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Well, I get legal advice from Hunter S Thompson. And as he wrote in Fear and Loathing, “Dr. Gonzo: As your attorney, I advise you to…” not point speed cameras at anyone and just go for a nice bike ride.

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Lasers mounted on Sharks, swimming in the Potomac 😎

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When I had to carpool daily, I went over the Memorial Bridge from the Virginia side daily. Accidents on the Virginia side of the bridge were a weekly occurrence – particularly because there are two clear schools of drivers – those that obey the traffic markings and those that do not. And in this case I am making no value judgment as to which is the better, only a complex traffic patter cannot have two driving cultures or you will get accidents. Drivers expect and assume the other drivers to act in a certain way; when they do not, you have accidents.

I have contacted Moran and NPS about this. Technically this is Washington DC, not Virginia, so Moran is not the right rep. While NPS has (a) clearly identified this area as a dangerous area and (b) has renovated this area – nevertheless nothing has been done to make it safer.

Nevertheless,

Jim Moran
https://moran.house.gov/contact-me/email-me

Eleanor Holmes Norton
https://forms.house.gov/norton/webforms/issue_subscribe.htm

NPS???
Didnt there use to be contact information under “advocacy” or something in the forum??

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Toured the C&O once. LOTS of vibrations. Had to cannibalize screws to get my pack rack back on. After a while your hands (and butt) can be numb from the vibrations.

That said, and I am not nearly the big biker as others, the C&O remains one of my favorite rides and I am longing to do it again (wish they let bikes on those damn trains).

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Garvey won, capturing 44% of the vote. Garvey 1,915; Bondi 966; Sims 922; Klingler 333; and Fallon 178

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I’ll just +1. I wear headphones. I have no trouble hearing bells or passing calls or cars. Guess I just play it at the right volume.

Except Mark. I cant ever seem to hear Mark.

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That’s okay. One day I’m going to get my friend to teach me how to sign “Get off the )(*@#@# sidewalk!” in ASL, and I’ll just ride next to you

Hugs and Kisses Mark

From the old geezer on the sidewalk, Making Mark cry since 1991.

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I am curious whether the Arlington Bike Advisory Committee has addressed this issue?

And no, shutting down the Custis trail during rush hour is not the same as shutting down any other road — shutting down the Custis Trail during rush hour is like shutting down I-66 during rush hour. It is not done. And the Arlington County Board has acknowledge that it is not suppose to be done.

I think the next step would be for us to self organize, and try to meet with member of the Arlington County Board.

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Garvey doesnt say that anywhere in her statement. She does express support for paths – which I appreciate.

The bike paths in Arlington are fantastic and came about through a long history of work by the Arl County Board. You cannot imagine how disruptive the construction of I-66 was to Arlington – yet Arlington fought hard to constrain it, to get bike paths along it, and – whatever the name of that agreement was – a binding agreement between Arlington and the state that I-66 could not be expanded inside the beltway. The Custis Trail, the W&OD trail, and connections to the MV trail came about through some very hard nosed fights – that we several generations later benefit from. That is what Garvey is recognizing.

Garvey is the only one who actually rides a bike – the only one who said their second car was a bicycle (that’s our household) – and she is on the Board of Directors of Phoenix Bikes.

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I go to the hardware store and by cheap safety glasses. Work great and cost a fraction of glasses sold in a bike store.

When I biked home in the snow the other day, I took off my helmet and put on a baseball cap (I bike 95% on bike path – not in traffic)

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I started wearing earbuds again. It’s really great not to hear the rude comments of the haters any more Seriously.

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Peter Fallon answered our questions about cycling on his Facebook page. Here is what he had to say:

I fully support sharing the road (sharrows and bike lanes, or travel lane) with cyclists. Biking is not just a recreational choice, it’s a key modal element of transportation in Arlington. For 5 years, I served on Arlington’s Master Transportation Plan (MTP) Plenary Group, which included adding a bike element. I support the adding more safe bike lanes throughout the County and better connections to our trails. As a member of the Long Bridge Park Task Force, I can say that establishing a trail connection from the Mt. Vernon trail, over the GW parkway and Roaches Run, linking up to our new park and beyoned is a priority. We do need Natl. Park Service approval. Congressman Moran is said to be seeking the funding for the connection too.

