I was going to post this in the commuters forum but I thought it might be more appropriate here because there are specific laws in each area. I'm checking the Biking in Albuquerque website but haven't been able to find a note on whether it's legal or illegal to ride on sidewalks in Albuquerque. I apologize in advance if I'm being a knucklehead and completely missed it.
I did find this:
Let me start by saying I'm new to commuting and I haven't even started yet but have a bike on order and plan to start in the next month or so.
Today I drove down Montano because thats what I mapped out for my commute via north off of the Paseo del Bosque trail. Most of the reason why I picked Montano is because it's labeled as bike friendly and has a little bike lane. It's pretty high traffic until 2nd street or so and not unusual for traffic to be at a standstill for a few minutes here and there before anyone moves.
One thing I noticed is there were a ton of people halfway in the bike lane while traffic was at a stop, so much so that even on a bike there probably wouldn't be room to pass without running into the curb or into their vehicle.
So my question is when is it acceptable to ride on the sidewalk instead of the bike lane? Do I stop at each vehicle that is in the lane, hop over the curb and on the sidewalk then off the sidewalk again and back in the bike lane? Or do I ride on the sidewalk (there are little to no pedestrians) and avoid having to go back and fourth? There were a few other cyclists using the sidewalk instead of the bike lane, but it was my understanding that it's not good practice.
When is it acceptable (if at all) to use a sidewalk instead of a bike lane?
I did find this:
But it doesn't specify whether a sidewalk is legal or illegal or just advised against.
Let me start by saying I'm new to commuting and I haven't even started yet but have a bike on order and plan to start in the next month or so.
Today I drove down Montano because thats what I mapped out for my commute via north off of the Paseo del Bosque trail. Most of the reason why I picked Montano is because it's labeled as bike friendly and has a little bike lane. It's pretty high traffic until 2nd street or so and not unusual for traffic to be at a standstill for a few minutes here and there before anyone moves.
One thing I noticed is there were a ton of people halfway in the bike lane while traffic was at a stop, so much so that even on a bike there probably wouldn't be room to pass without running into the curb or into their vehicle.
So my question is when is it acceptable to ride on the sidewalk instead of the bike lane? Do I stop at each vehicle that is in the lane, hop over the curb and on the sidewalk then off the sidewalk again and back in the bike lane? Or do I ride on the sidewalk (there are little to no pedestrians) and avoid having to go back and fourth? There were a few other cyclists using the sidewalk instead of the bike lane, but it was my understanding that it's not good practice.
When is it acceptable (if at all) to use a sidewalk instead of a bike lane?