Wilmington, NC Mobility & Curb Rules: Bike Lane Rules (2026)

Wilmington folds bicycle regulation into Chapter 5's motor vehicle and traffic code rather than a separate title. Section 5-1 defines a 'bike lane' as 'a bikeway which is a restricted portion of the roadway,' distinguishes it from a 'bike path' (separated from the roadway) and a 'bike route' (a signed street shared with traffic), and defines 'bikeway' broadly as any off-street area or portion of a street reserved for bicycles.

Section 5-35 subjects every bicyclist on a highway or bikeway to Article 3 of the state Motor Vehicle Act (G.S. Chapter 20), except provisions that by their nature cannot apply to bicycles. Section 5-36 is the operative riding rule: cyclists must ride as near the right side of the roadway or bikeway as practicable, exercising due care when passing a standing or same-direction vehicle, and must ride single file except where two abreast is permitted. The same section bars motor vehicle travel or parking, and pedestrian travel, within a bikeway whenever it would conflict with a bicyclist's use, though city buses, other government vehicles on duty, and necessary crossflow at driveways and crosswalks are exempted, along with pedestrian use of the bikeway around Greenfield Lake. Riders may not use a bikeway against the flow of vehicular traffic on that side of the road unless the bikeway is specifically marked otherwise.

Section 5-37 requires cyclists to obey official traffic-control devices erected for bicycle travel. Section 5-40 bars parking a bicycle on a roadway, sidewalk or bikeway in a way that impedes normal movement, or locking it to a fire hydrant or police/fire call box. Section 5-44 makes it unlawful to open a parked vehicle's door into an adjacent bikeway without first checking it is safe for a passing cyclist.