[PotomacCyclist]

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Eads Street protected bike lane, Tuesday Jan. 26

It might be rideable… on a BMX bike with front-mounted snow-melting lasers.

[PotomacCyclist]

@SeekJustice 133302 wrote:

Thanks! I’ve considered doing CaBi, but wasn’t sure if the lower quality bikes would drive me crazy…I have a friend who says it can be frustrating not being able to get up to a decent speed. I think I’ll give it a try though once the snow is clear!

I also am psyching myself up to just make my run home 14th St & MVT and just deal with whatever I encounter…I’ll report back with very wet feet.

I wouldn’t call them lower-quality bikes. They are quite sturdy. But yes, they are much slower than road or even hybrid bikes. You do have to get used to the different speed and the heavier weight. They aren’t ideal for long-distance trips, especially if you are trying to minimize the duration of the trip. But they have benefits too. They are comfortable for medium-distance trips. They are much more stable than other bikes. I’ve run into unmarked construction ditches and trenches (not too deep, but deep enough) and haven’t gotten knocked off the CaBi bikes. I’ve run over a screw that went straight into the tire and caused a flat tire and barely even wobbled. (I didn’t even notice anything was wrong until I started to hear a clicking sound and then the tire finally began to feel heavy. The tire only deflated gradually. On a skinny bike tire, I might have popped the entire tire immediately and crashed.)

CaBi bikes have proven to be incredibly safe. Not just here but nationwide. They have proven to be the safest popular transportation mode of all. I have to admit that I wasn’t expecting that, but the numbers bear it out. Nationwide, there have been something like 23 to 25 million total bikeshare trips (or maybe even higher than that). Not a single fatality yet. It’s due to the slower speeds, the upright riding position, the sturdiness and the low center of mass of the bikes, along with the network effect of more cyclists leading to safer conditions for all riders.

There’s also the convenience of being able to check out a bike (except at some downtown stations on weekdays at peak hours) whenever you feel like. I’ve done this many times, when I happen to be in various neighborhoods in DC, VA or MD.

You could try a one-day membership if you have doubts. That’s a low-risk way to test it out. Just keep in mind that you need to check in the bike within 30 minutes or else you will get charged additional per-ride fees. You can check in the bike, then check it back out to extend a ride and avoid those extra charges, as long as you don’t go over 30-min. per individual trip.

[PotomacCyclist]

As expected, Capital Bikeshare will remain closed tomorrow (Wed. Jan. 27).

http://www.capitalbikeshare.com/news/2016/01/22/service-alert-january-2016-snow-event

I would try to help with clearing more stations but it’s very difficult work. I’m still sore from yesterday’s shoveling. If I push it too hard, I’ll just get myself injured.

I don’t think the system will be able to reopen until the snow melts from warmer temperatures. Shoveling is just going to take too long with the limited staff that CaBi/Motivate has. If that’s the case, then the stations may not be clear until Tue. or Wed. of next week (Feb. 2 and 3) when temperatures will reach the low 50s. The rain on Wed. Feb. 3 could really speed up the melting. (There’s a chance of a small amount of snow on Thur. Feb. 4. I don’t think that will have a major effect on the bikeshare network, but it’s too early to say.)

So that’s my outsider, non-expert guess — a reopening date of Wednesday, Feb. 3. If I’m wrong and they open sooner, I will be happy to be wrong.

P.S. I’m not criticizing Motivate and Capital Bikeshare. Winter storms and heavy snowfall like this past weekend are relatively rare in the DC area. It wouldn’t make sense to have a large number of employees on hand for snow clean-up duty when this situation occurs so infrequently. But maybe Motivate can make arrangements with the local jurisdictions for volunteer help from transportation and environmental services departments to assist with station clean-up once the roads are clear. (Then again, this may not work because many of the plow drivers and snow shovelers are contractors, not full-time gov’t employees.)

[PotomacCyclist]

@S. Arlington Observer 133305 wrote:

Thanks to all for the updates on the FMR trail from Shirlington to Eads (and US 1). Does anybody have a report on Eads Street itself, specifically its bike lanes between S. Glebe and 18th Street S. (the Crystal City Metro station)?

