Stop Here

Or something.
If you've been following along at home, you know that they(the city) have paved over the streets near Flat Tire Central. They(the city) have also added new bike lanes and signs to the streets.
If you haven't been following along at home, shame on you and click here.
Well, they(the city) still aren't done; they have about another quarter mile to go and some of the road lines are still reflective tape.
On the side they are done with, they(the city) have put in these, I don't what to call them:



Now I pass by here every time I head out on my ride. At first, I thought they were like a bicycle crossing lane; something that was part of the pedestrian cross walk.
I see now that is not the case.
Here's another shot:



It seems that they(they city) have created a stop zone for bicycles.
Or something.
If you look good, and I did, I can't decide if the magnetic sensors that activate the traffic signals are embedded in the bicycle zone. It looks like they are, but I'm not sure.
I've never tried it for believe it or not, I've never been stuck at that light. If the light is red, I usually just go across the crosswalk and if it's green, I'm off making the left turn.
I find that zone strange, for a bicycle barely seems to actually fit in the zone. Look at the Barn Door parked across the street.
Just a second as I try to wrap my head around this new traffic feature.



I just knew that picture would come in handy again!
Is it a safety measure?
A friendly reminder?
Street art?
Signs of an alien invasion?
No, this is a sign of an alien invasion:



Just joking!
We love tourists, bless their hearts!
Anyways, if you have this type of arrangement in your city, please enlighten me as to their purpose.
Not the tourists, the bicycle stop/zone thingy.
My best guess is that it's a buffer zone so that cyclists can take the front of the lane during stops.
Does that make sense?
I may have to put in a call to they(the city) to find out just what is going on.
Breaking Bad is on so I gotta go.
If you are into Breaking Bad, check this out.