Options for opposing Connecticut Avenue changes?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How many active regular bicycle commuters are there in DC? How many people bike, rather than drive, for 1 mile or greater transportation?

A few hundred. The number is tiny.

I'd give them a thousand maybe. But would like to hear from them. Without knowing that number the validity of the 3,000-10,000 range cannot be established

The point is, if you make it safe and attractive, more people will do it.

Also, as housing prices and the cost of living continue to escalate, people ditch the expense associated with owning and operating a car. As a result they need other safe ways of getting around. Or is your contention that only the wealthy should be living, working and shopping along Connecticut Avenue?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There's so few cyclists that both the city and the Census Bureau throw them into a miscellaneous category.

The only thing this statement tells us is that you have no idea what you are talking about.

The Census Bureau disaggregates "Means of Transportation to Work" into five broad categories, of which "Bicycle" is one. The 2021 data, with margins of error, for Washington, DC is here: https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=Washington%20city,%20District%20of%20Columbia&t=Commuting&tid=ACSST1Y2021.S0801

Before you get too excited about the 2.1% figure, not that 48.3% of respondents indicated that they work from home. As of 2019, 4.0% of DC commuters were cycling to work and 38.5% were driving (or being driven).

Isn't that only showing the commuters who live in DC and none of the MD and VA people who commute to DC?

It also is only talking about commute "to work", not the school commuters with all the cross city OOB commuters for public schools and all the private school commuters from DC, MD, and VA in cars.

Or the people who work from home who bike to various spots up and down the Avenue, or would if there were a safe way to do it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How many active regular bicycle commuters are there in DC? How many people bike, rather than drive, for 1 mile or greater transportation?

A few hundred. The number is tiny.

I'd give them a thousand maybe. But would like to hear from them. Without knowing that number the validity of the 3,000-10,000 range cannot be established

The point is, if you make it safe and attractive, more people will do it.

Also, as housing prices and the cost of living continue to escalate, people ditch the expense associated with owning and operating a car. As a result they need other safe ways of getting around. Or is your contention that only the wealthy should be living, working and shopping along Connecticut Avenue?

Cars = wealth

What an inane trope. A used card costs less than moped or the fancy bikes the bicyclists making these arguments ride.

With increasing housing expenses working people have to live further away from population centers. A bicycle, even the multi-thousand dollar ones commuters use, is not substitutable if one has to get five or more miles away. The utility of bikes as a mode of transport is limited to 1-3 miles in practice. If it's less then the vast majority of people walk. If it's more then the vast majority of people need to drive or take mass transit. I'm not even going to get into cargo or passenger space. If anything bikes are a luxury.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those of you wondering about emissions from passenger vehicles in DC, here are some stats.

Bottom line: passenger vehicles account for 16 percent of DC's greenhouse gas emissions. The main source of greenhouse gas emissions are commercial and residential buildings. So for those of you wanting greater density, maybe you want to think of the environmental impact.

Overall, transportation accounts for about 21 percent of DC's greenhouse gas emissions, but passengers vehicles only represent 79 percent of that 21 percent. That equates to 16 percent of the overall emissions. Buses, trucks and transit account for the rest of the transportation emissions.


Obviously, reducing passenger car track plays an important role, but the argument for that is not the flex you think it is. Particularly when commercial and residential buildings are actually the biggest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions in DC.


https://doee.dc.gov/service/greenhouse-gas-inventories#:~:text=Emissions%20Sources%20in%20the%20District&text=In%20the%20District%2C%20emissions%20come,%25)%20and%20waste%20(7%25).

You don’t seem to understand that theses lanes will not result in fewer cars. It will only push cars onto other roads where they will increase pollution and decrease safety. Any reduction in cars will be because MD and NWDC drivers decide it’s no longer worth it to drive downtown, which raises serious economic concerns. The problem with young, childless elected officials making major decisions is that they don’t have the life experience to comprehend why most older professionals will reject the bike lanes. They haven’t received the mid-day call to pick up a sick child or have to leave work suddenly to meet a contractor or bring an aging parent to medical appointment. And yes, we get it that there are some hippie parents who are all about bike lanes, but they’re the small minority.

The results you are hypothesizing are not supported by facts, no matter how many times you try to assert them.

