Maine Avenue is Combat

[Judd]

@KWL 166687 wrote:

Is this an admission?

I know an awesome guy that has done some tree trimming but he’s never placed any signs.

[Starduster]

@Judd 166663 wrote:

Last report from the Velocafe on Twitter was that they’re opening up tomorrow (10/17).

They indeed look like they’re open!

[TwoWheelsDC]

Maine Ave westbound was…actually pretty good this morning! Traffic was almost non-existent (for a non-holiday weekday) and the parking lane was totally empty (at least up to Banneker, where there were buses and trucks), allowing me to enjoy the smooth pavement for a couple blocks without fear of death.

[lordofthemark]

I rode Maine eastbound this AM, taking the lane. With the pavement so smooth, and with two lanes now open eastbound, it was a pretty comfortable place to take the lane. Seems like the PBL will be used by the least confident riders (including bikeshare riders) and those actually going to and from the Wharf, but the more confident through cyclists will mostly take the lane.

[ursus]

They are stenciling bike symbols and arrows on the PBL and adding a dashed line in the center. They started on the SE end have progressed quite far. Of course the pedestrians and more so the construction workers are ignoring it. Now if thet could do something about continuing past the fish market it would be wonderful. I also went into the District Hardware and Bike store. The bike part seems quite small. Lastly the bikeometer was above 140 when I went by at about 2 PM.

It doesn’t pertain to Maine Avenue, but I see that the center lane of 4th Street, north of M, which was mostly filled with illegally parked cars and trucks is now full of bollards. A great improvement.

[ursus]

@lordofthemark 166904 wrote:

I rode Maine eastbound this AM, taking the lane. With the pavement so smooth, and with two lanes now open eastbound, it was a pretty comfortable place to take the lane. Seems like the PBL will be used by the least confident riders (including bikeshare riders) and those actually going to and from the Wharf, but the more confident through cyclists will mostly take the lane.

I agree that Maine Avenue is fine for some, e.g., those wanting to go north on 12th Street. If I am heading to Haines Point, I find the left turn quite difficult to make.

[lordofthemark]

I stopped for coffee at Velocafe this AM. Window only service from 8AM opening until 9AM, so took the opportunity to check out bike lane usage.

3 different questions, and one kicker fact. 1. How much is the PBL being used by riders, vs peds. 2. How many riders are using the PBL vs the general lanes on Maine. 3 How many peds are using the PBL, vs sticking to the sidewalk?

Note this was on a very nice morning, but a Friday when bike traffic is light.

1. The bad news is that peds still definitely outnumber riders in the PBL, so to some degree it is functioning as an extension to the sidewalk, as predicted. The big qualifier is that most of the folks walking in the PBLs were construction workers – not sure why they favor it – I assume because they got used to walking on it before it opened. Also perhaps they are less interested in the retail than other peds? Also its not nearly as bad in the part further southeast, near Velocafe, where there is no active construction work.

2. Hard to say with precision, as I did not have a good view of WB riders on Maine. But I would say roughly 50 – 50 using the PBL vs taking the lane. To be less precise “some of each” It seemed to me that most of the PBL riders were either going to/from the Wharf itself, or were riding CaBi bikes, or both. But I think there were at least a couple of non-CaBi through riders. But clearly the overwhelming majority of non-CaBi through riders were taking the lane (of course on a Friday AM the general lanes on Maine are particularly appealing, and also the pavement is fresh)

3. The good news – MOST pedestrians were taking the sidewalk, not the PBL. Among non construction workers, 80 to 90 percent? The sidewalk itself is rather wide (I would love a sidewalk that wide on King Street near where I live) and door opening did not make it unuseable. Its possible that as more retail opens it will grow crowded enough people will switch to the PBL, but for now the sidewalk was at almost optimal levels of use – enough people to feel “vibrant” but not enough to slow any walkers down. A couple of runners did use the PBL. Naturally.

The kicker – I did not see ONE bike rider riding on the sidewalk itself. Not even the CaBi riders. Considering what I see elsewhere, that is very good. And I think justifies the PBL right there. the separation of PBL from sidewalk may not have assured riders of a space free from peds- but it has (based on this limited observation) given peds a space free from riders. Which is a huge thing. It is good for peds, and removes one of the biggest complaints against cyclists in DC and Alexandria – a complaint that I think is a problem for bike advocates.

[dasgeh]

@lordofthemark 167350 wrote:

1. The bad news is that peds still definitely outnumber riders in the PBL, so to some degree it is functioning as an extension to the sidewalk, as predicted. The big qualifier is that most of the folks walking in the PBLs were construction workers – not sure why they favor it – I assume because they got used to walking on it before it opened. Also perhaps they are less interested in the retail than other peds? Also its not nearly as bad in the part further southeast, near Velocafe, where there is no active construction work.

I wonder if there’s the opportunity for the city to reach out to the construction companies?

[Brendan von Buckingham]

There will always be a lot of pedestrians there. It has markings like a bike lane but it also has park like landscaping and is along commercial storefronts. It’s more promenade the transportation. Bikes will have to use it like any multi-user trail (Custiss, W&OD, etc.) when they come up on pedestrians and slow down, just more often. Maine Avenue is 25 mph and 2 lanes each way of smooth, new paving. You can’t ask for a better roadway for a cyclist.

[lordofthemark]

@Brendan von Buckingham 167371 wrote:

There will always be a lot of pedestrians there. It has markings like a bike lane but it also has park like landscaping and is along commercial storefronts. It’s more promenade the transportation. Bikes will have to use it like any multi-user trail (Custiss, W&OD, etc.) when they come up on pedestrians and slow down, just more often. Maine Avenue is 25 mph and 2 lanes each way of smooth, new paving. You can’t ask for a better roadway for a cyclist.

