question for cyclists in NWDC

[Anonymous]

Can't stand the damn bikers

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can't stand the damn bikers

Have you considered simply not posting on threads with questions for people who do bicycle, then?

[Anonymous]

You don't need more lanes

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is there no protected bike lane down Wisconsin connecting Friendship Heights (or even into Bethesda) with downtown DC? Or most of the major avenues in NWDC?

Moved to NWDC from Cambridge/Boston about a year ago and have been familiarizing myself with the bicycle infrastructure here. I'm surprised there is no protected bike lane down Wisconsin into Georgetown. It's a popular commuting route, connects several Red Line stops, and has lots of businesses/schools/daycare along the way. Wisconsin is very wide, sometimes 6 lanes, and along many stretches there is already one lane that's basically blocked due to on street parking. Was there ever discussion for a protected bike lane, if so, why hasn't it happened? The traffic is heavy and can be fast so I don't feel safe biking on Wisconsin, so instead I've been using the sidewalks which can get clogged with scooters, other cyclists, and pedestrians.

I know you can detour on the New Mexico bike lane into downtown but that's pretty circuitous. I'm also comparing it with Mass Ave for those of you who are familiar with Boston/Cambridge - where there is great biking infrastructure that allows commuters and recreational cyclists to easily navigate all the T-Stops along the Red Line and access the business on and around Mass Ave. People say DC is cycling friendly and for how progressive it is I've been surprised at the lack of better biking infrastructure. And I'm not a crazy serious cyclist, I just would like to bike in a safe way for my daily needs like dropping kids off at preschool, groceries, errands etc.

For those of you who do live in NWDC and choose to bike into downtown (Georgetown or Capitol Hill or NOVA even) for work, what's your preferred route?

Historically bikers took the capital crescent trail
For some reason now this protected path is not good enough

It’s because the police started stopping bikers who speed and ride aggressively.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why is there no protected bike lane down Wisconsin connecting Friendship Heights (or even into Bethesda) with downtown DC? Or most of the major avenues in NWDC?

Moved to NWDC from Cambridge/Boston about a year ago and have been familiarizing myself with the bicycle infrastructure here. I'm surprised there is no protected bike lane down Wisconsin into Georgetown. It's a popular commuting route, connects several Red Line stops, and has lots of businesses/schools/daycare along the way. Wisconsin is very wide, sometimes 6 lanes, and along many stretches there is already one lane that's basically blocked due to on street parking. Was there ever discussion for a protected bike lane, if so, why hasn't it happened? The traffic is heavy and can be fast so I don't feel safe biking on Wisconsin, so instead I've been using the sidewalks which can get clogged with scooters, other cyclists, and pedestrians.

I know you can detour on the New Mexico bike lane into downtown but that's pretty circuitous. I'm also comparing it with Mass Ave for those of you who are familiar with Boston/Cambridge - where there is great biking infrastructure that allows commuters and recreational cyclists to easily navigate all the T-Stops along the Red Line and access the business on and around Mass Ave. People say DC is cycling friendly and for how progressive it is I've been surprised at the lack of better biking infrastructure. And I'm not a crazy serious cyclist, I just would like to bike in a safe way for my daily needs like dropping kids off at preschool, groceries, errands etc.

For those of you who do live in NWDC and choose to bike into downtown (Georgetown or Capitol Hill or NOVA even) for work, what's your preferred route?

There's a group of dedicate folks who really, really hate bikes in Ward 3 and just south of it in Dupont. And a bunch of commerical real estate people live out in like Spring Valley or Chevy Chase MD too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The simple truth is that Wisconsin is an important and heavily utilized road and there's not enough demonstrated demand.

If you want to get more complicated then it's because the Ward 3 council member, Frumin, and lots of other powerful people live off of Wisconsin, it's already a traffic cluster, the space has been taken up by streeteries, and an absolute maelstrom of discontent was sparked by the attempt to sneak bike lanes through on Connecticut during the pandemic.

