Missed connection

[DaveK]

@consularrider 108896 wrote:

How about a samba shirt modeled by a Tim Kelley lookalike?

[ATTACH=CONFIG]7877[/ATTACH]

Oh my.

[Steve O]

@slowtriguy 108986 wrote:

I said that “It’s illegal to flip a U-turn from the curb mid-block…”, and scoot asked:

I am pretty certain that it is true that mid-block U-turns are not allowed. Near Swanson Middle School they have installed U-Turn permitted signs at spots that would be illegal if that were true. Or perhaps it has to do with the double yellow. In any case, the signs were deemed necessary to allow u-turns at this location.

[rcannon100]

rcannon100 wrote:

You guys are such whiners

OMG you guys ride on the roads every day like this? OMG if I had to play Dances-with-Cars every day, I would like totally go RootChopper on someone’s ass. I cannot tell you how many car crazy ivans I saw tonite. Some schmuck tried to drive his car onto the 110 bike path. When I blocked him, he argued with me. Another car was driving the wrong way around Iwo Jima – without his lights on. Another car pulled a crazy ivan in front of W&L, failed to yield to me, made an illegal left turn and then illegally parked in a handicap spot. When I asked if the guy could quite possibly pretend that he was driving next to a school, he acted like he had no idea what I was talking about. And then I almost got doored.

I’ve got a good mind to give up living
And drive a car instead
I say, I’ve got a good mind to give up living
And drive a car instead

To pick up me a White Lexus SUV
And be pronounced dead

[video=youtube_share;t9vcEThQ1-I]http://youtu.be/t9vcEThQ1-I[/video]

[baiskeli]

@DismalScientist 108994 wrote:

What is the business district of Arlington?

Starbucks?

[rcannon100]

@slowtriguy 108986 wrote:

I said that “It’s illegal to flip a U-turn from the curb mid-block…”, and scoot asked:

.

First off, simple principle. It is illegal to make any left direction turn from a lane other than the left lane (unless otherwise marked). So if you are over in the curb – you are in the wrong place to be making a left turn or a u turn.

And its crazy dangerous.

[Crickey7]

So glad I got to have a nice discussion with you this morning about how DC has settled one of the great scientific debates, about space and time: namely, that two objects cannot occupy the same space at the same time.

[scoot]

@rcannon100 109517 wrote:

First off, simple principle. It is illegal to make any left direction turn from a lane other than the left lane (unless otherwise marked). So if you are over in the curb – you are in the wrong place to be making a left turn or a u turn.

And its crazy dangerous.

Yes it could be very dangerous if you can’t see far enough in both directions and don’t look out for other folks who are using or entering the roadway. But it’s easy in many places on wide streets with parallel parking to execute such a maneuver very safely (e.g. when exiting a parking space).

I grew up along a residential street in Prince William County. 43 feet wide (curb to curb), with ample parking on both sides, a double-yellow line down the middle, and white lines between the travel lane and the parking. 25 MPH speed limit with all-way stops at most intersections for traffic calming. Many vehicles parked in driveways, but others (myself included) parallel-parked along the curbs. Street parking was never remotely close to capacity (although this did not stop some folks from becoming downright belligerent if anyone dared take “their” spot…). I usually parked along the southbound side of the street. If I wanted to leave home and head north, I’d do a quick U-turn and be on my way. If I was returning from the south, I’d pass my usual spot, execute a U-turn, and then park. Folks parked on the opposite side would do the same if the destinations were reversed. Unless there were giant snow ridges narrowing the usable street width, no one would drive all the way to an intersection just to turn around.

I never saw any incidents resulting from this behavior, and I’ve never heard of anyone being stopped by police for doing this. I suppose we were not actually in violation of the law since the area was not a town, city, or business district. But it still seems unnecessarily restrictive. What’s wrong with just requiring yield of ROW to all other road users when U-turning?

[thucydides]

Me: On New Hamphire crossing Virginia

You: Two NPS employees snow blowing the platform around the Benito Juarez statue

Me: Now let me get this straight. The MVT requires dogs and a sledge to travel and you guys are using a snowblower for a statue that just about nobody goes up to. Alrighty then.

[dbb]

Me: Cyclist riding north on 15th turning on to Jefferson to ride east on the Mall at 0720.