Also, I’d really appreciate it if anyone has insight into Key Boulevard, 13th St N and 11th St. N. in Arlington. (This route roughly parallels Wilson/Fairfax from Courthouse to Ballston but without having to deal with the same level of traffic.)

Thanks so much!

EADS STREET BIKE LANES — Covered in snow

The main road lanes on Eads St. are clear but the bike lanes are not, from what I’ve seen. They are still covered in ~15 inches of snow.

[PotomacCyclist]

@SeekJustice 133287 wrote:

At the risk of possibly being shunned…I will risk saying that I am primarily a runner, not biker. (I used to do a lot of biking before moving to the area, but my bike was damaged in my move and I haven’t had the time/resources to fix/replace it) (and I apologize for all the runners out there who do not know what a bell means, who do not wear bright/reflective gear, who run in packs that take up the entire trail!)

Does that change any assessments of the bridge conditions? (I run home from work: Gallery Place to Crystal City)

Well, I’m a cyclist, runner, walker, Metro rider and occasional bus rider and no one has kicked me out yet.

As for bikes, once the worst of the winter is over (maybe in a couple weeks), if you are still interested in cycling, I’d suggest signing up with Capital Bikeshare. (CaBi is the informal nickname.) There are several bike stations in Crystal City and Pentagon City. The ride from Crystal City to Gallery Place is relatively comfortable for most of the trip (MVT, 15th St protected bike lane). There are bike stations in Gallery Place too. You don’t have to worry about bike maintenance or replacing your bike. If you currently take Metro, then you can save money by switching some of your AM trips to CaBi. An annual membership is $85 (or $96 if you pay in monthly installments.) Peak Metro fare to Gallery Place is $2.45 so if you took 35 one-way trips on CaBi during the year, you would break even. You might decide to bike back in the evenings on some days too. Or use CaBi for errands and other trips, including recreational rides on weekends.

The only issue is that once the weather gets nicer, the demand at stations in central DC bumps up. If you don’t get to some of those stations early on weekday mornings, then the stations will be full. While rebalancing vans sweep through and clear out some of the docks, it’s a slow process. They started up CaBi bike corrals near 13th & NY Ave NW and near Foggy Bottom, where anyone can drop off a bike on weekday mornings, even if those stations are already full, but there aren’t any bike corrals yet near Gallery Place. (The current bike corrals run from the spring to late fall.) I wish they would add more bike corrals this year, near Metro Center and Gallery Place, but they haven’t announced any such plans.

If you’re interested in CaBi, be sure to check their website (http://www.capitalbikeshare.com) in the mornings to see if the central DC stations have filled up. You can also use the free smartphone app Spotcycle (Android and iOS) to check station status and for nearby stations, if the closest station is full. If a station is full, key-card members can get a 15-minute time credit by checking in with the CaBi key. Usually your membership includes unlimited ride of 30 min. or shorter. You can extend trips by docking and undocking a bike within the 30-min. time period. You can’t do this if the station is full, but you can get the extra 15 min. to find another station.

[PotomacCyclist]

I would just consider Capital Bikeshare to be closed until further notice. As I mentioned on the Road & Trail Conditions thread, CaBi has a relatively small staff and over 300 stations to dig out. I don’t see how they would be able to clear all the stations of snow on their own. They will need help, from local transportation or facilities agencies and/or volunteers.

The temperatures won’t be warm enough to melt 20-25 inches of snow in the near future. So all of the stations will need to be cleared, and that will have to happen with shovels. Snowblowers are too large to use in between bikes. They could damage the bikes and stations. The bike stations are located on or next to streets, sidewalks and parking lots. Snowblowers would just send the snow onto those streets and sidewalks, which wouldn’t be acceptable.

Without an unexpected heat wave, I’m not sure if CaBi will be able to reopen at all this week. If it does open, then I’ll be pleasantly surprised.

[PotomacCyclist]

I felt a lot better yesterday after I ate a full meal. The protein definitely helped with recovery from all the snow shoveling. I’m about 80 percent of the way back.

