Pedaling bicyclists and bipedalists, side by side

The Department of Transportation put the finishing touches on its traffic-calming initiative on the north side of Union Square last week, including a notable feature painted beside the protected bike lane — a rarely seen pedestrian lane. Just south of the pedestrian lane is what appears to be a shoulder of some sort — perhaps to be used if a walker needs to pull over and tie a shoelace or if a Nike Air sneaker blows a hole and deflates.