I am an older professional with children. These bike lanes will be a game changer for our household, in a good way. Please just stop with the doom and gloom. We will easily cut our driving by at least half.

You should read this. This is how these lanes play out in the real world, not in the bike industry paid studies. I wish you and you family good luck, you will need it.

https://timesofsandiego.com/opinion/2021/02/28/the-supposed-safe-feeling-of-protected-bike-lanes-is-misleading-even-deadly/

We will be vary happy to use our bikes to run errands, support our local businesses and get our kids to school safely. Thank you for the good wishes.

Not sure how you plan to bike home with your multiple bags of groceries, or how you plan to bike your multiple kids to their multiple schools with their backpack and sports equipment, followed of course biking them to their favorite sports practice elsewhere. Please enjoy!!

'

We already do this, so it shouldn't be of any concern to you. We just want to be able to do it to the places we go more directly and safely than we do now.

Nice try, but I doubt it.

DP. I lived for years in Ward 3 doing all of this. It's really not that hard. Much easier if you have an e-bike (which I don't have).

e-Bikes are now selling electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids (https://electrek.co/2022/01/26/electric-bicycles-are-now-outselling-electric-cars-and-plug-in-hybrids-combined-in-the-us/). Things are changing, like it or not.

The vast majority of people are NOT going to give up their cars and you obsessive bike nuts are and will continue to be a loud minority,like it or not.

No one said a vast majority needs to. But, if enough of a minority do, then it frees up lanes for people to drive in and spaces for people to park in. No one has ever suggested that hundreds of thousands of people are going to suddenly switch to bikes or ebikes.

That is correct. Nobody has claimed hundreda of thousands are suddenly going to take up commuter bicycling if two lanes of Connecticut Aveneue are removes. They've only claimed ten thousand will.

Ten thousand people seems more realistic if it was flat. Going uphill after a long day of work seems challenging for a lot of people. I expect current cyclists will not give grace to people struggling uphill, though I could be wrong. The other bike lanes don't have room for passing.

Even if it was flat, which it is not, that would be wildly exaggerated. Are there even 10,000 bicycle commuters in the entire city right now? What are the actual numbers? Regardless the idea that 25% of current Connecticut Avenue commuters will instanteously switch to bikes is not even close to being realistic.

There are hundreds of thousands of bike riders. This isn't about commuting, particularly since more people are working from home. Why are you fixated on the commuting number when we should be looking at anticipated usage, which to date, DDOT hasn't estimated. Becuase the number would be too high.

You are including every single child with that figure. You are also including people who learned to bike but for various reasons don't. It is these outright falsehoods and exaggerations that frustrate people. The use of a Connecticut Avenue bike lane will be minimal. Access for pedestrians and bicyclists from the neighborhoods on the side streets is good and widely used. Children will not be using Connecticut Avenue to bike because congestion is too high.

THAT IS WHY WE NEED A BIKE LANE

Thanks for making the argument in favor of it.

THEY WILL NOT BE USING THE BIKE LANE

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There's so few cyclists that both the city and the Census Bureau throw them into a miscellaneous category.

The only thing this statement tells us is that you have no idea what you are talking about.

The Census Bureau disaggregates "Means of Transportation to Work" into five broad categories, of which "Bicycle" is one. The 2021 data, with margins of error, for Washington, DC is here: https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=Washington%20city,%20District%20of%20Columbia&t=Commuting&tid=ACSST1Y2021.S0801

Before you get too excited about the 2.1% figure, not that 48.3% of respondents indicated that they work from home. As of 2019, 4.0% of DC commuters were cycling to work and 38.5% were driving (or being driven).

Isn't that only showing the commuters who live in DC and none of the MD and VA people who commute to DC?

Yes. So? Should DC make decisions based on their interests or those who actually live, work, and pay taxes in DC?

The interests of those that actually live, work and pay taxes in DC is directly tied to the traffic. I don't care where they live or are domiciled. I only care about how many vehicles are on the road at any one time. Increased congestion primarily hurts those that live in the area where the congestion occurs.

So do you not care where they live or do you care about those who live in the area? ???

I do not care who is in those vehicles or who bikes or who might bike. On this issue I only care about the people that live in the immediate area and because of that, I care about the traffic. I would prefer it stay on Connecticut as is. More traffic and congestion is bad. This doesn't help either

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those of you wondering about emissions from passenger vehicles in DC, here are some stats.