There’s some minor soreness. Maybe that will disappear after I walk around and eat more. Just like with long bike rides, it’s important to take in recovery calories. After strength-related tasks, it’s even more important to get a decent amount of protein along with plenty of water. (After the immediate recovery needs, healthy balanced meals are best, with protein, fiber, complex carbs, dark green vegetables, unsaturated fats and more water.)

I think the limiting factor will be my forearms. While I made an effort to use the large muscle groups yesterday during the bike station clear-out, I still had to use my forearms quite a bit. There’s no way to avoid that if you are lifting anything with your arms. If I feel OK by late afternoon, I’ll take a look at another bike station. If not, then I will stay away from strenuous physical activity today. Since CaBi is still closed, I don’t think I’ll bike today. But I do plan to take Metro to DC and walk around.

For those with free time today (which should be many of you, since the federal government and most private offices are still closed), four of the Smithsonian museums are open today:

Air and Space Museum (on the National Mall, NOT the Udvar-Hazy museum in Dulles)
Natural History Museum
National Portrait Gallery
American Art Museum

Those last two are located in the same building, the Old Patent Office Building, just in front of the Gallery Place Metro and Verizon Center.

http://www.si.edu/

Most of the Metro system is operating except the Silver Line (Wiehle Ave and the four Tysons-area stations are closed), and now there is a problem on the Orange Line between Vienna and Ballston. Regular fares are being charged today. (Yesterday, MetroRail was free of charge.)

http://www.wmata.com/rider_tools/metro_service_status/advisories.cfm?AID=5401

[PotomacCyclist]

The federal government and Capital Bikeshare are both closed tomorrow. So are most/all school systems, but I haven’t checked all of them.

The entire MetroRail system should be operational tomorrow except the Silver Line stations. (Shared stations with the Blue and Orange Lines will be open.) Trains will run every 12 minutes, although shared lines may have more frequent service.

Metrobus will only have limited service.

http://www.wmata.com/rider_tools/metro_service_status/advisories.cfm?AID=5410

I don’t plan on being on the MVT either. While some melting took place today and more will happen tomorrow, it’s not enough to melt 15-20 inches of snow. Temperatures will stay above freezing tonight except for an hour or two. Then there could be rain tomorrow, with temperatures in the low 40s. That could speed up the melting slightly, but I don’t think it will be enough to clear up the MVT.

I saw that many bike stations are still snowed in completely. Instead of debating on the forum about the merits of whether to recommend that people stay off the roads or not, I decided to do my part to help speed the return to service of Capital Bikeshare. They only have a small staff and there are over 300 bike stations scattered throughout the region. Unless a lot of people volunteer to shovel out the stations, I think CaBi could be closed for the rest of the week. (Unless there’s a lot of melting tomorrow, which I don’t think is likely.)

BEFORE

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I borrowed a shovel and went to work. I did this partly out of the spirit of volunteerism, and partly because I’d personally like to see CaBi back in operation. I didn’t know how long it would take. I figured I could make some progress within an hour or two. Then I’d move on. But I got caught up in the process. I haven’t done any strength workouts since the summer, but I’m still in pretty decent shape (for someone who isn’t a pro athlete). I was also trying to be smart about it. I quickly realized why some people get into trouble while shoveling snow, other than not being in shape. They think that just because it’s cold out, they need to be bundled up. Huge mistake. I quickly overheated and I felt somewhat ill. That was solely because I was wearing way too much for the activity I was doing. There’s a reason why you see runners in the winter wearing shorts and short-sleeve shirts. It’s because you heat up very quickly while running and also while doing continuous lifting (which is basically what snow shoveling is).

So I got rid of the coat and hat. I had two pairs of pants on but on top, I just wore a short-sleeve running shirt. That was more than enough while shoveling snow.

I think other people get into trouble because of poor technique. Technique? Yes. You have to rely on the major muscles of the body, like the quads, the lats and the obliques. Not on the much smaller muscles like those of the lower back, the shoulders or the biceps. Everything gets worked, but if you lift properly, you put much more of the stress on the big muscle groups. It can also be as simple as holding the shovel toward the blade end. One hand on the handle, and the other close to the blade with the snow. If you try to lift with both hands near the handle, there is much more stress on the muscles. One of you physics people can explain it precisely. I just know that when there is a lever like that, it’s always better to hold on closer to the weighted part, instead of having a long lever.

