Pavement Markings

A well-marked street or highway is safer because motorists and pedestrians can easily see where they are supposed to be on the roadway. Pavement markings include the lines down the middle of the lanes, as well as turn indicators, crosswalks, and stop lines. The City of Urbandale re-paints all of the pavement markings in the city at least twice per year.

Weather conditions have a great deal of influence over when roadway markings can be applied. Of course, the roadway must be dry, but it also must be above a certain temperature during the paint application and drying process. For this reason, it is not possible to re-paint the pavement markings during the winter, even on dry, sunny days.

Complete Streets Pavement Markings

As the City continues to implement the Complete Streets Master Plan, Public Works staff will be adding pavement markings and signage to remind users of available routes for pedestrians, bicyclists, and drivers.  

Here are some symbols you may see in Urbandale:

Sharrow Pavement Markings in combination with signage help designate neighborhood bikeways.  By state law, bicycles may always use the traveled lane as a car.  Sharrows serve several purposes to improve the experience for all users.  Sharrows:

• Assist bicyclists with lateral positioning in lanes that are too narrow for a bike lane or that have on-street parking
• Alert vehicle drivers that bicycle users are also encouraged to use this roadway.
• Increase bicyclists comfort level in using the street pavement and leaving the sidewalk for pedestrians.
• Provide way-finding for bicyclists to connect to the next multi-use trail, separated bike lane, or on-street bike lane.