Bicycling in Bloomington

 I did a standard morning ride this morning; the first time in over 2 weeks that I was able to ride. It was a warm morning and I didn’t make a strong effort to push myself. After 2 weeks off, it seemed better to spin than push hard.

Traffic conditions in Bloomington have changed significantly since my last ride. I had to wait longer at stop signs this morning both on the ride and on my commute to work. There are many more cars on the road. But, it’s really closer to the normal pattern for the year.

The start of the local school year brings an increase in traffic and school started last week. Today is “move-in” day for Indiana University, so there’s a lot of traffic and many people who aren’t familiar with Bloomington road patterns. The city and campus deploy 75 police officers to direct traffic around the university today and tomorrow. It’s necessary.

For a bicyclist, it means that more caution is needed. In general, the increased traffic travels slowly but drivers sometimes find themselves in situations where they need to make bad decisions to get where they need to go.

Next Monday, the first day of classes at IU, it will be worse for bicyclists. This week and the following two weeks, bicyclists beware!!