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Well if he is delivering newspapers, he is at least likely to keep his windows open. So yelling might be more effective with this driver than most.

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@chris_s 165969 wrote:

Next up – 50 & Irving. (can’t wait!)

My recent experience with 50 & Fillmore has been worse.

Now the light sometimes turns green for one way while remaining red for the other direction. Earlier this week one evening around midnight, I rode up on a CaBi to the intersection southbound. About 30 seconds later a car pulled up on the opposite side of the intersection. After that, we both waited perhaps a minute for the signal to change. Northbound Fillmore (i.e. the car opposite me) got the green, while my light remained red. Since there was no other traffic using Fillmore I decided to just make a run for it while 50 had the red light.

Who should be contacted to get this fixed?

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@jfel 165750 wrote:

Hello- Let me preface by saying I’m brand spanking new to biking in Arlington. I tried a test run over the weekend to get from my home in Penrose Square/Columbia Pike area to Metro Center in DC. My gps and Bike Arlington trail map led me the way past Pentagon (rather than Rosslyn) and that’s where I ran into trouble as I was not able to enter Washington Blvd. from Southgate Road>Columbia Pike>Rotary Road. The trail appeared to be blocked for construction, so I had to backtrack and ended up taking Arlington Blvd. However, I can’t seem to find any information about the status of Washington Blvd and I’m starting to wonder if what I saw was not actually the Washignton Blvd trail…does anyone here have information to share about the status of this trail and how to access it if it is open? I apologize in advance if I should have posted this in another thread. Thank you!

I agree that the access point for the 27 trail is difficult to find, obscured by all the construction. The place where you need to be to get the trail is at the pink star in the photo. There is more construction at the 110 bridge but the temporary trail is reasonably well-designed. But I haven’t been that way in a while so maybe things have changed?

[ATTACH=CONFIG]15510[/ATTACH]

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In fact, unlike Memorial, there is no way to get to TR bridge without riding on some boardwalk.

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@dkel 165259 wrote:

This is a problem. I carry lots of bike tools with me on rides, but crank tools aren’t among them. He’ll have to go to the LBS for that.

The only tool needed to fix this sort of problem is the tool atop the saddle.

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@nonvictus 165036 wrote:

14th and & St, NW

Yikes, I don’t remember reading about this one. 14th and what?

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Go on ahead if you like. But if we pass you while you’re asleep alongside the road, you’ll never hear the end of it!

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@Judd 164965 wrote:

Does anyone know off the top of their head what part of 66 the 5 miles of the trail will run adjacent to the Interstate?

I also tried to look through those documents a month ago to answer that same question. I was completely befuddled and gave up.

If it is mostly in the portion east of 123, there are a lot of parallel streets that could easily be made more attractive to bicycle traffic. If we fail in our efforts to get the 66 trail entirely outside the sound wall, we should prioritize fighting for improvements to alternatives that could actually be safe and pleasant places to ride.

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Okay this looks like way too much fun… I’m in!

Character suggestions? Is Raphael still open?

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At 10:30pm tonight I encountered road work on Key Bridge: rightmost southbound lane and upstream sidewalk blocked. I didn’t look over to see what the crews were doing. Perhaps they’ll be gone before rush hour?

After approaching my usual way whenever coming from anywhere uptown in the late evening (vehicular left off M Street onto the upstream sidewalk), the only choice was to take a full lane in the car traffic. So I treated myself to my first-ever experience taking a lane in traffic while riding solo across a Potomac River Bridge. (On a CaBi no less!) I did see peds and bikes using the downstream sidewalk, but it would have been difficult for me to get to that side given my approach.

It didn’t feel scary at all actually. Drivers were slower than usual due to the road work on the north half of the bridge. I was able to keep up with the cars ahead of me until over halfway across. By that point another southbound lane opens up and drivers could pass easily in the left lane. And the traffic signals at the next few intersections on Fort Myer Drive in Arlington prevented anyone from speeding excessively thereafter anyway.

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@dasgeh 164677 wrote:

(The law doesn’t require a collision, despite that everyone calls it “hit and run”)

Has anyone ever been charged for violating 46.2-894 without a collision?

I agree that drivers should be held liable for causing injuries in scenarios like that of the OP, but I don’t see it actually happening. I’m skeptical that the phrase “involved in an accident” would be interpreted to implicate the driver in such a case. Especially given that subsequent text in the law (“the vehicle collided with”, “the person struck”) assumes a collision.

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Most of the streets in Manassas proper are quite bike-friendly. The city itself is very flat, which may qualify as a plus or a minus. The PW Parkway and 234 trails offer decent rides and connections to the southeast (mid-county / Lake Ridge / Dale City area). I haven’t ridden any other directions from Manassas, but I suspect the routes are dicey.

Avoid VA-28 anywhere north of Old Town Manassas. If you value your physical health, keep your bicycle away from that road. If you value your mental health, keep your car away from that road.

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Sorry to hear this. I hope John is relatively unscathed and is able to heal quickly.

@Starduster 164279 wrote:

Thus far this year, FOUR of our customers have had wrecks with cars in and around our section of Columbia Pike.

Yikes. Obviously that is four too many.

@bobco85 164292 wrote:

I’m trying to get an idea of the area of danger around the store.

Me too. I wonder what is the total number of Pike crashes and whether that rate is increasing. To improve this situation, it could be helpful to collect as many details from the victims of these crashes as possible. (e.g. sidewalk vs. in-street riding, lane position, whether or not intersections or driveways were involved). In my travels up and down this part of the Pike (split fairly evenly amongst walking, biking, and driving), I’d guess that about 3/4 of the cyclists use the sidewalk. This percentage of course varies with time of day (higher during rush hour, lower off-peak). On many occasions I have noticed an in-street cyclist clinging dangerously close to the gutters, enough that bad drivers might be tempted to pass in lane. There are very few spots on the Pike in Arlington where the lane is wide enough to safely share with a motor vehicle.

Also, drivers can be quite aggressive about lane changing on the Pike, since either lane can be delayed suddenly at any time by a turning vehicle or a stopping bus. Many of these drivers don’t have the requisite situational awareness to make those quick maneuvers safely, because… cell phones. A dangerous combination.

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@Harry Meatmotor 164306 wrote:

what, like when NPP decide to enforce the stop signs at HP?

Friendly reminder everyone:

Tonight there will be an overnight bicycle race on the Mount Vernon Trail. The course involves various loops through the Gravelly Point parking lot as well as timed sprints between Gravelly Point and Crystal City. We will be recklessly running all stop signs and vastly exceeding trail speed limits. To qualify for prizes, participants must drink a beer each lap and smash the bottle somewhere along the course at a location of their choosing.

Most of you already know the exact time of this event. So I won’t post the details again here, because I’m concerned that the Park Police might now be listening on this channel. We certainly don’t want them to show up.

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@huskerdont 164093 wrote:

Add the same sign for the Intersection of Ft. Meyer and Lee. I was almost dead there once.

This one’s also not great when Ft Myer has the green. From Key Bridge, I usually ride Ft Myer to Nash to Wilson. After crossing the Potomac on the sidewalk, I have to transition back into the roadway, which sometimes doesn’t happen until that intersection. It can be an awkward dance, especially when drivers aren’t signaling.

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