Is it OK to Park in the Bike Lane?

While riding a bicycle northward along Eagle Rock Boulevard this past Sunday, I came across a BMW sedan parked with its left-hand-side tires at least a foot into the bike lane. 

As I rode nearer to the car, I peered through its rear windscreen to see if there was anyone inside—and sure enough there was a young man at the wheel, seated next to an attractive young woman. They seemed to be waiting for something—or somebody.

“You’re parked in the bike lane,” I gently said to the driver after he noticed me and opened his window. I detected a flash of confusion on his face. “Isn’t this a green spot?” he responded.

I replied that it was indeed a green zone—those places where vehicles can park for 15 minutes. But the point, I told him, was that his car was jutting out into the bike lane, which he seemed not even to be aware of.

The following day, Monday, I rode up Eagle Rock Boulevard again—and saw several cars with their left-side wheels in the bike lane. Some were six inches over, some about a foot—and at least one of them, the most egregious offender, was a Ford Mustang. It was parked at least two feet from the curb and a foot or more into the bike lane. (See photos.)

On the way back, I ran into Eagle Rock Chamber of Commerce President Michael Nogueira, who was standing on the curb outside his store, Sir Michael’s Party Rentals. 

I told him about the most recent vehicle I had seen intruding into the bike lane—a Time Warner Cable van, just a couple of blocks south of Sir Michael’s. Nogueira candidly responded that one of his own mini-trucks was similarly parked—but only because there wasn’t enough space to keep it from encroaching on the space meant for bike lanes. (It was one of those trucks with four rear wheels, and therefore broader than the average pickup.)

As we were talking, the driver of the Time Warner Cable van drove up and asked why I had taken a photograph of his vehicle. I replied that his van was in the bike lane and that he had placed traffic cones next to the left-side tires even though he appeared not to be doing any actual work on the road.

I couldn’t hear exactly what he said, but it was clear that he shrugged off the suggestion that he was arguably violating the law. Ten minutes later, while I was riding further south along the boulevard, I saw him barreling down on the other side of the road, and this time I could clearly hear his taunt: “You don’t have anything better to do with your time?”