You: Motorist driving the silver SUV with Maryland tags, possibly MALA 4, heading south on 15th turning East on Jefferson; choosing to pass me in the bus turnout by the CaBi station, doing a 20 mph right on red onto 14th in spite of the no right on red after 0700.

I suppose the person driving the car had a goal of being first in line at the red light at 14th and Independence.

To paraphrase SteveO, the motorist didn’t want to be late to the red light.

[Terpfan]

@thucydides 109633 wrote:

Me: On New Hamphire crossing Virginia

You: Two NPS employees snow blowing the platform around the Benito Juarez statue

Me: Now let me get this straight. The MVT requires dogs and a sledge to travel and you guys are using a snowblower for a statue that just about nobody goes up to. Alrighty then.

I noticed NPS busy at the Lincoln Memorial this morning with a tractor clearing the last remaining snow. It’s amazing how much they care for the statues and memorials to be crystal clean, but can’t dare make a 1′ wide path down the MVT. I don’t even care if they fully plow it. Just enough space that I can mostly squeeze by and dismount only rarely.

In fairness, I should thank Arlington as their plowing job as allowed me a way to sneak into the city and work while the MVT by my house is still not good enough barring studs.

[Drewdane]

@baiskeli 3463 wrote:

This is my version of a “missed connection” post…

You: headphones, no helmet passing me on the right in the bike lane on Clarendon Blvd. the morning of May 9 about 8 am.

Me: riding safely as usual

You should call your damn passes – especially when passing on the right. I could have swerved right into you.

Dumbass.

Did you think to get a copyright for this thread?

http://www.newyorker.com/humor/daily-shouts/missed-connections-for-a-holes

[dasgeh]

@Terpfan 109937 wrote:

I noticed NPS busy at the Lincoln Memorial this morning with a tractor clearing the last remaining snow. It’s amazing how much they care for the statues and memorials to be crystal clean, but can’t dare make a 1′ wide path down the MVT. I don’t even care if they fully plow it. Just enough space that I can mostly squeeze by and dismount only rarely.

In fairness, I should thank Arlington as their plowing job as allowed me a way to sneak into the city and work while the MVT by my house is still not good enough barring studs.

What I find ridiculous is how NPS will keep the ped areas in front of the memorials spotless, but allow icy, snowy build-up in the curb cuts 100 feet away. Because if you’re going to have peds walk on ice, you want it to be when they’re close to cars. [/sarcasm]

And yes, please thank Arlington for the snow clearing. countyboard@arlingtonva.us countymanager@arlingtonva.us

Thanks!

[Steve O]

@dasgeh 109946 wrote:

What I find ridiculous is how NPS will keep the ped areas in front of the memorials spotless, but allow icy, snowy build-up in the curb cuts 100 feet away.

I actually think this is more an issue of awareness. I bet if one were there when the crew is actually doing the clearing and pointed this out to them, they would get it. Sometimes it requires going back after the plows have come through, and I truthfully think it’s just not in their heads. Not sure how to get it in their heads. If all the people who had to contend with it mentioned it to the manager at the nearby monument, perhaps that would help. Or photos sent to NPS. Dunno.

[dasgeh]

@Steve O 109955 wrote:

I actually think this is more an issue of awareness. I bet if one were there when the crew is actually doing the clearing and pointed this out to them, they would get it. Sometimes it requires going back after the plows have come through, and I truthfully think it’s just not in their heads. Not sure how to get it in their heads. If all the people who had to contend with it mentioned it to the manager at the nearby monument, perhaps that would help. Or photos sent to NPS. Dunno.

Unfortunately, I’ve pointed it out to maintenance people multiple times. No change, even that day. *sigh*

I should take pictures, though, which is generally a good thing to remember when there’s a recurring problem. I plan to mention it tonight at the open house if the relevant people are there.

[consularrider]

My missed connection with Bibi this morning.

They wouldn’t let anyone go east of 14th St on Jefferson this morning. Nice officer, “Stay on the sidewalk.” Ok, so I start to enter the crosswalk to get on the sidewalk and get scolded again. I ask if I can turn left and get a reluctant yes, but only if I stayed on the sidewalk. I wasn’t keen on going to hear a foreign leader complain about us to Congress anyway.

[Author]

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