One hour became… well, I didn’t really check. When I finally decided that I was finished, I saw that… over 4 1/2 hrs had passed by. What?!

While the system won’t be running tomorrow, this station would now be usable. Or at least in the very near future. As you can see, the station was buried in about 15-20 inches of snow. With temperatures in the mid 40s, that much snow wouldn’t completely melt for at least a week. But now most of the snow is gone. The spots that are still covered only have an inch at most. (I didn’t want to poke at the spokes, chain or gears too forcefully out of concern that I might break something. So I left some of the snow on those parts.) That light covering will melt away quickly. Thus, this station is basically ready to return to service.

I’m guessing the majority of stations are still buried. I’m thinking about digging out another station tomorrow, but we’ll have to see. My arms, lats and lower back are very sore right now. It’s tough work!

If I recover quickly, then I could work on another station tomorrow. If not, then I will have to take a rest day. No shoveling and no other strenuous physical activity. I’m struggling just with typing right now.

[PotomacCyclist]

More Metro station openings:

https://www.facebook.com/MetroForward/photos/a.236797613016402.72066.225880554108108/1190520180977469/?type=3&theater

EDIT – The Braddock Rd. station is now open.

The Blue Line is now operational from Largo, through DC and Arlington to King Street. It continues to Huntington instead of Franconia-Springfield. (Van Dorn Street and Franconia-Springfield stations remain closed.)

The complete Yellow Line is now open, from Huntington to Mt Vernon Sq. (Yellow Line trains end at Mt Vernon Sq. They will not continue to Fort Totten today.)

It appears that all of the stations in DC are open. All the stations in Arlington are open except East Falls Church.

Many of the outer stations in MD and VA have opened, but many have not.

Trains are running every 20-25 minutes.

REMINDER – MetroRail is free today.

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[PotomacCyclist]

It would be great if they can open up the Blue and Yellow Lines soon, but all of the lines are important.

I won’t mind if the wait times are long tomorrow if the entire system is open. I agree that it’s questionable whether most businesses reopen tomorrow. I would take the Metro just to go somewhere, not to commute. I’ve walked around on local sidewalks, but I haven’t gone too far since Friday afternoon. I need to move around more, not just a couple blocks here and there. At least if Metro is operating, I could walk around the National Mall or somewhere else.

Even if I wanted to use my own bike, I don’t know if that would be practical. Unless NPS has changed their policy, I don’t think they are plowing the MVT and no one is plowing the 14th St/George Mason Bridge path. Those are likely to be unusable now.

[PotomacCyclist]

https://www.facebook.com/MetroForward/photos/a.236797613016402.72066.225880554108108/1190433000986187/?type=3&theater

A few of the above-ground Metro stations have opened today, on the Orange, Green and Red Lines. But none of those lines are open completely and the other lines are not open at all (other than shared stations with the Orange and Green lines). At least they are making some progress.

There are still long stretches that are closed. Temperatures are in the low 40s today and in the same range tomorrow plus some rain. I’m really hoping they can get most of the system running by tomorrow. The only stations open in Virginia now are on the Rosslyn-Ballston section of the Orange Line. Nothing south of DC in Arlington, Alexandria or Fairfax.

[PotomacCyclist]

If people in every neighborhood were walking in the street during the storm, then yes, that would have slowed down plowing operations significantly. Even if a blanket statement doesn’t quite fit every particular situation, the general statement and recommendations from officials were the smart choice. (As for the anti-gov’t folks, there were no official bans so the “nanny state” complaints are not relevant here.) A blanket statement that walking/driving/biking in the streets during the storm was not wise or helpful was warranted. People could decide if they felt the recommendation didn’t apply to their particular neighborhood. But if that happened in most neighborhoods, then the plows would have been slowed down a lot.

Pentagon City has major commuter/arterial streets as well as a large residential population. If a lot of people were walking in the streets, that would have hampered the snowplow drivers. The high snowbanks would have also made intersections hazardous, especially during the many hours when the snow was blowing around at 20-25 mph. I didn’t see the Orange Line corridor or Columbia Pike this weekend, but those are similar situations: arterial and important commuter roads and large numbers of residents nearby. Same thing in other areas in Arlington, DC and other suburbs. Perhaps not in every neighborhood of every suburb or in DC, but enough where a general recommendation to stay off the streets made a lot of sense. It still makes sense today when so many roads, bikeshare stations and parking lots are still covered in snow.

