[viennabiker]

As of today, there is still no sign of construction on the southern section of the Trail (south of Tilden street)…except today in a minor but problematic way: a new sign instructing bicyclists to dismount.

Today, for the first time, I saw this new sign when going southbound through the Beach Drive tunnel (the long tunnel with the narrow walkway just south of the Zoo). The alternative trail that goes through the zoo and avoids the tunnel, was closed a year ago when it washed out. That alternative trail is still closed and there is no sign that repair work has begun. That trail was always closed when the zoo was closed but made it possible to avoid the tunnel when the gates were open.

Funneling all pedestrian and bicycle travel through the tunnel was never a great solution, but there wasn’t much traffic in the tunnel. Now asking bicyclists to dismount (so far, oddly enough, only one way though perhaps a sign for northbound traffic is also planned) does not seem likely to work. Bicyclists might feel they need to start using the regular traffic lanes of the tunnel (I’ve seen this done occasionally, generally on weekends by faster riders) which may be legal but will hardly be welcome by drivers.

And there is no sign that construction of the long-term solution promised (widening the trail through the tunnel and on the bridge on the south side) is in the offing.

[viennabiker]

@mstone 179690 wrote:

Maybe, but that won’t stop the bitching.

The only bitching I’ve read on this site–and heard in person–is directed at cyciists who have asked others not to use blinking settings on two-way trails or to turn down their high-beams for approaching cyclists.

I am quite sure that there have been some very rude requests made of blinkers and high-beamers, but I’ve never made them or heard them. I do worry that such rudeness, real or perceived, is deployed to dismiss even polite requests.

(This past week, I averted my eyes but said nothing when a cyclist approached me with a bright, flashing light around 1 pm on the W and OD in Sterling. That cyclist screamed something in my ear when we passed.)

I became sensitized to the light problem when I was younger and others complained about my light, and not always in a genteel manner. I realized that a cyclist passing the other way can hardly be expected to communicate such a message without sounding a bit gruff (there’s only time for a few audible words). I generally don’t even try to make a verbal request, but I have sympathy for those who do.

As I’ve aged, I’ve noticed my sensitivity increases and that very bright lights, especially blinking ones, pointed at eye level at close distance (even in daylight) on a two-way trail lead me to slow considerably and fix my eyes on the edge of the trail away from rider. I don’t understand how using a light in such circumstances makes anyone safer. Nor do I understand why such an observation exposes its maker to verbal abuse (and it has).

I do understand the need for bright lights and blinking ones when riding in traffic. They help ensure that cyclists be noticed. When cyclists are on a two-way trail without cars, there is less danger that a cyclist is not noticed and oncoming bike traffic is much closer. I think–though I’m not sure–people’s tolerance for direct lights and for rapidly blinking one varies greatly. I am fairly confident it declines with age, so that if you’re a young cyclist, you’re probably not a good judge of how it might affect an older one. If someone says it bothers them, I hope others can accept that as likely to be the case.

So thanks to those who do dim, lower, and/or switch to steady mode. And to those who choose not to, please understand you’ll likely to continue to hear requests.

[viennabiker]

@DCAKen 177152 wrote:

On the evening of April 2, the NPS cleaned Rock Creek Parkway and Beach Drive. Unfortunately, a lot of the crap coming off the roadway ended up on the bike trail. The worst section was between P Street and Pennsylvania Avenue.

I sent a letter off to the Superintendent asking to sweep the trail and to stop treating it as a dumping zone for the road.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

Yes, I was wondering where to submit a comment. Can you supply the contact information?

It was bad yesterday and had not been cleaned up by today. Or rather parts had been cleaned up and others not. I

I thought the worst section was actually up around Tilden Street (I bike between the Kennedy Center and Broad Branch) where the train was actually impassable at some points. But it was also bad in the section you mention.

[viennabiker]

I rode the Rock Creek Trail yesterday afternoon–there were several spots between Calvert and P Street where Friday’s storm had left sand or mud covering the trail, sometimes a bit deep. In three or four spots, a rider (or even a walker) had to detour off the path on to the surrounding grass. Areas north of the zoo were fine (though Rock Creek itself was still a bit of a raging river rather than a somnolent creek in some areas).

[viennabiker]

@rcannon100 143532 wrote:

The Cops may have copped out as well. Stalking is in fact a crime, whether they want to be bothered about it or not.