OMG here we go again with this BS.

The bike lanes on Connecticut Avenue were not snuck thru during the pandemic.

There were something like 200 public meetings and specifically because of the pandemic they were very well attended.

The ANC 3C meeting when the proposal was voted on had something like 200 attendees (most of whom supported bike lanes) which is about 4 times the number of people that usually attend a 3C meeting.

There was not a maelstrom of discontent - a bunch of entitled drivers who don't like to share (many of whom live in MD) scared the Mayor so we are stuck with a highway running down Connecticut Avenue instead of a street that serves the people who live on it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is there no protected bike lane down Wisconsin connecting Friendship Heights (or even into Bethesda) with downtown DC? Or most of the major avenues in NWDC?

Moved to NWDC from Cambridge/Boston about a year ago and have been familiarizing myself with the bicycle infrastructure here. I'm surprised there is no protected bike lane down Wisconsin into Georgetown. It's a popular commuting route, connects several Red Line stops, and has lots of businesses/schools/daycare along the way. Wisconsin is very wide, sometimes 6 lanes, and along many stretches there is already one lane that's basically blocked due to on street parking. Was there ever discussion for a protected bike lane, if so, why hasn't it happened? The traffic is heavy and can be fast so I don't feel safe biking on Wisconsin, so instead I've been using the sidewalks which can get clogged with scooters, other cyclists, and pedestrians.

I know you can detour on the New Mexico bike lane into downtown but that's pretty circuitous. I'm also comparing it with Mass Ave for those of you who are familiar with Boston/Cambridge - where there is great biking infrastructure that allows commuters and recreational cyclists to easily navigate all the T-Stops along the Red Line and access the business on and around Mass Ave. People say DC is cycling friendly and for how progressive it is I've been surprised at the lack of better biking infrastructure. And I'm not a crazy serious cyclist, I just would like to bike in a safe way for my daily needs like dropping kids off at preschool, groceries, errands etc.

For those of you who do live in NWDC and choose to bike into downtown (Georgetown or Capitol Hill or NOVA even) for work, what's your preferred route?

Jack Evans, who was Ward 2 council member until 2020, was notoriously addicted to his car (and left it wherever he so pleased) and it wouldn't have been out of character for him to crush a few bike lane proposals behind the scenes. Mary Cheh, Ward 2 council member until 2022, wasn't a great proponent either.

In my experience, I haven't found Eleanor Holmes Norton to be interested at all in supporting better bike infrastructure either. We're very behind. It's nice to hear that other cities on the East Coast are doing better, though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The simple truth is that Wisconsin is an important and heavily utilized road and there's not enough demonstrated demand.

If you want to get more complicated then it's because the Ward 3 council member, Frumin, and lots of other powerful people live off of Wisconsin, it's already a traffic cluster, the space has been taken up by streeteries, and an absolute maelstrom of discontent was sparked by the attempt to sneak bike lanes through on Connecticut during the pandemic.

OMG here we go again with this BS.

The bike lanes on Connecticut Avenue were not snuck thru during the pandemic.

There were something like 200 public meetings and specifically because of the pandemic they were very well attended.

The ANC 3C meeting when the proposal was voted on had something like 200 attendees (most of whom supported bike lanes) which is about 4 times the number of people that usually attend a 3C meeting.

There was not a maelstrom of discontent - a bunch of entitled drivers who don't like to share (many of whom live in MD) scared the Mayor so we are stuck with a highway running down Connecticut Avenue instead of a street that serves the people who live on it.

Didn’t several ANC 3C “Bike Bros” arrogantly pose for a picture when they flipped off a local small business that didn’t want to lose its customer parking? They said “We won, we’re doing bike lanes on Connecticut Ave. F—- ‘the OPs.’”

Talk about “entitled.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is there no protected bike lane down Wisconsin connecting Friendship Heights (or even into Bethesda) with downtown DC? Or most of the major avenues in NWDC?