Of course I expect that the paving on Maine will deteriorate before the paving in the PBL does . But even so, I think the prime barrier to bike usage is not the pedestrians, but the connections at each end. In particular the sidewalk NW of the PBL, by the fish market, which is the way any low confidence rider is going to go between the PBL and points west, is absolutely terrible. That’s why I suspect getting the construction workers to stick to the sidewalk is not a high priority for DC govt. I do think that when the construction is done, the proportion of riders in the PBL will increase relative to the number of peds, and that will increase further when the connections are improved. Whether the number of riders in the PBLs will ever increase to the point that all pedestrians avoid walking in them, as in certain European cities, I do not know – but it was my observation that even now, with few riders in them, pedestrians favored the sidewalk over the PBL.

I also think that as transportation biking reaches its full potential, the share making short slow “Dutch style” trips, versus the kind of long fast commutes done by people who consider taking the lane on Maine 100% comfortable, will increase.

[ursus]

@lordofthemark 167350 wrote:

I stopped for coffee at Velocafe this AM. Window only service from 8AM opening until 9AM, so took the opportunity to check out bike lane usage.

3 different questions, and one kicker fact. 1. How much is the PBL being used by riders, vs peds. 2. How many riders are using the PBL vs the general lanes on Maine. 3 How many peds are using the PBL, vs sticking to the sidewalk?

Note this was on a very nice morning, but a Friday when bike traffic is light.

1. The bad news is that peds still definitely outnumber riders in the PBL, so to some degree it is functioning as an extension to the sidewalk, as predicted. The big qualifier is that most of the folks walking in the PBLs were construction workers – not sure why they favor it – I assume because they got used to walking on it before it opened. Also perhaps they are less interested in the retail than other peds? Also its not nearly as bad in the part further southeast, near Velocafe, where there is no active construction work.

2. Hard to say with precision, as I did not have a good view of WB riders on Maine. But I would say roughly 50 – 50 using the PBL vs taking the lane. To be less precise “some of each” It seemed to me that most of the PBL riders were either going to/from the Wharf itself, or were riding CaBi bikes, or both. But I think there were at least a couple of non-CaBi through riders. But clearly the overwhelming majority of non-CaBi through riders were taking the lane (of course on a Friday AM the general lanes on Maine are particularly appealing, and also the pavement is fresh)

3. The good news – MOST pedestrians were taking the sidewalk, not the PBL. Among non construction workers, 80 to 90 percent? The sidewalk itself is rather wide (I would love a sidewalk that wide on King Street near where I live) and door opening did not make it unuseable. Its possible that as more retail opens it will grow crowded enough people will switch to the PBL, but for now the sidewalk was at almost optimal levels of use – enough people to feel “vibrant” but not enough to slow any walkers down. A couple of runners did use the PBL. Naturally.

The kicker – I did not see ONE bike rider riding on the sidewalk itself. Not even the CaBi riders. Considering what I see elsewhere, that is very good. And I think justifies the PBL right there. the separation of PBL from sidewalk may not have assured riders of a space free from peds- but it has (based on this limited observation) given peds a space free from riders. Which is a huge thing. It is good for peds, and removes one of the biggest complaints against cyclists in DC and Alexandria – a complaint that I think is a problem for bike advocates.

Did you get a feel as to what percentage of the bikes using the PBL were counted by the bikeometer, as opposed to crossing Maine just to the northwest or going behind it to get to what is left of the old Water Street??

BTW, I think the construction workers feel that they can go wherever they please and completely ignore my bell or my voice. I also managed to pass the bus stop where the new bus shuttle from L’Enfant Plaza lets people out. The passengers seemed to be just as clueless as the tour bus passengers usually are northwest of the Fish Market — milling around on the PBL

[TwoWheelsDC]

This is the cycletrack after a show at the Anthem.

[Starduster]

[Looking up] I observed the same thing, Friday night, around 10:30pm. So this will be a problem this time every night when The Anthem lets out.

[Starduster]

@lordofthemark 167378 wrote:

Of course I expect that the paving on Maine will deteriorate before the paving in the PBL does . But even so, I think the prime barrier to bike usage is not the pedestrians, but the connections at each end. In particular the sidewalk NW of the PBL, by the fish market, which is the way any low confidence rider is going to go between the PBL and points west, is absolutely terrible. That’s why I suspect getting the construction workers to stick to the sidewalk is not a high priority for DC govt. I do think that when the construction is done, the proportion of riders in the PBL will increase relative to the number of peds, and that will increase further when the connections are improved. Whether the number of riders in the PBLs will ever increase to the point that all pedestrians avoid walking in them, as in certain European cities, I do not know – but it was my observation that even now, with few riders in them, pedestrians favored the sidewalk over the PBL.

I also think that as transportation biking reaches its full potential, the share making short slow “Dutch style” trips, versus the kind of long fast commutes done by people who consider taking the lane on Maine 100% comfortable, will increase.

Until the entire project is complete, connections will remain a problem. The construction at the Fish Market runs into spring of next year. Until then, a problem. (And even then, there is that section from under the 14th St Bridge to 12th, which is always a delicate sharing act with pedestrians) At the other end, from 7th to St Augustine’s, Phase 2’s three new buildings will not be ready until 2020. Access through the Old Channel Inn site will disappear in the next few months.

[lordofthemark]

@TwoWheelsDC 167451 wrote:

This is the cycletrack after a show at the Anthem.

Clearly there will be some times when the PBL is unusable to even bike share riders. OTOH in conditions like that, it may be that any cycling accommodation not on the street side of parked cars would be taken over by pedestrians.

[Author]

Posts