This, from the Vienna police highlights, may be connected. If so, it indicates that Vienna police, Fairfax County police (the area where the harassment was taking place straddles the Vienna town line), and the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority did take action.
Police Service 16-010372
Vienna Police Station
215 Center Street, South
December 8 1:16 p.m.
Officers from our department along with the Fairfax County Police Department and the Park
Manager for the W&OD Trail served a trespass notice on a man who has been acting suspicious
on the trail. This notice bans the man from the trail for one year. He was advised that he could
be charged with Trespassing if he violates this notice.

[viennabiker]

@huskerdont 148270 wrote:

Are people no longer taught while learning to drive not to look directly at an oncoming car’s high-beams but to look slightly off to the side? I mean, I turn my light away from people when I can, but it’s just not a big deal when someone doesn’t. Just don’t look right at it. You can look down at the trail where you’re going and still use your peripheral vision for everything else.

Yes, one can look off to the side. And that’s what I do. But using high beams when there is oncoming traffic is unlawful in many states. The Virginia code reads “Whenever the driver of any motor vehicle approaches from the rear or follows within 200 feet of another vehicle proceeding in the same direction, the driver shall use the low beam of his vehicle’s headlights or shall dim the headlights if the vehicle has single-beam lights.”

What works for motor vehicles seems to make sense for bikes. Yes, I can avert my eyes if I have to, just as I won’t press the point if someone runs a stop sign in front of me; I’ll just brake. But accomodating unlawful or unsafe behavior doesn’t excuse it. When I’m driving I want other drivers to avoid shining their high beams at me. And I have the same preference for bicyclists–I don’t think it’s unreasonable to expect my fellow cyclists to avoid shining bright lights in my eyes and asking me to look away.

I’ve noticed much use of flashing headlights on the bike trails this year. I do find them distracting at best and unsafe in some circumstances. I don’t contort my face or explode in anger, but it’s hard to get out much more than a “Please turn down your light” at a cyclist going the other direction. I’m not the person in question in these postings (since I was out of town on the days the postings referred to), but I have asked (with the 4 or 5 words I can get out to a cyclist going the other direction) for others to turn down their lights. I think the request is a reasonable one and I don’t understand the hostility and sarcasm it generates here.

I make this request only if I’m on a trail and the light is bright and pointed at eye level or flashing very brightly. I certainly won’t make it if a light is not that bright or pointed down. A couple times when I’ve forgotten to point my light down I’ve had a similar request made of me. I comply–and apologize if there’s time before the other cyclist passes.

If it’s dark, a bright light in one’s face can be blinding. And if it’s not dark, it can be very distracting and force me to take my eyes of the trail in front of me; if there is a string of cyclists make it a bit harder to navigate.

So lights are necessary at night and they’re fine during the day. But please don’t point them in the eyes of oncoming cyclists especially if they’re very bright. I don’t understand the need for flashing headlights at all on the trails–they can help on the roads to make us more visible to drivers not used to noticing bikes but on the trails we’re used to seeing each other.

[viennabiker]

It’s still going on. From the Vienna Police Highlights (https://www.viennava.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/3342)

Suspicious Person 16-008991
W&OD Bike Trail
October 20 5:17 p.m.
Sgt. Kiley received information from citizens advising of a male subject riding his bike in
proximity of the W&OD Bike Trail acting suspicious. The male was riding ahead of females,
then concealing himself and jumping out to follow them. Officers located and spoke to the man.
They recognized him as the same individual they had previously spoken to about similar
behavior.
Sgt. Kiley notified the Director of the W&OD Trail and advised him of the on-going behavior of
the man and will follow up with him.

[viennabiker]

Police enforcement is back.

I rode through yesterday morning and slowed but did not stop at the intersection (I was going faster than an Idaho stop but slower than my normal speed–I would guess I slowed to about 5-7 mph). Immediately after passing through the intersection, I was pulled aside by a police officer. As shawnofthedread noted, the intersection is actually in Arlington, though I think of it as Falls Church.

He was extremely polite in tone but his content was stern: there have been numerous complaints from neighbors and a couple accidents. He said he had pulled aside nine bikers in 45 minutes. He also said–without my raising the point–that he stops cars as well. (In my time riding there, I have actually never seen one single car come to a full stop unless there was another car at the intersection–what I was raised to call a “California stop” is the norm).

I did mention to him that I knew of the periodic enforcement from this site and word of mouth. He seemed surprised and interested.

I got the impression that periodic enforcement will continue.

In my case, I was given a warning.

