[bentbike33]

@dasgeh 193048 wrote:

On July 8, 2019, there was a freak rain storm that flooded parts of Arlington, including many of the streams, and damaged some infrastructure.

Did the county apply for FEMA money?

[bentbike33]

@Steve O 192832 wrote:

Did you go through when there were a lot of cyclists and pedestrians traveling in both directions?
Or when a person in a wheelchair was using the button?

No and no. It was about 7am, no westbound users, I was rushing to make the walk signal, focusing on its timing, the Lee Hwy right turn lanes, and whether or not the trail entrance on the other side of Lynn had been shifted for construction purposes. The beg button pole was not a factor for me in that situation, and I’m pretty sure I remained well on my side of the new center line. Would it be better further from the main trail travel zone? Sure. Is it as bad as the original Scott Street beg-button pole location? No.

[bentbike33]

@Steve O 192825 wrote:

Note the absurd location of the beg button pole – right in the path of travel. Also encroaching on the queuing area, which can be one of the busiest in the whole DMV.
I’m all for accommodations as per ADA, but this pole needs to be moved about 2-3 feet to the south and off the trail.
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This is just one more example of why it makes sense to bring 90% drawings to the BAC. We would have caught this before it was installed. The same thing happened up the hill at Scott St. Arlington County had to go back and pay to have the pole moved, a waste of taxpayer money. That money and time could have been saved if the people who ride bikes–and are actually appointed to help the county make bicycling better–had been given an opportunity to see the placement first.

While your point about letting actual cyclists review late-stage plans for cycling infrastructure is very well taken, when I went through east-bound this morning (admittedly at speed to make the walk signal at IOD) I did not find the beg button pole to be a problem. It certainly was a problem when riders had to cross over to the temporary trail as depicted in your pictures, however. Note that the old crosswalk paint no longer aligns with the new curb cuts. Seems to me the pole is just barely out of the new line of travel.

[bentbike33]

@Steve O 192822 wrote:

I’m pretty certain the Great Pumpkin ride is chock full of Sesame Street and Muppet connoisseurs, so we probably need to think this through pretty carefully–in order to avoid derision from them all.

Steve is right. After all, it has been done before.

[bentbike33]

@accordioneur 192775 wrote:

… or the person I really want to be when I grow up?

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Yes, we should get the band back together! If I stop trimming my moustache, I should be able to pull off a decent Floyd Pepper by the time of the ride.

[bentbike33]

@AFHokie 192755 wrote:

Do you know if you can fit a recumbent bike along with regular bikes on the 1Up rack? A few of my friends ride bents and Ideally, the rack I get will be able to fit one along with my bike.

It really depends on the style of recumbent, most so-called “short wheelbase” recumbents (those where the pedals hang in front of the front wheel) will fit in standard bike carriers. I use a fork-mount roof rack.

The thing to keep in mind with recumbents is that very often their center of gravity is above any horizontal frame members, so they will not play well with any kind of frame-hanger rack.

[bentbike33]

@huskerdont 192692 wrote:

They already have about three quarters of the width fenced off, such that you really have to slow down or even stop to not hit tourists at the bottleneck. Not that I’m complaining if it keeps the riff-raff contained within 1600. That’s what this is for, right?

BTW, I noticed that with the Memorial Bridge construction–they put the Jersey barriers inside the width of the trail, rather than at the outer edges. I try not to take these things personally, but jeez.

Duh! It just occurred to me the reason they will use all of Pennsylvania Avenue for the project is that it won’t inconvenience any cars! If PA Ave was still open to cars they would have done it all by closing just the sidewalk and bike lane exactly like every other construction project in DC.

[bentbike33]

@huskerdont 192689 wrote:

PA Ave. at the WH to be closed for seven months, starting Wednesday. They say you can still cycle through on the sidewalk, but it’s not really worth it with the pedestrian traffic. I’ve never found a westbound alternative I especially like, although the Ellipse is passable when it’s open. Eye Street is a cluster, and Constitution is okay-ish on a once-and-a-while basis. H Street is good eastbound.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/pennsylvania-avenue-in-front-of-the-white-house-to-close-for-fence-construction/2019/08/20/77105e82-c357-11e9-b72f-b31dfaa77212_story.html

Geez, they need the whole entire width of Pennsylvania Avenue to replace the White House fence? Must be the same contractor as the one doing the Memorial Bridge restoration where they keep squeezing down the width of the MVT between the plastic jersey barriers because they need more room to park equipment.

[bentbike33]

@Steve O 192681 wrote:

… the noise noise noise noise noise…

The Grinch Who Stole Coffee Club

[bentbike33]

@sjclaeys 192567 wrote:

Umm, beer has been brewed long before gas and electricity.

Cool, so you’ll be demonstrating these pre-industrial techniques as part of the disaster relief challenge?

[bentbike33]

@sjclaeys 192558 wrote:

Remember that I know how to safely make alcohol, which will be very valuable in a post-apocalyptic Arlington.

Really?!? Without natural gas or electricity?

[bentbike33]

@bentbike33 192489 wrote:

The Park Service has closed Ohio Dr. under the 14th Street Bridge complex and the railroad bridges. The barriers they put up are a bit more bike-tight than yesterday, and they were digging a hole this morning. Anyway, avoid looping around between Case Bridge and 14th Street Bridge.

Looked all clear this morning. I did not go through, but the downstream barricade was gone.

[bentbike33]

I’m guessing it would not be illegal for a bike rider to proceed like a vehicle through the intersection, but that’s not to say there won’t be vigilante drivers providing substantial discouragement.

[bentbike33]

@ursus 192493 wrote:

I wonder if they are trying to fix whatever caused flooding last summer in that area on several occasions. I haven’t seen that problem this year, but I might not have been there when it happened,

It’s possible. The hole they were digging in the road this morning was along the curb where a problem storm drain might have been.

[bentbike33]

The Park Service has closed Ohio Dr. under the 14th Street Bridge complex and the railroad bridges. The barriers they put up are a bit more bike-tight than yesterday, and they were digging a hole this morning. Anyway, avoid looping around between Case Bridge and 14th Street Bridge.

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