One accident is too many, and there are far too many accidents happening in Rosslyn. We need to take immediate steps to ensure the safety of the cyclists at the Lynn St. intersection and anywhere else we have a danger point. As a planning commissioner, I’ve always supported additional bike lockers in new commercial and residential buildings, and shower facilities in the office buildings. Our streetscapes have been adding more bike racks for cyclists convenience. I have supported Arlington’s participation in Capital Bikeshare, and recommended potential new locations. Arlington is a leading community in recognizing the importance of using bikes as a transportation option. Many buses are equipped with bike racks for multimodal commuting, While snow is not frequent most winters, we can do a better job of clearing the streets vs just plowing the snow into the bike lanes. We can do more, and with the help of the cyclist community, we will do more. My vision includes making biking a desirable option for more potential riders. expanding our bike lane network as part of our street redesigns, partnering with APS to encourage more students to ride to school, and increasing driver awareness of sharing the road.

No, I don’t commute via bicycle. I drop my 3 year old off at preschool on my way to work, so a car is more practical. However, I do telework frequently, so I’m not on driving on the roads, but not getting exercise from cycling either!

All candidates for the Democratic Caucus have now responded. Perhaps when we get close to the election for the county seat, which I think is March 27, we can ask the Green Party and the Republican candidates to respond. TO BE CLEAR, the democratic caucus election is this thursday evening and this saturday (please vote).

As a final comment, I would say I was REALLY impressed by all of the answers. It is very demonstrative of Arlington culture that all of the candidates have responded, and all of there responses were quite positive.

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AH! Thanks for the tip. I was looking for Repuublicans. Of course! Greens! Will send a note.

UPDATE: Her website has no easily identifiable email address. I attempted to tweet her.

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Here is Kim Klingler‘s response:

I’m a strong supporter of cycling and believe that it plays a value role in our community. I believe we need to make sure cycling is safe for cyclists, drivers and pedestrians and that we do a better job of educating our community on the ‘rules of the road.’ As a volunteer EMT, I have been in the unfortunate position to provide emergency care for bicyclists who have been struck by vehicles. As a community, we need to address our most dangerous intersections, look to modifying traffic patterns, and ensure well thought-out bike lanes.

I am very supportive of the Bike Share program and would like to explore making helmets available for participants, as I’ve noticed these cyclists do not usually wear helmets. I also believe we need to better enforce road and trail rules. I would support a day of education and enforcement to better educate drivers, pedestrians and cyclists of safe road/trail share.

In addition to what I’ve already said, I would promote cycling by exploring better storage options for bikes, working with business and school communities to expand biking to work/school – beyond a single day, and looking into partnerships (private or volunteer) to clear trails after snow.

I also will continue to support cycling events like the Phoenix Bike Ride. I was one of the chief organizers of the 2nd Annual Phoenix Bike Ride in October 2011 and played a large role in fundraising, registration and obtaining door-prizes. As a health care advocate and certified Cycle Reebox instructor, I will also promote cycling as a way for Arlingtonians to stay in shape.

Yes, I ride a bicycle. I have a Gary Fisher. I don’t currently commute to work by bicycle, but have in the past. In my current consulting position, the office I work at is very unpredictable. I commute between offices in NW DC, SW DC, McLean, Rosslyn and Rockville. I did bike into Southwest D.C. in the past and was concerned for my safety. The trails in Arlington getting to D.C. were fine, but then I had a difficult time safely navigating the city streets into the office.

I look forward to working with the cycling community to continue Arlington’s designation as a “Bike Friendly Community” and make cycling safer for all.

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Here is the response of Terron Sims, posted to his facebook page.

Cycling has indeed become an integral part of the transportation equation in Arlington. I fully support cycling and will continue to do what I can to keep Arlington’s reputation as a “Bike Friendly Community” for the future.

I do not own a bicycle but I support programs and businesses such as Capitol Bike Share that allow people to partake in the sport without the cost of purchasing and storing a bike.

By continuing to encourage Arlingtonians to use safe bike lanes, as well as promote additional bike lanes in neighborhoods where that service is not currently offered, I think the county board would be able to encourage good health and exercise as well as safe cycling throughout our community.

Thank you for taking the time to send me your question and I look forward to continuing this discussion as your county board representative.

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