[viennabiker]

Like vvii, I also took a spill at the section of the Custis Trail in Rosslyn–right before the Marriott going eastbound. This was nine years ago, and I was new to using a road bike. I got my tire caught in the groove and was probably going a bit faster than my command of the bike would have recommended. I broke my arm and took a couple months before I could ride again. At that time, I did notify Arlington County. At some point after that, I noticed that the groove had been filled with caulk; I think this was in response to requests from riders. The Bike Arlington website actually has a useful list of contact numbers and emails: http://www.bikearlington.com/pages/about/contact-us/

[viennabiker]

@ursus 145096 wrote:

I recall what must have been 2012 when a bridge somewhat west of this was being repaired. The earlier one must have been only a weekday detour. I was not yet retired then and would not have been affected by a weekday detour.

I also recall a detour just east of Leesburg about two years ago and a lengthy one west of Leesburg when cables were being installed under the trail a couple of years earlier.

So a bit of digging revealed:

1. In 2012, there was a detour to repair the embankment: http://bikearlingtonforum.com/showthread.php?2062-Embankment-Work-on-WOD

2. In 2006, there was a detour to repair the bridge slightly west of there (as I recall, the detour was to the horsepath and there was a temporary wooden bridge): http://www.more-mtb.org/forums/topic/bridge-on-wod-trail-closed-due-to-storm-damage/

3. In the 1850s, when the trail was built there may have been other work, and the Civil War might have led to some disruptions, but google does not seem to be able to uncover any threads discussing any resulting detours.

[viennabiker]

@ursus 145052 wrote:

It looks like there will be a detour onto the gravel west of Vienna for two months starting tomorrow. (I only half-read the sign.)

I stopped and read the message and promptly forgot about it until you posted this. I did a bit of googling and found this on the Friends of the W and OD site:

• Attention, Trail Users: impending detour on west side of Vienna
The creek that runs along the north side of the W&OD Trail in the vicinity of the western boundary of Vienna (between mileage markers 12 and 12.5) has produced significant erosion to the old railroad embankment (see photo). If corrective steps are not taken promptly, the Trail will soon be undermined. For this reason, on or about August 29th, NOVA Parks will begin a project to restore and to armor these steepening, crumbling northern slopes. This work will require a detour for Trail users along the gravel equestrian trail that parallels the paved trail to the south. NOVA Parks will grade and improve the gravel trail before opening this detour, which will span approximately 1,000 feet and be in place for roughly two months. When practical and safe, NOVA Parks will open the paved trail on weekends during the period of construction. Any questions regarding this project should be addressed to Project Manager Tim Heisler, who may also be reached by telephone at 703-352-5900.
http://www.wodfriends.org/news/

The good news is that the trail will still be open on weekends; the bad news is that on weekdays there will be a gravel trail. I remember a couple other occasions–one back in 2006 or 2007 and one in 2012 or so–in which restoration work required detouring to horse trail slightly west of where the work will be done now. Those detours could be negotiated on a road bike as I remember, but not without difficulty.

Some of the embankment work dates back before the Civil War, I believe. If only the work had been done right then, it wouldn’t require maintenance after a century and a half.

[viennabiker]

@bentbike33 143738 wrote:

First thing I did when I got home and into a darkened room was check the aim of my light. It was exactly where it is supposed to be. My light is dynamo-powered and thus limited to only 6 volts, 3 watts power consumption (80 lumen max output v. > 2000 lumen for advanced battery-powered lights). It does not strobe. The beam is highly engineered to distribute the limited illumination capacity efficiently onto the road, like a car’s low-beams. The brightest part of the beam is at seat level at very close range (e.g., when I am on a cyclist’s wheel preparing to pass), and is lower the farther away is the oncoming rider, i.e., it is aimed downward. It did not noticeably illuminate the trail at the underpass because it was not dark out. As the oncoming rider in this case was descending the hill at Brandywine Castle, and I was ascending, it is unlikely he caught the bright part of the beam directly in the face unless it occured for an instant while he was just cresting the hill. Had he been ascending while I was descending, I would have understood the reason he said something and not bothered to comment here.

Because my light is dynamo powered, I leave it on as a daytime running light on the streets and trails (not that it seems to help much in warding off riders with good sightlines intent on making bad passes, but that is another issue). As a regular bike commuter, I am passed daily by dozens of oncoming cyclists, joggers, dog-walkers, etc., and complaints about my light are so extremely rare as to be remarkable (more likely is a helpful daytime reminder that my light is on so as not to needlessly run down my nonexistent battery).

