Dundalk Ave Ready For Bike Lane In County

Instant bike lane on Dundalk Avenue in Baltimore County – just add an extra line

Dundalk Avenue is a major collector road connecting Baltimore City with Baltimore County.   This 3 mile, fairly level road is fed by a host of winding side streets that developed as the area boomed in the early 20th  century.   The neighborhoods of  Bayview, O’Donnell Heights, Graceland Park, and St. Helena all access Dundalk Avenue to travel into the city or the county.  With the upcoming streetscape in Baltimore City, a new bike lane will be added to the length of the avenue from Eastern Avenue to the county line at the railroad overpass, just south of the Holabird Avenue intersection.

With improved pavement quality, “Share The Road” signs and shared bike & parking lanes, Baltimore County is already encouraging bicycle traffic along this section of Dundalk Avenue.  The latest improvements to Dundalk Avenue included bump outs for pedestrians.  These bump outs only extend 6 feet from the curb line, allowing ample room for bike lanes at intersections.  The major flaw in this design is the interpretation of the parking lane.  Motorists construe the wide lane as extra parking area and park further from the curb.  Adding the extra white line and ‘bike’ pavement marking will encourage motorists to park closer to the curb, allowing more road space for cyclists.

As Baltimore County looks for low cost, low impact ways to improve bicycle infrastructure, Dundalk Avenue presents the perfect opportunity.