Post your ride pics

[KayakCyndi]

Awfully pretty out there last night and today.

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[Dirt]

New counter-flow bike lane on G Street, NE

Cars go one way. Bikes go both.

[ShawnoftheDread]

And get nailed by cars pulling away from the curb when the driver can’t see past the car in front of him.

[Dirt]

@ShawnoftheDread 82171 wrote:

And get nailed by cars pulling away from the curb when the driver can’t see past the car in front of him.

I did a little testing of that walking along behind parked cars. Visibility is a TON better than on a normal bike lane where you’re coming from behind. There will always be issues with panel vans and stuff like that, but Generally this appears at first glance to be better than riding along a row of parked cars in the same direction.

[Fast Friendly Guy]

@Phatboing 81756 wrote:

I’ve christened it Future Space Sex Machine.

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It ate up the Buckthorn hill, and I barely broke a sweat.

It’s sweet and I got to test RIDE IT! (When I met Phatboing by chance at the W&OD & 123 crossing in Vienna) I was drawing/riding my horse’s head and he was loving his new titanium steed!

[PotomacCyclist]

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[PotomacCyclist]

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[ShawnoftheDread]

@Dirt 82175 wrote:

I did a little testing of that walking along behind parked cars. Visibility is a TON better than on a normal bike lane where you’re coming from behind. There will always be issues with panel vans and stuff like that, but Generally this appears at first glance to be better than riding along a row of parked cars in the same direction.

Were you walking all the way to the left by the drivers side?

Pulling out across a lane of oncoming traffic that’s next to the passenger side of your car is rarely a good idea.

[rpiretti]

Daffodils yesterday.

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[83b]

@Dirt 82170 wrote:

New counter-flow bike lane on G Street, NE

I rode the G St lane in both directions this weekend with a novice on a CaBi. They had previously had trouble making a left onto H St from 13th due to the high volume of oncoming auto traffic and drivers behind them getting impatient to make their own left turn. Honestly, I’ve had unpleasant experiences making that turn.

They LOVED the new G St. option! It’s so much calmer than H St. and has 4-way stops rather than lights that queue anxious cars up behind you. We just took G St down to the block we needed on H St and then walked across at the pedestrian crosswalk.

Heading in the contra-flow direction didn’t seem problematic at all. I never felt like I wouldn’t be able to tell if a driver was about to pull out. And if they did you would have the option of swerving left, as that would mean swerving into an oncoming lane where you can see what’s in front of you. Contrasts favorably with potentially swerving out in front of an overtaking vehicle in a “normal” bike lane in a typical dooring situation.

I did note that the paving on G St. is pretty rough in spots. Hopefully PotHolePalooza can focus on some of the worst stretches. I’ve reported the stretch alongside the school.

[dasgeh]

@83(b) 82229 wrote:

I rode the G St lane in both directions this weekend with a novice on a CaBi. They had previously had trouble making a left onto H St from 13th due to the high volume of oncoming auto traffic and drivers behind them getting impatient to make their own left turn. Honestly, I’ve had unpleasant experiences making that turn.

I rode G St both directions a few months ago when I was testing out bikes. Back then, there were no lines on the road, just signs. And it was AWESOME. Admittedly, it was a weekend afternoon, but there weren’t many cars. So I rode towards the middle of the street, pulling to my right (closer to the parked cars) when I approached intersections. Which is why I ask: why stripe this at all? Or why not just stripe it at intersections? That way bikes can ride away from parked cars, and get over as necessary.

Just a thought…

[83b]

On some of the narrower two way streets on the Hill that aren’t striped (particularly the ones that really aren’t wide enough for two cars to safely pass one another) I’ve found that oncoming cars will just stake out the middle of the road and force me into the door zone. I kind of liked the double yellow providing a clear signal that “this part is mine, that part is yours.” The striping might also cut down on double parking on the bikes-only side of the road (and now I’ve exhausted my entire days supply of optimism!).

G St is pretty quiet other than during rush hour or late at night when people are trying to park to visit H St. So I really think conflicts will be minimal. The late night crowd worries me somewhat though. There are way too many impaired drivers around H St on weekend evenings, so if I’m headed that way then I’ll just walk.

[Dirt]

We all need to drive now and then. That isn’t unusual.

What’s awesome is that he does so with safety in mind. He drove off with his helmet on.

[PeteD]

Went for a nice ride to The Plains and back…

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[Rod Smith]

[Author]

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