[lordofthemark]

@wheels&wings 211608 wrote:

After some months as a running commuter rather than as a bicycle commuter (while recovering from a crash), I’m back on my bike. It’s been mostly great, but I’d forgotten the extent of the vitriol that bicycle riders face from drivers in our area. Today’s example:

Riding eastbound on the WOD through Falls Church (on those amazing bike trails) after grocery shopping at Tysons Center, I witnessed a man on a bike carefully crossing one of the streets that run perpendicular to the trail. As he was crossing (westbound), a large SUV drove up and suddenly sped at him as if attempting to kill him. He rushed out of the way, clearly shaken and surprised by what had just happened. The driver (who was from my same demographic sector) stopped her vehicle in the middle of the intersection, put down her window, and commented to the effect that any outcome would be the bicycle rider’s own fault because bikes have a stop sign and cars do not.

I piped up, surprisingly politely, “Ma’am, you are driving a Suburban and…” at which point she flew into a rage and cut me off: “Shut up, you f-cking bitch!!”
“Why are you so nasty?” I asked, and then she floored the accelerator and was out of there. I’m kicking myself that I did not photograph her.

These sorts of interactions happen all too often, either purposefully or recklessly, as with the two children hit on bikes in Arlington in the past two weeks. And yet our counties so often choose to prioritize those traveling in 6000-pound weapons, like by installing stop signs only for those on foot or bike, or by insisting we use beg buttons to cross a street. Instead of protecting those traveling by foot or bike, such planning decisions are helping sick drivers like this one feel even more justified when putting our lives in danger.

[lordofthemark]

@accordioneur 211503 wrote:

Not to burst any bubbles, but anyone who states that there is only one possible choice for the name of this bridge

This is what I stated: on reflecting, it seemed like the only possible name.

I would hope the difference between what I stated, and what anyone might have stated is, in literal meaning, and emotional content, clear.

[lordofthemark]

@Henry 211471 wrote:

It does not. I asked VDOT about the this and it is a complex process involving the Commonwealth Transportation Board acting on behalf of a local jurisdiction’s request to name something. Said jurisdiction must first agree to pay for all signage, too.

This would likely need buy-in from the NVRPA.

I also suggest starting with any surviving family members to make sure they are ok with it.

Here is the reply I got from Heidi Mitter at VDOT:

Hi Henry,

So far, it seems possible to name the bridge – but VDOT treats bike/ped facility naming the same as highway naming, with a process that requires locality support, funding of naming expenses, and CTB approval. Find the webpage link below with further details.
I still need to ask NOVA parks for their resolution on facility naming. If this moves forward, we’d need to figure out what role that would play. I’m also guessing that Leah/other County staff would be good to consult with.

The commemorative namings of VDOT transportation facilities needs a county resolution supporting/requesting it to the CTB. More information can be found here: http://www.virginiadot.org/info/faq-highway-named.asp
Please be sure to follow the Examples Template for the namings (linked within the above web page) as including certain information and the county agreeing to pay for everything are very important.

Happy to talk off-line if there is a desire to proceed.

Henry

Of course if the family did not support it, that would be the end of the story.

I would think a resolution of support from the ArlCo BOS would be easy. Not sure how much signage costs, or if a fundraiser would be a possibility.

Glad someone seems to be moving it forward, and that the idea occurred to others. In my mind it already has the name, signs or no signs.

[lordofthemark]

@wheels&wings 211461 wrote:

Hi everyone,

We are having a brainstorming session tonight for the Arlington Bicycle Advisory Committee (BAC). All are welcome to join via Teams.

AGENDA for BAC on 4 October 2021 at 7 PM

7:00 – 7:15pm Introductions: What led you to become a cyclist?

7:15 – 7:45pm Voting for chair and vice chair

7:45 – 8:00pm County Announcements (Leah Gerber)

· Slow School Zones & Vision Zero

· Automatic Pedestrian Signal Phases

· Route 1

· Trail Lighting on County-owned Trails

8:00 – 9:00pm Strategy Session

· Brainstorming on topics the BAC might tackle over the coming months – what themes or specific projects should the BAC address?

· Strategic issues and process concerns – how can BAC be more effective?

Microsoft Teams meeting

You can try this hideous-looking link:
https://teams.microsoft.com/l/meetup-join/19%3ameeting_YmZjODEwYTktYjBiMS00NGIyLTgwNmItYjg3MDBiM2U2ZGQ5%40thread.v2/0?context=%7b%22Tid%22%3a%2280354804-1fdf-428e-9f5f-5091e994cf54%22%2c%22Oid%22%3a%22160da70e-b54a-4059-9be2-c88aaa3b00d7%22%7d

Or call in (audio only)

+1 347-973-6905, code 761342806#

Or email me on my gmail account, CynthiaPalmerMail@…..

Be safe, and see you tonight! Cynthia / Wheels&Wings

In the unlikely event you have folks looking for something to do (and don’t have too many to do’s for too few folks, as with us) I would still like to have an Arlington BAC rep who wants to participate in a Four Mile Run bridges joint group. Not that I will have a huge amount of time for it.

[lordofthemark]

@lordofthemark 211331 wrote:

I have never used a an uber x to transport a bike.

Correction – I have now used a Lyft XL to transport a bike. Thanks to this thread, I was thinking Uber X (didnt remember it was in my head due to a thread about a bike packed in a box) so that resulted in one disappointed driver of a small Uber X vehicle in SE DC. Live and learn.

