Federal Bike Advisory Committee ?

[americancyclo]

There’s the Congressional Bike Caucus but I don’t know how much advising they do. My first choice would be WABA. Is this question in regards to your other post about getting a bike rack installed?

[Terpfan]

@americancyclo 11773 wrote:

There’s the Congressional Bike Caucus but I don’t know how much advising they do. My first choice would be WABA. Is this question in regards to your other post about getting a bike rack installed?

“When Rep. Earl Blumenauer was elected to Congress in May 1996, he immediately noticed that Washington, D.C., with its dry climate, plenty of flat terrain, and world-class bike trails was a great environment for cycling..”

The CBC link was awesome. I got a good laugh out of ‘dry climate’ and ‘flat terrain.’ Then again I guess relative to Oregon, both are probably true. I would describe dry as San Diego/San Fran/etc. And relatively flat terrain as all of Florida.

[consularrider]

There’s nothing at my department. We have a hodgepodge of internal communications that can be used and sometimes have gotten the attention of upper management.

[Mark Blacknell]

I’ve not seen anything, though I could find a few people at every agency in about 10 minutes. I wonder if this the sort of thing that the GSA might coordinate?

[adamx]

you could try Gabe Rousseau (Gabe.Rousseau@dot.gov)…he has visibility of bike issues at the national level…don’t think anyone keeps a list of fed cyclists but i’d bet WABA and PPTC could reach out to there members to find the feds and you could continue from there…i’m a fed commuting from Falls Church to 12th & D SW (near Waterfront)

[rcannon100]

Have been in touch with Gabe. There is a currently dormant “Inter-Agency Task Force on Bicycling and Active Transportation.”

So in another thread I am mentioning that we are working on Bike Racks. The problem is, I am recreating a wheel that has been researched multiple times before -> what are the best bike racks for our needs in a federal agency. It would be nice to have a mechanism where federal bicycle coordinators could coordinate work, and approach agencies would some mature and researched ideas.

For instance, up to about two weeks ago, I had no idea that there was an “Inter-Agency Task Force on Bicycling and Active Transportation” Wondering how we could change this, and whether there are other cyclists working with their agencies that have similar concerns.

[americancyclo]

Just saw this post by WABA and it looks to be what you were asking about. I’m going to make an effort to join!

http://www.waba.org/blog/2012/01/federal-cyclists-–-let’s-organize-to-make-bikes-belong/

Recently we invited Ed Findley, a daily bike commuter and employee of the EPA, to write about his efforts to expand the network of federal cyclist commuters in and around Washington DC. Read on to hear about an exciting opportunity for this important commuter cycling group.
As a civil servant and activist cyclist for nearly 20 years, I’ve seen a number of DC-area Federal facilities improve bike access. But we’ve got a long way to go before every Federal office recognizes the economic, environmental and health benefits of cycling — and further still until the Federal government is the model employer for making bikes belong.
So, my fellow Federal cyclists — here’s your chance to help!
Along with several other Feds, I’m helping to reconvene an interagency task force to promote cycling among Federal offices throughout the DC region.
We’ll be meeting on February 8 at 3 p.m. at the EPA West Building, and if you’re a Federal employee or contractor interested in promoting active transportation, we’d love for you to join us!
Among the things we can consider are the 2010 guidelines, “Implementing a Successful Bicycle and Active Commuting Program in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area.”
http://www.fedcenter.gov/_kd/Items/actions.cfm?action=Show&item_id=15046&destination=ShowItem
These were an important step forward, and we need to find out what agencies are doing in response, hold up the positive examples and coax the laggards.
We could work with OPM and other agencies to consider
o Bike share participation at the agency level
o Health and wellness among Federal employees and links to cycling.
o Sharing information on commuter cycling benefits.
o Working with the National Capital Planning Commission and the National Park Service – two agencies of particular importance for cycling in our area.
We can also talk about how to move the conversation on cycling facilities beyond us activists and ensure that Federal facility managers and human resource offices are working to make bike programs and infrastructure an integral part of their work.
Who’s in?
Ed Fendley
Fendley.ed@epa.gov

[baiskeli]

Ed Fendley is an Arlingtonian too, btw.

[rcannon100]

Most totally awesome!

[jrenaut]

Not sure this is the best place to reply, but here goes anyway. This morning I talked to the woman who oversees parking at my building (the big GSA building at 7th and D), and apparently contractors are no longer allowed to use the garage at all. Her policy is that contractors will still be allowed to park bikes in the garage until someone above her makes her stop, but this is a worrisome development.

Is there a government-wide directive about contractors and parking? There aren’t space issues for bike parking, though I think there are for cars (since our building is RIGHT AT the L’Enfant Plaza Metro, the fact that there’s not much car parking is neither surprising nor inappropriate).

Anyway, I don’t much want to have to get a beater single-speed that I can leave outside.

[americancyclo]

If there is any directive about car parking (and I haven’t heard one) it shouldn’t affect bike parking.

[rcannon100]

At the Portals, 12th and D, under Portals I, is a commercial car parking lot with inverted U locks that you can use. I believe Portals III has a commercial lot with bike racks. I can show you where they are if you want. In other words, if you cant use your preferred parking garage – see if there is a commercial garage that has racks. By DDOT regs, they have to have bike racks.

Let me know if you want me to show you the Portals I racks – its an open commercial garage but it seems pretty secure.

BTW here is some info on parking regs https://sites.google.com/site/bikewashingtondc/federal-cyclists

[jrenaut]

@rcannon100 17781 wrote:

At the Portals, 12th and D, under Portals I, is a commercial car parking lot with inverted U locks that you can use. I believe Portals III has a commercial lot with bike racks. I can show you where they are if you want. In other words, if you cant use your preferred parking garage – see if there is a commercial garage that has racks. By DDOT regs, they have to have bike racks.

Let me know if you want me to show you the Portals I racks – its an open commercial garage but it seems pretty secure.

BTW here is some info on parking regs https://sites.google.com/site/bikewashingtondc/federal-cyclists

Thanks for the offer. I’m good right now – they say we can continue to park indefinitely. But if that changes it’s good to know there are options.

[consularrider]

As I was informed contractors don’t get parking passes for our building in Rosslyn (cars and motorcycles), but there are no problems with bicycles. Then again, our racks have never been totally full.

[jrenaut]

@consularrider 17791 wrote:

As I was informed contractors don’t get parking passes for our building in Rosslyn (cars and motorcycles), but there are no problems with bicycles. Then again, our racks have never been totally full.

Not ours, either, which is why 1) this is surprising and 2) once I actually talked to someone they didn’t make a big deal out of it. The car lot is tiny – I think it holds maybe 70 cars, and the building takes up the entire block. But there are 6 cages and two decent size wheel bender racks – bike parking has never been in short supply.

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