PotomacCyclist
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PotomacCyclist
ParticipantAlthough most people here aren’t going to use the bike racks, there are several locations with bike racks on the airport grounds. I mapped all of them on RackSpotter earlier this year. MWAA wouldn’t have installed them if they didn’t want cyclists there. I didn’t have any issues when I rode around there in the spring and summer.
October 10, 2015 at 12:38 am in reply to: Arlington Plans to Remove Bike Lane on Crystal Drive #1039283ParticipantLink to the presentation from the meeting:
Participant[ATTACH=CONFIG]9809[/ATTACH]
At the Pentagon Row store
ParticipantArticle on Greater Greater Washington about the MVT detour:
ParticipantThere are some suggested detours and info about the construction project on the October trail conditions thread:
Participant@consularrider 125743 wrote:
Just about my first day in Mexico City in 1989, we were sitting at an outdoor cafe in Polanco and Arnold came up with his bike. He was in town filming “Total Recall.”
Did he say this to you?
ParticipantI found this on his own Twitter account:
“I love to bike in every city I visit for the experience & exercise! The #ArnoldBikeTour – coming to a city near you.”
https://twitter.com/Schwarzenegger/status/647768020274806784
He has biked in DC in the recent past, including a 2011 visit to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
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He was riding in London this past summer. Someone said that the bus they were riding in nearly hit him and his bike. Arnold’s responses:
“Don’t worry, I would have been fine – living tissue over a metal skeleton.”
“In case I do get hit, can you give me a list of bodyshops so I know where to direct the drivers to fix their cars?”
ParticipantFor those hardy enough to ride the long trails in January, Amtrak is having a sale now:
http://www.amtrak.com/monthly-train-ticket-discount
Save 50% on a companion fare when you buy one regular, full-priced fare to any destination between Washington, DC and Pittsburgh, PA on the Capitol Limited this January.
Valid for Sale
Now through October 31, 2015Valid for Travel
January 4 – 31, 2016ParticipantIt starts at the same time as the Transitway Community Meeting where they will present updates on the plan for Crystal Drive (Metroway, bike lane). You should get them to postpone their meeting.
October 7, 2015 at 9:15 pm in reply to: Advice on proposing a Capital Bikeshare station / what data might be needed #1039124ParticipantGU and GWU decided who would control the campus through a secret, underground arm-wrestling match. Or not.
ParticipantThe CaBi jurisdictions do look to add stations at or near busy Metro stations, but the process has not always been smooth. When Montgomery County joined CaBi, there were notable gaps in coverage at the MD Metro stations. The negotiating process gets drawn out. I’m not sure why.
There are bike stations near many Metro stations in DC, Arlington and Alexandria, but not always on official Metro property. It doesn’t appear that there is an established coordination process, although there should be. With all the recent issues and criticism of WMATA recently, I don’t know if bikeshare arrangements are going to be high on their list of priorities. But I hope the area jurisdictions can improve on their communication and coordination with WMATA.
October 7, 2015 at 6:45 pm in reply to: Advice on proposing a Capital Bikeshare station / what data might be needed #1039108ParticipantIn the early days of CaBi, I added many suggestions to the crowdsourcing map, based on areas that were popular and likely to see a lot of bikeshare traffic. Many of those locations eventually received bike stations over the years. (Especially after the NPS dropped their resistance to bikeshare on the National Mall.)
Definitely add some input on that map. It doesn’t cost anything and once you have registered, it only takes a minute or two. You could suggest that students, faculty and staff provide input on the crowdsourcing map too. The more demand there is for stations at a particular location, the better the chances that DDOT will put a station there. Of course, if GWU is willing to pay for a station or two, that would really increase the chances.
Occasionally, there has been some reluctance to add stations in places that are too far from existing stations, because that introduces rebalancing issues. But that shouldn’t be the case with the Mt. Vernon campus. It’s not that far from the Georgetown and Wisconsin Ave. stations. American University has a bike station and that is somewhat removed from nearby stations.
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The DDOT bikeshare planning document lists proposed additions to the network over the next 3 fiscal years. Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that they plan to add new stations at the Mt. Vernon campus. The nearest proposed location is on the north end of the Georgetown Univ. main campus, too far to be of use for most on the Mt. Vernon campus.