The situation has improved. Some of the road lanes and sidewalks here now appear to be completely clear of snow, although not all road lanes are cleared. But the bikeshare stations are still buried and unusable. I suspect that is the case for most of the bike stations in the region. It’s sunny out but I see relatively few people walking or driving. (Maybe there are more on some other blocks.)

I might head out again today but I will stay on the sidewalks except when I’m crossing in crosswalks. I don’t think I’ll bike today because I don’t want all that snow, slush and salt to cover up the bike, and CaBi is still out of service. Plus there are still snowplows passing by and there’s no way to get out of their way, not with the 2 to 7-ft high snowbanks lining most of the roads here.

I’m not confident that CaBi will be available tomorrow either, because many of the stations will still be buried in snow. CaBi doesn’t have that many employees. Unless they get help from local transportation and snow-clearing departments or volunteers, I don’t see how they can get all of the stations clear by tomorrow. Maybe not even on Wednesday. I’ve thought about helping to clear a nearby station but that’s not practical. I don’t have a shovel. (I live in a building, so I’m not individually responsible for clearing the sidewalk. All of the nearby sidewalks already seem to be cleared down to the concrete anyway. They were running snowblowers throughout the weekend.) There’s also a horizontal stretch of snow out to five feet away from the bike station. So I would have to shovel a 50 or 60 square foot area to make the station usable. And I would have to carry that snow about 20 feet if I don’t want to dump all that snow onto the road lane. Plus that entire bank appears to be at least 2 feet high because of the snowplow runs. And I would have to dodge the passing snowplows to do any of this. As much as I’d like to help, it probably wouldn’t be a good idea at this point. (But maybe if I work from the sidewalk side. I can’t clear that entire area, but maybe I could clear a bit from the area immediately next to the station.)

NOTE – The word used in the thread title was not mine, nor would it be my choice. I don’t think people who rode were “jackballs” or even “jerks.” But I do think it was best to recommend that people not ride or drive or walk in the streets over the weekend. I think that recommendation still applies today.

[PotomacCyclist]

@Rod Smith 133148 wrote:

YAY! I won the jackball award! 34 miles!

I got in the way of plows many times. I don’t think the drivers cared. It didn’t stop them from keeping every street in Brentwood rideable all night and all day long. No one else was using the roads so I assumed they were doing it for me. Hey if the plow drivers got an extra 10 minutes of overtime pay because of me that’s my way of rewarding them for the awesome job they did!

I think it would have been a different story if there were a lot of cyclists or car drivers out there though. If they had to slow down 10 minutes each time for dozens of drivers or riders, that would have been a problem. Fortunately there didn’t seem to be too many on the roads during the worst of the storm.

I know this is probably not the most popular sentiment here, but there are still a lot of streets for the snowplow drivers to cover. If there had been a lot of minor delays, that could have combined into significant delays for the overall snow removal operation.

[PotomacCyclist]

I just found this article, dated Jan. 10, 2016:

https://www.baltimorebrew.com/2016/01/10/plank-pledges-continuous-public-access-to-the-waterfront-at-port-covington/

Kevin Plank’s real estate team unveiled their plans for Port Covington in South Baltimore a couple weeks ago. The 266-acre location would be converted into a modern mixed-use development, including the new Under Armour headquarters along with other offices, residential, retail, restaurants, hotels, entertainment, parks and promenades. New mass transit connections would be added (possibly light rail and bus) and four bikeshare stations.

Their team does not own all of the land in that area, but they own a lot of it.

I’m not familiar with Port Covington. Online commenters say that it’s an “industrial wasteland” while others say that it was remediated but it remains an unpleasant location to bike, run or walk. From what I’ve read, it seems like a good idea. It would bring economic development to Baltimore, open up more waterfront areas for public use and expand light rail and promote bikeshare.

Is anyone here familiar with Port Covington, or with any updates on Baltimore bikeshare plans?

[PotomacCyclist]

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