Bike council says Transportation Department is right on the buttons

The Bicycle Advisory Council on Tuesday evening gave its support to the Transportation Department’s use of concrete buttons to physically separate bike lanes on roads with moderate to low speeds and volumes. Also known as “tortoise shells,” the white cake pan-shaped buttons are affixed to the ground with bituminous or epoxy adhesives and, at $2 to $4 per foot, offer a far less expensive alternative to other treatments such as the precast concrete barriers seen on portions of the Lance Armstrong Bikeway in downtown Austin. However, not all stakeholders in the bicycling community support the buttons, according to city bikeway designer Nathan Wilkes. Thus, the BAC’s resolution of support, which passed with the unanimous support of all members present, bolsters the department’s continued use of the delineators, which will likely start appearing on more and more streets as the city starts to spend the $20 million in bicycle improvements approved by voters in 2016.