Bottom line: passenger vehicles account for 16 percent of DC's greenhouse gas emissions. The main source of greenhouse gas emissions are commercial and residential buildings. So for those of you wanting greater density, maybe you want to think of the environmental impact.

Overall, transportation accounts for about 21 percent of DC's greenhouse gas emissions, but passengers vehicles only represent 79 percent of that 21 percent. That equates to 16 percent of the overall emissions. Buses, trucks and transit account for the rest of the transportation emissions.


Obviously, reducing passenger car track plays an important role, but the argument for that is not the flex you think it is. Particularly when commercial and residential buildings are actually the biggest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions in DC.


https://doee.dc.gov/service/greenhouse-gas-inventories#:~:text=Emissions%20Sources%20in%20the%20District&text=In%20the%20District%2C%20emissions%20come,%25)%20and%20waste%20(7%25).

You don’t seem to understand that theses lanes will not result in fewer cars. It will only push cars onto other roads where they will increase pollution and decrease safety. Any reduction in cars will be because MD and NWDC drivers decide it’s no longer worth it to drive downtown, which raises serious economic concerns. The problem with young, childless elected officials making major decisions is that they don’t have the life experience to comprehend why most older professionals will reject the bike lanes. They haven’t received the mid-day call to pick up a sick child or have to leave work suddenly to meet a contractor or bring an aging parent to medical appointment. And yes, we get it that there are some hippie parents who are all about bike lanes, but they’re the small minority.

The results you are hypothesizing are not supported by facts, no matter how many times you try to assert them.

I am an older professional with children. These bike lanes will be a game changer for our household, in a good way. Please just stop with the doom and gloom. We will easily cut our driving by at least half.

You should read this. This is how these lanes play out in the real world, not in the bike industry paid studies. I wish you and you family good luck, you will need it.

https://timesofsandiego.com/opinion/2021/02/28/the-supposed-safe-feeling-of-protected-bike-lanes-is-misleading-even-deadly/

We will be vary happy to use our bikes to run errands, support our local businesses and get our kids to school safely. Thank you for the good wishes.

Not sure how you plan to bike home with your multiple bags of groceries, or how you plan to bike your multiple kids to their multiple schools with their backpack and sports equipment, followed of course biking them to their favorite sports practice elsewhere. Please enjoy!!

'

We already do this, so it shouldn't be of any concern to you. We just want to be able to do it to the places we go more directly and safely than we do now.

Nice try, but I doubt it.

DP. I lived for years in Ward 3 doing all of this. It's really not that hard. Much easier if you have an e-bike (which I don't have).

e-Bikes are now selling electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids (https://electrek.co/2022/01/26/electric-bicycles-are-now-outselling-electric-cars-and-plug-in-hybrids-combined-in-the-us/). Things are changing, like it or not.

The vast majority of people are NOT going to give up their cars and you obsessive bike nuts are and will continue to be a loud minority,like it or not.

No one said a vast majority needs to. But, if enough of a minority do, then it frees up lanes for people to drive in and spaces for people to park in. No one has ever suggested that hundreds of thousands of people are going to suddenly switch to bikes or ebikes.

That is correct. Nobody has claimed hundreda of thousands are suddenly going to take up commuter bicycling if two lanes of Connecticut Aveneue are removes. They've only claimed ten thousand will.

Ten thousand people seems more realistic if it was flat. Going uphill after a long day of work seems challenging for a lot of people. I expect current cyclists will not give grace to people struggling uphill, though I could be wrong. The other bike lanes don't have room for passing.

Even if it was flat, which it is not, that would be wildly exaggerated. Are there even 10,000 bicycle commuters in the entire city right now? What are the actual numbers? Regardless the idea that 25% of current Connecticut Avenue commuters will instanteously switch to bikes is not even close to being realistic.

There are hundreds of thousands of bike riders. This isn't about commuting, particularly since more people are working from home. Why are you fixated on the commuting number when we should be looking at anticipated usage, which to date, DDOT hasn't estimated. Becuase the number would be too high.

