Falls Church CaBi?

[Kolohe]

that makes perfect sense, and basically the way Alexandria did it. (one at each metro and few along the downtown ‘strip’)

Hopefully, though, it won’t take an additional two years to expand beyond the initial rollout.

[PotomacCyclist]

Alexandria is supposed to add 4 new stations in Del Ray, 3 in Carlyle and 1 on Slaters Lane/Potomac Greens by the end of this winter (although that schedule can always change). So it shouldn’t be long at all. Then another 14 next year, maybe.

[PotomacCyclist]

A few tips for new CaBi users:

– It’s easiest to lift up on the back of the seat to undock a bike. Pulling back on the handlebars is very difficult.
– When re-docking the bike, be sure the green light turns on. Until the green light appears, the bike isn’t considered to be checked in.
– Memorize the number setting on the seat post after adjusting for your height. Makes things easier for future rides.
– If the bike develops a mechanical issue (broken part, flat tire), dock the bike, then press the red repair button on the dock. Turn the seat backward to let others know that the bike is disabled.
– Check the CaBi website or use the free SpotCycle smartphone app before you ride. You can see if your target station is full/empty before heading over there. You can also look for available bikes or docks at nearby stations if the first station is full/empty. SpotCycle is available for Android, iPhone and even BlackBerry. If you travel to other bikeshare cities, you might be able to use the app there too. SpotCycle covers bikeshare systems throughout the U.S., some in Canada, many European cities and even Melbourne, Australia and Toyama, Japan.

[Drewdane]

@rcannon100 75687 wrote:

That would be funny if it weren’t so true.

The only way to “lobby” Falls Church City govt is to show up with wads of cash and promises to clear out the riffraff of local entrepreneurs and independent small businesses in favor of generic “upscale retail” mega-development.

[PotomacCyclist]

Interesting quote from Charlie Strunk, Fairfax County bicycle program coordinator, in an article about the ongoing Reston bikeshare study:

“Strunk said that the City of Falls Church is also exploring bikeshare, which could lead to a natural westward expansion from Arlington to Falls Church to Merrifield and Tysons.”

This doesn’t mean that a Falls Church system is on the way. But it does indicate that FC is officially looking into bikeshare.

http://www.fairfaxtimes.com/article/20140130/NEWS/140139914/1267&template=fairfaxTimes

[chris_s]

So…Falls Church is soliciting feedback on their proposed “Mobility for all Modes: Transportation Element of the City’s Comprehensive Plan”.

The Good News:
1) it has a bicycle section.
2) it talks about working to bring CaBi to Falls Church

The Bad News:
1) Everything else.

Seriously, check out this awesome map of planned bike projects:

If you live in Falls Church and value cycling infrastructure, you really need to provide some constructive feedback on this thing.

[americancyclo]

Are those W&OD Stop Sign Plazas?
The official FC Bicycle Route is the pits.
Are they really telling people to bike on Shreve? That road definitely needs at least sharrows, but more practically, bike lanes, or at LEAST a continuous paved sidewalk from the WFC Metro to the W&OD.

[Phatboing]

The official FC bike route is my “trails are covered with snow, must do surface streets” route. Nearly all of it is residential, and consequently places I have no interest in going to on my bike; rather, a route I use to get out of FC.

The planned sharrows are probably unnecessary – I’ve used these roads, and I’ve seen other cyclists use them, and they’re not really so heavily trafficked as to be dangerous for cyclists. It’s just a token “here’s a sharrow on a road that’s already totally fine”.

Isn’t the whole point of making an area bike-friendly to help people on bikes access the businesses in the town? A majority of those businesses are on Broad St.

This annoys me more than the current situation, because nothing changes while FC gets to pretend that it’s becoming bike-friendly.

Also, are they seriously calling Rt.7 west of the city limit a “neighboring bike route”?

[chris_s]

@Phatboing 79971 wrote:

Also, are they seriously calling Rt.7 west of the city limit a “neighboring bike route”?

Didn’t you know? According to Fairfax County there’s a bike trail there!

To be fair, their bike master plans does acknowledge that it needs upgrades.

In Arlington we call that a sidewalk.

[DismalScientist]

@americancyclo 79960 wrote:

Are they really telling people to bike on Shreve? That road definitely needs at least sharrows, but more practically, bike lanes, or at LEAST a continuous paved sidewalk from the WFC Metro to the W&OD.

No… “They” aren’t telling people to bike on Shreve. Fairfax County is.

With the exception on Broad and Washington Streets, I would think that all the streets in Falls Church would be comfortable for relatively novice cyclists, particularly with the zealous enforcement of speed limits for which Falls Church is famous. The proposed sharrows seem to be parallel routes to these main roads. Personally, given the amount of traffic, I don’t care whether these roads get sharrows or not. Furthermore, I don’t care whether there is a signed city bike route if most streets are suitable for biking. I don’t particularly see the need for any bike-specific infrastructure in residential neighborhoods with good street connections and relatively little traffic.

I would, however, do something about most of the stop signs on the WOD.

[DismalScientist]

@chris_s 79986 wrote:

Didn’t you know? According to Fairfax County there’s a bike trail there!

To be fair, their bike master plans does acknowledge that it needs upgrades.

In Arlington we call that a sidewalk.

And we in Arlington would never call a sidewalk a bike trail.:rolleyes:

[americancyclo]

@DismalScientist 79992 wrote:

particularly with the zealous enforcement of speed limits for which Falls Church is famous.

Funny, I never see speed enforcement in Falls Church City on Broad St. between Shreve/Haycock and Washington. Everyone slows down driving through the tony neighborhoods between Washington and Seven Corners, because that’s where they enforce and ticket, but I routinely see people driving 40-50mph in front of Giant and underneath the Citizens’ Bridge with no repercussions.

[DismalScientist]

Isn’t it obvious that you always want to conduct speed enforcement on the parts of roads where conditions suggest a higher safe speed (regardless of the posted limit)? :rolleyes:

[lordofthemark]

@DismalScientist 79992 wrote:

I don’t particularly see the need for any bike-specific infrastructure in residential neighborhoods with good street connections and relatively little traffic.

wayfinding signs. For those of us silly enough to venture into a place we’ve never ridden before, without a map or a smartphone (or without wanting to take those out constantly.)

[americancyclo]

@lordofthemark 80003 wrote:

wayfinding signs. For those of us silly enough to venture into a place we’ve never ridden before, without a map or a smartphone (or without wanting to take those out constantly.)

In my day, we called that an adventure.

[Author]

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