Ballston to Navy Yard route

[creadinger]

Navy Yard folks. Do you know if there’s a rhyme or reason to the traffic messes that happen around that area in the AM?

Since the Maine Ave area has become a pit of hell these days with the wharf construction, I decided to alter my commute to avoid it. My commute now goes by the east side of Navy Yard on 11th St, and today it was a complete clusterf*&k. It was becoming a gridlock situation with cars backed up at intersections as far as the eye could see, and only 1-3 cars would get through the stoplights in lanes that turn into the Navy Yard. Other days, it’s no sweat. Seemingly no extra traffic and everything moves smoothly.

Why the difference??

[Mikey]

@creadinger 105615 wrote:

Navy Yard folks. Do you know if there’s a rhyme or reason to the traffic messes that happen around that area in the AM?

Since the Maine Ave area has become a pit of hell these days with the wharf construction, I decided to alter my commute to avoid it. My commute now goes by the east side of Navy Yard on 11th St, and today it was a complete clusterf*&k. It was becoming a gridlock situation with cars backed up at intersections as far as the eye could see, and only 1-3 cars would get through the stoplights in lanes that turn into the Navy Yard. Other days, it’s no sweat. Seemingly no extra traffic and everything moves smoothly.

Why the difference??

I went through there on Tuesday and I noticed that there has been a lot of construction and lane realignment on M street between 8th and 11th for utility work. It could be related to that. Be careful over there a Navy Yard employee on bike heading home around 5:30pm was stabbed by a lone knife-wielding young man on 7th near F and G streets. It sounds gang related since I don’t think anything was stolen.

[lordofthemark]

@Mikey 105624 wrote:

I went through there on Tuesday and I noticed that there has been a lot of construction and lane realignment on M street between 8th and 11th for utility work.

That has been going on for a couple of months I think.

It could be related to that. Be careful over there a Navy Yard employee on bike heading home around 5:30pm was stabbed by a lone knife-wielding young man on 7th near F and G streets. It sounds gang related since I don’t think anything was stolen.

Shoot. That is usually a fairly chill area off Barracks Row. I have done a couple of rides on L Street over to 8th, with no problem, though being alert around the relatively deserted intersection of L and 7th.

[creadinger]

@Mikey 105624 wrote:

Be careful over there a Navy Yard employee on bike heading home around 5:30pm was stabbed by a lone knife-wielding young man on 7th near F and G streets. It sounds gang related since I don’t think anything was stolen.

Thanks for the sentiment, but I don’t know how one can be careful when dumb motherFers want to F with you for no reason. It’s not like avoiding potholes or being a PAL for drivers.

Unfortunately Navy Yard is only 2/3 of my commute. After passing by there I cross the Anacostia and climb up to Suitland. It does cross my mind sometimes when watching the news, how many random murders in SE would it take for me to say, “nope! I’m not riding through that shit anymore!”. But so far I haven’t reached that point. For some reason (cheap land), the federal government saw fit to put large Census, NOAA and Navy buildings out in the wasteland of Suitland, and there a few of us who commute out here pretty regularly. Raymo being one other.

I hope the Navy employee will be ok. No doubt that the “young man” needs to get his face stomped by a big cleated bike shoe.

[Author]

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