You are including every single child with that figure. You are also including people who learned to bike but for various reasons don't. It is these outright falsehoods and exaggerations that frustrate people. The use of a Connecticut Avenue bike lane will be minimal. Access for pedestrians and bicyclists from the neighborhoods on the side streets is good and widely used. Children will not be using Connecticut Avenue to bike because congestion is too high.

THAT IS WHY WE NEED A BIKE LANE

Thanks for making the argument in favor of it.

THEY WILL NOT BE USING THE BIKE LANE

Says you. My kids are excited to use it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How many active regular bicycle commuters are there in DC? How many people bike, rather than drive, for 1 mile or greater transportation?

A few hundred. The number is tiny.

I'd give them a thousand maybe. But would like to hear from them. Without knowing that number the validity of the 3,000-10,000 range cannot be established

The point is, if you make it safe and attractive, more people will do it.

Also, as housing prices and the cost of living continue to escalate, people ditch the expense associated with owning and operating a car. As a result they need other safe ways of getting around. Or is your contention that only the wealthy should be living, working and shopping along Connecticut Avenue?

Cars = wealth

What an inane trope. A used card costs less than moped or the fancy bikes the bicyclists making these arguments ride.

With increasing housing expenses working people have to live further away from population centers. A bicycle, even the multi-thousand dollar ones commuters use, is not substitutable if one has to get five or more miles away. The utility of bikes as a mode of transport is limited to 1-3 miles in practice. If it's less then the vast majority of people walk. If it's more then the vast majority of people need to drive or take mass transit. I'm not even going to get into cargo or passenger space. If anything bikes are a luxury.

Insurance, maintenance, gas...all more expensive any any bikes or mopeds.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How many active regular bicycle commuters are there in DC? How many people bike, rather than drive, for 1 mile or greater transportation?

A few hundred. The number is tiny.

I'd give them a thousand maybe. But would like to hear from them. Without knowing that number the validity of the 3,000-10,000 range cannot be established

The point is, if you make it safe and attractive, more people will do it.

Also, as housing prices and the cost of living continue to escalate, people ditch the expense associated with owning and operating a car. As a result they need other safe ways of getting around. Or is your contention that only the wealthy should be living, working and shopping along Connecticut Avenue?

Cars = wealth

What an inane trope. A used card costs less than moped or the fancy bikes the bicyclists making these arguments ride.

With increasing housing expenses working people have to live further away from population centers. A bicycle, even the multi-thousand dollar ones commuters use, is not substitutable if one has to get five or more miles away. The utility of bikes as a mode of transport is limited to 1-3 miles in practice. If it's less then the vast majority of people walk. If it's more then the vast majority of people need to drive or take mass transit. I'm not even going to get into cargo or passenger space. If anything bikes are a luxury.

Please direct us to those cheap used cars. I was dumb enough to sink a few thousand dollars into what I thought was a well-loved high-mileage used car and in a few months I've already shelled out more than what I paid for it on various critical maintenance items. Everyone else I know who has similarly thought they got a good deal on a used vehicle has ended up getting routinely reamed by repairs.

For the true necessities of getting to work, school, and after-school activities, we use bus / metro and bikes almost exclusively. Doing 15 miles on the bike in an evening at least once or twice a week is standard. The car is actually for the luxuries - the weekend getaways and what not. I've learned the hard way that renting periodically is a much more economical option than owning.

But, please, go on to tell me about the life you think everyone else is living.

[Anonymous]

What a long, boring thread.

Folks, it's time to move on with the times. Bike lanes are here to stay. Get ready for more bikes and more walking and less driving.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There's so few cyclists that both the city and the Census Bureau throw them into a miscellaneous category.

The only thing this statement tells us is that you have no idea what you are talking about.

The Census Bureau disaggregates "Means of Transportation to Work" into five broad categories, of which "Bicycle" is one. The 2021 data, with margins of error, for Washington, DC is here: https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=Washington%20city,%20District%20of%20Columbia&t=Commuting&tid=ACSST1Y2021.S0801

Before you get too excited about the 2.1% figure, not that 48.3% of respondents indicated that they work from home. As of 2019, 4.0% of DC commuters were cycling to work and 38.5% were driving (or being driven).

Isn't that only showing the commuters who live in DC and none of the MD and VA people who commute to DC?

