lanes where possible.
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Agreed - If they can park in the bike lane, they can park in the car lanes too. Why not?
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How did Churches get an exception? 
But there of plenty of bike lanes not near churches, that people park in all across the city, on every day of the week.
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Yeah, I used to bike to Christ Church downtown on Sunday mornings and always found it frustrating that I was endangered in doing that by Vintage congregants. Especially considering all street parking east of there is already free and easy to get.
We go somewhere else now but as a churchgoer I would gladly see this law changed. I dislike special treatment.
Still, as it is, this is indeed legal I believe.
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We typically bike to church (Good Shepherd on Hillsborough) and the person st bike lane being essentially unusable is really frustrating.
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& @grant as actual churchgoers who (attempt to) ride your bikes to church, y’all would be the EXACT right people to raise a stink about this and potentially get things changed. Someone like me… would probably just make matters worse if I spoke my mind 
Love the phrase “Vintage congregants.” lol, I will remember that. Thank you.
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I’ve actually already gotten in touch through one of the members, who was apologetic and said they’d raise it to leadership. That was a while back, though, and they were the ones who relayed to me from church staff that it was technically legal, and unlikely to be addressed by the church as they don’t have much of their own parking.
As a member of a church myself I get that budgets are already pretty tight universally, so leasing more parking is probably a hard sell to congregants, who generally vote on these things internally (though every church polity is different). It was disappointing, but nevertheless I still think the ball is in the city’s court to either close the loophole or place permanent protection on that bike lane.
And as far as I know, isn’t Person going to be redeveloped as a two-way with a protected bike lane anyways? It may just be a matter of time.
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I mean the church is called Vintage - I wasn’t referring to the age of their members! In fact I think that’s a relatively young congregation.
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ah, fair enough. My mistake, I did not know the name of the church, and was thinking of my own congregation where my wife and are still part of the young set even as we are pushing - well let’s just say I look more vintage every year.
Your points about parking, and more importantly blocking the bike lanes is well taken. And is a real question. Leasing spaces is better than church parking lots dedicated to two, or a few days, a week. I know the church I grew up in had zero parking, and the residential neighbors kindly tolerated our cars on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings.
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Probably off topic at this point but as someone who has attended a church all my life it feels like we’re in a generational shift toward the institution in general and many churches haven’t gotten the picture yet.
The time when the general community was invested and culturally supportive of the church on the whole is past (in urban areas at least), and laws like the Sunday exception have changed from encoding a cultural norm to a vestige of bygone esteem and privilege which just looks selfish. As someone who hopes that religious institutions can still be a good thing for our society, we gotta re-evaluate these long standing traditions.
To shift gears (pun intentional) back to topic…
Just picked up a cargo ebike from East Coast Electric Speed Shop today! Our son is finally old enough to ride in a kid seat. It’s my first ebike. Feels great jetting across town back home. But I definitely felt a lot more scared on Person Street along the stretch of bike lane that’s squarely in the door zone. Dooring at 20+ mph does not seem like a fun time. Especially with the kid in tow, I honestly feel safer taking lane on side streets than on our painted bike lanes.
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How about the fact that the ones are Hillsborough St heading east are also now blocked off by the torn down Doubletree?
Nice. The ebikes definitely help feeling more comfortable riding around town. I’m sure the warmer weather will bring out a few this year.
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My family and I also bike, walk or bus to church in Raleigh. Ever since I read “The High Cost of Free Parking” I tell my kids and friends at church that one day I’m going to run for city council and my slogan is going to be “God can pay for parking”. Any church that is seriously concerned their God will let their church collapse unless subsidized by free parking should probably just give up and try another God.
At first they laugh, but then they realize I’m not joking about how bad parking mismanagement is for everyone—even churches. I have seen first hand poor parking management lead to the closing of one church in Raleigh and an equally tragic relocation of another. I’ve seen numerous other cases where it hurts the very people they want to serve.
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While this is still a hot topic, let me just drop this:
multi-use paths = asphalt sidewalks and should not be considered sufficient bike infrastructure.
Hot take.
Why not? What do you consider to be sufficient bike infrastructure? I like multi-use paths for slower moving bikes.
On my ebike I typically feel comfortable riding in traffic. On my regular bike not so much. If it’s flat or downhill sure, but biking up a hill at 4-8 mph is not as comfortable when you’re sharing the road with traffic. More experienced cyclists would feel more comfortable on the road and are more than likely biking faster anyway.
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It’s dangerous for slow walkers, parents with strollers, and people with disabilities who need a lot of space. Bikers and scooter riders who are going relatively fast could injure a pedestrian if they don’t see them in time.
The outcome would be better than a car vs. pedestrian accident but kids and the elderly aren’t always physically fit to handle a heavy bike hitting them going 8-10 mph. All of that could be limited by the separation of bikers and pedestrians.
Our local trails during a cool summer day are great examples why we should separate the two modes. My dad had to swerve into a ditch with cobble stones because a group of people going in one direction were taking up the entire trail and didn’t hear his bell.