I find the thermonuclear strobes and nighttime-street-repaving-quality flood lights annoying too, but then I find the the people who black out their lights and dissappear as they approach to be unnerving as well. It’s life on the trails. Deal with it, and come to the forum to vent if need be.

Thanks very much for checking!

(I agree with you about the blackout–the intention behind it may be nice but the effect can be a little odd when an oncoming cyclist suddenly puts on an invisibility cloak. I point my light pretty far down with the intent–which I hope works–that I will be seen but not in a blinding way.)

[viennabiker]

@bentbike33 143659 wrote:

Was admonished by a photophobe for the brightness of my Dynamo-powered headlight just before 6:00pm today at Brandywine Castle on the W&OD. Granted it was cloudy, but my light did not noticeably illuminate the trail at the Sycamore Street underpass. This specimen either: (a) has a second set of eyeballs instead of testicles because the brightest part of my light shines at seat level, or (b) has developed excessive sensitivity to light by never having ridden into the morning sun his entire life.

A couple months ago, I was riding eastbound on the W&OD in Reston when I saw a cyclist coming west with a very bright flashing headlight that was distracting from a distance and much worse than distracting close up. I said nothing but I did hold up a hand to shield my eyes as he passed–and as I did so, I heard him shout out “Wimp!” So I read your post with a touch of empathy for the rider you are terming a photophobe. Also for you–but let me get to the other guy first.

At least on the W&OD, I think I see an increasing number of riders using bright flashing lights in the daytime. I think that is unnecessary on a trail–it makes sense when riding with cars when you want to be seen at greater distances. But if you are going to use it during the day on a trail, I would hope that you would make sure it is pointed down and not flashing.

In your post, you don’t say whether it was flashing, but you do say it was pointed at seat level (you don’t say at what distance). Depending on the rider and distance–as well as the terrain (you say it was at Brandywine Castle where there is a sudden incline)–that could be quite close to eye level. I wasn’t there, so only you and the photophobic other rider could say for sure but it seems possible that if your light did not illuminate the trail when in a dark underpass, it actually was pointed higher up than you realized.

I have ridden into the morning sun many times in my life. I did not think by so doing I was giving license to other riders to shine lights in my face.

Even if you are being unfair to the other rider (and that is difficult to tell, but since you deride him–and I assume the other rider was male by the anatomical reference–three times in three sentences, my guard is up a little) I’m actually empathetic with you as well.

Here’s why: a few weeks ago, I was riding over the Key Bridge to Georgetown. I passed another rider who shouted out “Please call your passes!” I am very careful about such things, so I immediately responded “I did! Listen!” satisfying myself that the rider had spaced out. Then it hit me–I actually had not called this pass at all. It’s never nice to be shamed on your behavior and to be the target of a shout–and that’s what passing riders do to be heard–is startling. I don’t react in a very saintly way, even when I’m in the wrong.

So I don’t know if you were in the right or not, but I would suggest that you think for a moment whether that other rider was giving you information that your light is more problematic than you think.

And I would urge all riders to be careful to check that their lights point down–an uncontroversial point, I hope–and never to have it flash like a strobe when riding on a trail.

[viennabiker]

Wonder if this is related–from the Vienna Police Highlights:
Suspicious Person 16-006210
W&OD Trail and Talahi Road, SE
July 19 11:26 a.m.
Several citizens called stating there was a male subject “stalking” female subjects on the W&OD
trail. A citizen pointed out the male subject to bike officers who were patrolling the trail. LT.
Taylor, MPO Seitz, MPO Lose, and PFC Kiley made contact with subject and determine no
criminal activity was taking place. However, the officers informed the male subject his behavior
was inappropriate, he agreed and left without further incident.

[https://www.viennava.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/3225%5D

[viennabiker]

My impression is a bit different–spring (especially the first couple sunny weekends) are often the worst times every year, since it transforms what had been trails for the most regular riders and joggers into crowded multi-use trails. Some (a minority, but enough to be noticeable) of the former can get impatient or unwilling to share and some (again, a minority, but enough to be noticeable) of the latter can be oblivious (and clueless about how to share). As the spring wears on, a bit of learning takes place. Again, this is only an impression, but I think I’ve noticed it most in the areas that get the most mixed traffic on nice spring days (Capital Crescent in Bethesda; W&OD in Vienna; MVT near DCA). So it may be cyclical. I could be a frog in a boiling pot, but I haven’t noticed any year-to-year deterioration.

[Author]

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