It also is only talking about commute "to work", not the school commuters with all the cross city OOB commuters for public schools and all the private school commuters from DC, MD, and VA in cars.

Or the people who work from home who bike to various spots up and down the Avenue, or would if there were a safe way to do it.

Soon they will get to bike to lots and lots of smoke/vape shops and check cashing places. Because that’s all that will be left when businesses close on the corridor. Of course their bike might not be there when they come out, buts that’s a whole different issue.

[Anonymous]

the posters saying this is not for bike commuters but for those supposedly doing errands up and down CT avenue - that has to be a miniscule number of people - hoards of people are not going up and down every day between woodley and van ness or ccdc and I have never seen a biker with their groceries on the bike up here. Down in adams morgan or shaw yes - but up in the republic of the redline - not a common occurrence. What are you even going to? Our stores along CT ave have been decimated - there is very little shopping to be done anymore

and as a resident of a neighborhood along CT ave I would never let me kids on a bike in CT Ave regardless of the lane. My kids bike to and from the neighnorhoods by going on the CT Ave sidewalk or more generally up and around on the reno road sidewalks which other than school drop off/pick up have no one on them

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There's so few cyclists that both the city and the Census Bureau throw them into a miscellaneous category.

The only thing this statement tells us is that you have no idea what you are talking about.

The Census Bureau disaggregates "Means of Transportation to Work" into five broad categories, of which "Bicycle" is one. The 2021 data, with margins of error, for Washington, DC is here: https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=Washington%20city,%20District%20of%20Columbia&t=Commuting&tid=ACSST1Y2021.S0801

Before you get too excited about the 2.1% figure, not that 48.3% of respondents indicated that they work from home. As of 2019, 4.0% of DC commuters were cycling to work and 38.5% were driving (or being driven).

Isn't that only showing the commuters who live in DC and none of the MD and VA people who commute to DC?

It also is only talking about commute "to work", not the school commuters with all the cross city OOB commuters for public schools and all the private school commuters from DC, MD, and VA in cars.

Or the people who work from home who bike to various spots up and down the Avenue, or would if there were a safe way to do it.

Soon they will get to bike to lots and lots of smoke/vape shops and check cashing places. Because that’s all that will be left when businesses close on the corridor. Of course their bike might not be there when they come out, buts that’s a whole different issue.

The ironic thing is that it’s the NIMBYs that are running down neighborhoods like Cleveland Park and the Palisades by stubbornly blocking any changes that might make them attractive to newcomers. Those who have lived in these neighborhoods for 50 years do not understand, but most people moving in to DC want bike lanes and trails, public schools for their kids, rec centers, and large supermarkets. If they can’t get it in Ward 3, they are perfectly happy to move in to cheaper up-and-coming neighborhoods flush with modern amenities. That there are so many empty apartments in both neighborhoods that are vacant to be filled with voucher recipients is a sign that there is a problem. NIMBYs - and their GOP champion - can wail at DCHA and Bowser all they want about the voucher program, but the apartments wouldn’t have been empty in the first place if these areas were actually attractive to younger renters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There's so few cyclists that both the city and the Census Bureau throw them into a miscellaneous category.

The only thing this statement tells us is that you have no idea what you are talking about.

The Census Bureau disaggregates "Means of Transportation to Work" into five broad categories, of which "Bicycle" is one. The 2021 data, with margins of error, for Washington, DC is here: https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?q=Washington%20city,%20District%20of%20Columbia&t=Commuting&tid=ACSST1Y2021.S0801

Before you get too excited about the 2.1% figure, not that 48.3% of respondents indicated that they work from home. As of 2019, 4.0% of DC commuters were cycling to work and 38.5% were driving (or being driven).

Isn't that only showing the commuters who live in DC and none of the MD and VA people who commute to DC?

It also is only talking about commute "to work", not the school commuters with all the cross city OOB commuters for public schools and all the private school commuters from DC, MD, and VA in cars.

Or the people who work from home who bike to various spots up and down the Avenue, or would if there were a safe way to do it.

Soon they will get to bike to lots and lots of smoke/vape shops and check cashing places. Because that’s all that will be left when businesses close on the corridor. Of course their bike might not be there when they come out, buts that’s a whole different issue.