[lordofthemark]

@Serdar 211343 wrote:

You can take the 5A bus from IAD to Rosslyn, and then bike to Georgetown and Alexandria. I took this bus several times in the past. The cost is $7.50, and the travel time is about 45 min. Here are the live updates and schedule.

I always forget about the 5A bus.

[lordofthemark]

The offending section (and no I don’t remember if my wheel caught in the part where the crack is actually in the bike lane, or outside of it – I was passing to try to race ahead to tell the group marshalls that ANOTHER rider was down – but I didn’t realize it was because of the crack, or I might have been more careful)

https://www.google.com/maps/@38.8767394,-76.9423722,3a,75y,125.72h,90.24t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s_HBBTjI-041ppLCrtHhZPQ!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

[lordofthemark]

@NFMac 211323 wrote:

Hi. I am planning a trip to New York for the Bike the 5 Boro ride in early May 2021. Have done it before and loved it. Loved seeing New York by bike.

If I fly through Dublin I can fly to IAD and back from JFK for pretty much the same price. Have never been to DC area.

The plan is to spend the day cycling the city and visiting the sights. Back to the hotel and then out for casual sports bars in the evening. Two questions please!!

Trying to find an OK hotel. Tempted by Alexandria or Arlington. Would they be good spots to then cycle in to DC or should I stay somewhere like Georgetown (want to be closer to bars/restaurants rather than tourist sights)?

How do I get from IAD to my hotel with my bike? I’ll collapse it into bike bag for the flight. Could maybe just get an UberX to the hotel or maybe public transport if available?

Thanks in advance.

If you stay in Old Town Alexandria, you will be close to bars/restaurants in an (by US standards) historic neighborhood, and have an easy ride on the Mount Vernon Trail into the part of DC with the monuments, White House, etc.

Crystal City in Arlington is even closer to DC with a similarly easy ride, but its a late 20th century high rise office development not a night life district – though there are certainly plenty of places to get food and drink there and nearby.

Georgetown is also historic, and there are places to ride around there, and has a lot of bars and restaurants.

I have never used a an uber x to transport a bike. To get from Dulles to DC, Arlington, or ALX by public transport will mean taking a bus (not sure which) to the Reston – Wiehle metro station, then taking two metro lines to get to Crystal City or Alexandria (only one line if you stay in say, the Rosslyn section of Arlington – you would have a somewhat different, but still pretty easy ride to DC from there)

If you stay in Georgetown, you would need another bus at that end to get from the metro as there is no metro station in Georgetown – I assume you have luggage, and so riding the bike from metro is not an option.

[lordofthemark]

I am the king of dorkiness.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]25371[/ATTACH]

[lordofthemark]

@bentbike33 211289 wrote:

If you do all of these things without benefit of a 2-stroke motor bolted to your bikes, I think you should be fine, especially as I know you are not a Clydesdale.

[lordofthemark]

Don’t ride a carbon fork in general and stay away from the C&O Canal a Towpath unless you’ve got a gravel bike.

I’ve ridden the towpath on a regular hybrid bike – should I not do that? (or do they just mean don’t ride a conventional drop bar road bike?)

I also own an aluminum frame drop bar road bike that has a carbon fork. Haven’t ridden it on the towpath, and don’t intend to, but ride it on our local streets regularly.

Am I doing something wrong? (Well aside from the things I already know I’m doing wrong, I mean, whatever)

[lordofthemark]

@elbows 211270 wrote:

What do people do when they see a kid (teen) riding in a way that make one very nervous?

Followed a kid who was riding to the DC Latin Charter School this morning. (I mean, I wasn’t following them. I was riding in the same direction.) Love to see kids riding to school but I was really nervous watching this kid riding in the wrong lane around a busy corner (to shorten the curve, and because they were looking to hop onto the sidewalk.) There are a lot of fast drivers around there and not much time to react if one were to come around the corner and see a cyclist heading into you. (I was almost hit once by someone who seemed to be late racing to that very school.)

Public scolding/educating is not my forte but I would hate for something avoidable to happen to a kid on a bike.

Would love to think that schools incorporate a little instruction in safe riding, but I doubt it.

Would you have said something and if so, how?

Alexandria BPAC has worked with ACPS on the BITS (Bikes in the Schools) program, which teaches safe biking to 2nd graders. My understanding is DC has a more extensive program but I am not sure. Not sure about charter schools.

BPAC also holds ‘bike rodeos’ which teach safe biking skills to kids. If you are interested in volunteering, let me know and I will put you in touch with the BPAC member who takes the lead on these things.

[lordofthemark]

The PBL on the southside of Potomac from S Cap to 1st Street SE (which has replaced the paint only door zone bike lane) was very nice, and ties into the PBL on the east side of 1st St SE

I went right from 1st Street on to Quander Street. No seg bike infra, but its very calm bikeable street (and breaks up the old super block) Of course if you take that instead of N Street, you don’t end up at Tingey, but at the big plaza south of USDOT.

[lordofthemark]

@lordofthemark 211187 wrote:

I seem to recall one when the nature trail opened. I didn’t stop to check on Sunday. I did dismount when passing some pedestrians.

@Steve O 211188 wrote:

Well, that diminishes the whole value of the marsh they created. When you force them off the trail, it’s more comical as they fall in the mud, and less likely to injure them. Win-win.

I wouldn’t want to introduce an invasive species into the marsh.

[lordofthemark]

@Starduster 211178 wrote:

As do I. I do not remember *any* “no bike” signage.

I seem to recall one when the nature trail opened. I didn’t stop to check on Sunday. I did dismount when passing some pedestrians.

[Author]

Posts