[Just161]

Key Boulevard, west of N. Veitch?

I think it does depend on what the purpose of the signs are…

[Just161]

I’d agree, the 4-Mile-Run > Mt. Vernon Trail combo is a great way to start – no cars, no stoplights, and it’s a beautiful view along the Potomac to boot . Then, as you get used to it at different times of the day, you can try other routes.

[Just161]

I agree with Tim. I’d suggest trying Rock Creek to start – it’s a bit circuitous but car-free and very scenic. Bring a light if you’re riding after dark. Leave the trail and huff it up the hill at P St NW, and then head over to GW. http://tinyurl.com/4zappdd

Once you get used to it you can try other options. Mass Ave. might be okay. Connecticut is the most direct but can be pretty heavy traffic depending on the time of day. It all depends on your comfort level, I guess. Good luck!

[Just161]

This is definitely important as foot traffic will be increasing exponentially over the next 6 weeks around the 15th/Wallenburg/Tidal Basin “pinch point.”

[Just161]

Wow, this is a very thoughtful, reasonable answer, with good information so we can understand the situation. They got it right about the parking lot, and I’m glad to hear that the project is short-lived and they’re looking for a permanent solution. Kudos to whoever this came from (NPS?), and thanks to BikeArlington for sending it along.

[Just161]

Be really careful of ACS figures that either a) describe small portions of the population of a given area (like bikers), or b) show data at a small unit of geography, or c) both. The margins of error on the ACS data can be very big – enough to render many numbers statistically insignificant.

[Just161]

Hey, thanks!

[Just161]

This is great stuff, thanks. I was actually trying to get from College Park -UMD campus to downtown DC today, but decided to take metro because I didn’t know a good route. What I’m most unsure about is getting from the Northwest Branch trail to the Met Branch trail – after that I’m home free. But I’m nervous that roads like Bladensburg or Rhode Island look super scary to ride on, and I’m admittedly timid when cars travel fast. I much prefer car-free trails, and am willing to go out of my way to ride on them.

Any chance you could put this in a google maps route? I’m much better at the birds-eye view. Visual learner, I guess.

[Just161]

Greenbelt – welcome. I’d love to see your route on Google maps, if you’re okay sharing. I’ve often wondered about the best way to get up to that direction by bike from downtown.

[Just161]

Is there a long-cut via Capital Crescent Trail and Georgetown?

[Just161]

Dbb – I agree, I think this is the best way to make the movement from Mt. Vernon Trail to the Mall. I prefer 14th St. Bridge over the Memorial too.

But, making this connection northbound is pretty dicey in April, when tourists for Cherry Blossoms get so thick they make the “bike route on sidewalk” difficult. In fact, sometimes pedestrians are so thick on the sidewalk there you can’t even walk across that bridge (the one with the view across the Tidal Basin). Only alternative is to hang a sharp left as you come down off the 14th St. Bridge, and then a series of lefts to take a long-cut around Hains Pt.

I’ve posted on this before, but I think this connection (Arlington and points west from the Mt. Vernon Trail, to the Capitol, or downtown east of 15th St. NW) is a big gap in the regional bike network. The critical pinch point is the tangle of Maine/Wallenburg/15th/Tidal Basin Drive/55-mph-on-ramp-to-I-395.

[Just161]

Indeed – construction is blocking the sidewalk on the south side of the Memorial Bridge. Here’s what it looked like tonight looking west at around the middle of the bridge:

[Just161]

Good stuff!!

[Just161]

Can you imagine if after a snow, Arlington said that they would refrain from plowing Barton Street below Clarendon Blvd, so that kids could sled on it for a few days?

Ha!! Good point.

[Just161]

The TTI study shows we’re number one in auto congestion per auto commuter. This does not measure congestion for all of us, nor the value of our transportation alternatives that allow us to avoid congestion. Many of us bikers, walkers, and transit riders avoid roadway congestion every day. According to the ACS 5-year, 20% of us don’t drive!

On congestion per commuter, including walking/biking/transit, I bet DC and Chicago drop, and the LAs and Phoenixes of the world are near the top.

Revised headline suggestion: “80% of DC Commuters Face Horrendous Congestion; 20% Do Not”

[Author]

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