The ironic thing is that it’s the NIMBYs that are running down neighborhoods like Cleveland Park and the Palisades by stubbornly blocking any changes that might make them attractive to newcomers. Those who have lived in these neighborhoods for 50 years do not understand, but most people moving in to DC want bike lanes and trails, public schools for their kids, rec centers, and large supermarkets. If they can’t get it in Ward 3, they are perfectly happy to move in to cheaper up-and-coming neighborhoods flush with modern amenities. That there are so many empty apartments in both neighborhoods that are vacant to be filled with voucher recipients is a sign that there is a problem. NIMBYs - and their GOP champion - can wail at DCHA and Bowser all they want about the voucher program, but the apartments wouldn’t have been empty in the first place if these areas were actually attractive to younger renters.

This makes no sense - there are large grocery stores serving these neighborhoods - Giant and the brand new Wegmans, and there are public schools that are excellent and draw kids from all over the city. Ditto trails, bike lanes through the side streets etc.. the issue with the retail is that most of the conn ave retail shops were packaged and sold in the late '90s early 2000s and the funds that own them only want to lease to the highest credit tenants that will pay the most like chipotle, cvs etc.. that drain all of the character out of the neighborhood. The neighborhoods attracting young renters are doing so because they have huge loft like apartments with crazy lux amenities in them and all young people want those amenities and to be where the other young people are. The Class B and C 1950s rentals along CT ave can't compete

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How many active regular bicycle commuters are there in DC? How many people bike, rather than drive, for 1 mile or greater transportation?

A few hundred. The number is tiny.

I'd give them a thousand maybe. But would like to hear from them. Without knowing that number the validity of the 3,000-10,000 range cannot be established

The point is, if you make it safe and attractive, more people will do it.

Also, as housing prices and the cost of living continue to escalate, people ditch the expense associated with owning and operating a car. As a result they need other safe ways of getting around. Or is your contention that only the wealthy should be living, working and shopping along Connecticut Avenue?

Cars = wealth

What an inane trope. A used card costs less than moped or the fancy bikes the bicyclists making these arguments ride.

With increasing housing expenses working people have to live further away from population centers. A bicycle, even the multi-thousand dollar ones commuters use, is not substitutable if one has to get five or more miles away. The utility of bikes as a mode of transport is limited to 1-3 miles in practice. If it's less then the vast majority of people walk. If it's more then the vast majority of people need to drive or take mass transit. I'm not even going to get into cargo or passenger space. If anything bikes are a luxury.

There is no way most bike commuters use “multi-thousand dollar” bikes, You’re conflating, deliberately or not, recreational riders with fancy bikes and commuters. The bikes I see commuting to work and in the bike cage at my office cost multi-hundreds of dollars. No one is taking high end carbon fiber racing bikes out on city streets every day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How many active regular bicycle commuters are there in DC? How many people bike, rather than drive, for 1 mile or greater transportation?

A few hundred. The number is tiny.

I'd give them a thousand maybe. But would like to hear from them. Without knowing that number the validity of the 3,000-10,000 range cannot be established

The point is, if you make it safe and attractive, more people will do it.

Also, as housing prices and the cost of living continue to escalate, people ditch the expense associated with owning and operating a car. As a result they need other safe ways of getting around. Or is your contention that only the wealthy should be living, working and shopping along Connecticut Avenue?

Cars = wealth

What an inane trope. A used card costs less than moped or the fancy bikes the bicyclists making these arguments ride.

With increasing housing expenses working people have to live further away from population centers. A bicycle, even the multi-thousand dollar ones commuters use, is not substitutable if one has to get five or more miles away. The utility of bikes as a mode of transport is limited to 1-3 miles in practice. If it's less then the vast majority of people walk. If it's more then the vast majority of people need to drive or take mass transit. I'm not even going to get into cargo or passenger space. If anything bikes are a luxury.

There is no way most bike commuters use “multi-thousand dollar” bikes, You’re conflating, deliberately or not, recreational riders with fancy bikes and commuters. The bikes I see commuting to work and in the bike cage at my office cost multi-hundreds of dollars. No one is taking high end carbon fiber racing bikes out on city streets every day.

Replying to myself to add that of course 5 miles is not the limit of a bike commute. I ride 6 miles each way to and from work. It’s faster than Metro going to work and about 5 minutes slower going home, because it’s uphill.