This is a bike dot. Bike dots are pavement markings for signed bicycle routes. Unlike sharrows, bicycle dots are not intended to provide guidance on bicycle positioning in the street. Instead, they are a tool to provide way-finding; they show where to turn on the bicycle route. Dots are used to reduce sign clutter, particularly on neighborhood streets.
The accompanying sign tells you where the route is going and how far it is to the destination. Signs are placed at intersections where two bicycle routes intersect or where you should turn to get to a destination that is just off the route.
There are bike dots in Maple Leaf, Northgate and View Ridge. Anyone know where they are?
Here are some on-line resources for finding bike routes, not just signed routes:
– Seattle Interactive Bicycle Map: http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/bikemapOnline.htm. You can choose your cycling level (frequent, average, occasional, select a neighborhood or type in an address, zoom in, use a measuring line to draw a route and find its length, etc.
– Seattle Bicycling Guide Map: http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/bikemaps.htm. You can download a guide or order a paper copy. The guide has a map and information about about facilities including green bike lanes, bike boxes, and bike dots.
– King County Bike Map: http://www.kingcounty.gov/transportation/kcdot/Roads/Bicycling.aspx
– WA State Bicycle Map: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/bike/statemap.htm
– WA State DOT Maps for Local Bicycle Paths: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/bike/localmaps.htm
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