"Just glance at the steady flow of cyclists cruising along downtown San Francisco’s major thoroughfare Market Street at rush hour, and you’ll get the sense that the bike lanes are being well utilized," writes Zak Stone. "But observations aren’t the same as cold, hard data, and the city has installed a new bike counter that visualizes just how much the number of bikers has grown, joining cities like Seattle and Copenhagen who have taken on similar awareness-raising projects."

See this Streetsblog article published the day after its debut for an image of the counter in action.

“The installation of this innovative bicycle barometer comes at a critical moment in San Francisco,” the SFMTA Director Ed Reiskin said in a statement. “As more and more San Franciscans are using a bicycle as part of their everyday commute, this visual bike counter will raise awareness of the positive impact bicycling has on traffic congestion, air quality and personal health.”