I think the best bet is to convince GWU administrators to fund a new station. There are already a few stations on the main campus and several others next to the main campus. If many cyclists on campus also ask for a bike station, that could increase the odds of getting the funding.
ParticipantI don’t think there’s a formal process for landowners at existing buildings. I’ve written to some owners (Potomac Yard Shopping Center, National Harbor) about bikeshare without much success. Others have contacted landowners and businesses about adding bike racks at their properties. I don’t know how successful this is, but it can’t hurt to try. Some owners are completely resistant to bike facilities, for whatever reasons. (They may think that cyclists are dangerous, even though there are plenty of car drivers racing through and next to their properties at high speeds, and they don’t try to keep cars out.) Some older buildings may have narrow sidewalks and little room for bike racks, unfortunately.
I believe there are rules or practices for new developments, especially larger ones. Tim mentioned that new properties are supposed to be more bike-friendly. I can confirm this is the case with the new developments I’ve seen in Arlington. The new buildings all have bike racks. Some new and old buildings and parking garages have indoor bike parking/bike rooms. Some may even have showers and locker rooms for cyclists but I can’t confirm that.
Community and neighborhood groups are another place to discuss and coordinate email/in-person requests for bike racks, although not everyone may be as enthusiastic about bike racks as people on this forum. Most of the area Business Improvement Districts have been trying to promote cycling and bike infrastructure.
The Columbia Pike Revitalization Organization (CPRO) could be a good resource and partner:
http://www.columbia-pike.org/?page_id=215
[EDIT: I see that CPRO has already been mentioned.]
The new developments on the eastern end of the Pike have many bike racks. I don’t think there are as many new projects on the western end, but I believe there are a few being planned and built.
ParticipantI also wanted to point out that the RackSpotter map is a work in progress. Sounds like there really aren’t many bike racks in that area. But I wouldn’t rely solely on the RackSpotter map yet for determining where there are a lot of racks. It’s a volunteer project. We’re getting there, but there’s still a lot of mapping left to do.
Earlier this year, I swept through every single street, road, block and lane in Pentagon City, Crystal City, Long Bridge Park, Arlington Ridge Rd. and Potomac Yard-Arlington to map the bike racks. (I did the same thing for nearly all of central DC, from Foggy Bottom and Dupont Circle to the Mall, convention center, Nationals Park, Capitol Hill and NoMa. It took a while.) Some of us have looked at the eastern end of Columbia Pike. I found new racks when I rode around there a couple months ago. Even though there are a lot of racks mapped in Clarendon and Court House, I’m still finding that not all of the racks there have been mapped. There are also new racks being installed, at new developments and by various business improvement districts in ARL and DC.
Maybe after the Army Ten-Miler this weekend, I’ll get back to mapping a lot of bike racks again.
ParticipantThere have been some posts on the September trail conditions thread. I thought there was another thread about the project (renovation work on the Airport Connector Road/bridge and the MVT under the bridge) but I can’t find it now.
ARLnow posted about the project, a month ago:
https://www.arlnow.com/2015/09/09/lane-closures-expected-on-reagan-national-airport-access-bridge/
Arlington long-term traffic alert:
http://transportation.arlingtonva.us/streets/long-term-traffic-alerts/George Washington Memorial Parkway Bridge Connecting Crystal City and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
The National Park Service and the Federal Highway Administration will perform maintenance and safety improvements to two bridges that connect Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport to the George Washington Memorial Parkway. During the approximately nine month project, significant work will be performed on the Route 233 bridge, which connects Crystal City to the airport and the southbound Parkway ramp from the airport. Drivers should expect lane closures and detours as the work is performed.
– Single lane closures will begin on September 10 and 11 from 9:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. on the Route 233 bridge.
– At least one lane will remain open to traffic on the Route 233 bridge and on the ramp from the airport to the Parkway, except during one weekend of construction.The Park Service and Federal Highway Administration bridge construction project will allow for better access to and from the airport and add safety improvements to sidewalks and trails for pedestrians.
Expect at least some construction work to continue in that area as late as next summer. I’m not sure how long the detour will be necessary.
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