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Bike Boxes at three locations on Jefferson and Washington Streets, Phoenix, AZ


In 2009, the city of Phoenix installed bike boxes at three locations. These included the west side of Jefferson St. at 7th and 24th Streets and the east side of Washington St. at 24th Street. The use of the bike box at these sites is non-traditional, and is meant to facilitate a crossing movement from a right side bike lane to a left-hand lane across recently installed light-rail tracks on a one-way street. After the city completed a light rail line along Jefferson St. in 2008, because of limited right of way, the preexisting bike lane had to be shifted across the tracks to the left lane to preserve its continuity. Bike lane and double chevron markings, along with directional arrows, lead cyclists across the bike box in front of traffic.  A sign indicates to cyclists and motorists the correct maneuver for bicyclists on the roadway and tells them to wait for the pedestrian walk signal to cross. The city of Phoenix applied for FHWA permission to experiment with this treatment, and compiled video and crash data of the three sites following their installation.