Moved to NWDC from Cambridge/Boston about a year ago and have been familiarizing myself with the bicycle infrastructure here. I'm surprised there is no protected bike lane down Wisconsin into Georgetown. It's a popular commuting route, connects several Red Line stops, and has lots of businesses/schools/daycare along the way. Wisconsin is very wide, sometimes 6 lanes, and along many stretches there is already one lane that's basically blocked due to on street parking. Was there ever discussion for a protected bike lane, if so, why hasn't it happened? The traffic is heavy and can be fast so I don't feel safe biking on Wisconsin, so instead I've been using the sidewalks which can get clogged with scooters, other cyclists, and pedestrians.

I know you can detour on the New Mexico bike lane into downtown but that's pretty circuitous. I'm also comparing it with Mass Ave for those of you who are familiar with Boston/Cambridge - where there is great biking infrastructure that allows commuters and recreational cyclists to easily navigate all the T-Stops along the Red Line and access the business on and around Mass Ave. People say DC is cycling friendly and for how progressive it is I've been surprised at the lack of better biking infrastructure. And I'm not a crazy serious cyclist, I just would like to bike in a safe way for my daily needs like dropping kids off at preschool, groceries, errands etc.

For those of you who do live in NWDC and choose to bike into downtown (Georgetown or Capitol Hill or NOVA even) for work, what's your preferred route?

There's a group of dedicate folks who really, really hate bikes in Ward 3 and just south of it in Dupont. And a bunch of commerical real estate people live out in like Spring Valley or Chevy Chase MD too.

We dont know anyone who really, really hates bikes. But we do know lots of people who really, really hate those orange and Lime scooters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Join WABA.org and join the public support effort!

At least DDOT no longer uses taxpayer money to fund WABA’s lobbying.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can't stand the damn bikers

The bikers always ask “Why can’t DC be more like Amsterdam?” I ask why DC cyclists can’t be more like those in Amsterdam and start obeying the damn traffic safety laws?!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The simple truth is that Wisconsin is an important and heavily utilized road and there's not enough demonstrated demand.

If you want to get more complicated then it's because the Ward 3 council member, Frumin, and lots of other powerful people live off of Wisconsin, it's already a traffic cluster, the space has been taken up by streeteries, and an absolute maelstrom of discontent was sparked by the attempt to sneak bike lanes through on Connecticut during the pandemic.

OMG here we go again with this BS.

The bike lanes on Connecticut Avenue were not snuck thru during the pandemic.

There were something like 200 public meetings and specifically because of the pandemic they were very well attended.

The ANC 3C meeting when the proposal was voted on had something like 200 attendees (most of whom supported bike lanes) which is about 4 times the number of people that usually attend a 3C meeting.

There was not a maelstrom of discontent - a bunch of entitled drivers who don't like to share (many of whom live in MD) scared the Mayor so we are stuck with a highway running down Connecticut Avenue instead of a street that serves the people who live on it.

Approximately 175 of them didn't live in that ANC. And let me stop you before you trot out "the bike lanes were supported by every ANC commissioner along the avenue." Nearly all of those ANC commissioners ran unopposed. Please stop your truly inane assertion that this equals some sort of mandate. You sound like a cretin when you do that.

[Anonymous]

Yeah DC won’t catch up to Cambridge anytime soon. It’s progressive but biking culture just isn’t here. NWDC skews old and car dependent. Even worse when you get to MD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The simple truth is that Wisconsin is an important and heavily utilized road and there's not enough demonstrated demand.

If you want to get more complicated then it's because the Ward 3 council member, Frumin, and lots of other powerful people live off of Wisconsin, it's already a traffic cluster, the space has been taken up by streeteries, and an absolute maelstrom of discontent was sparked by the attempt to sneak bike lanes through on Connecticut during the pandemic.

OMG here we go again with this BS.

The bike lanes on Connecticut Avenue were not snuck thru during the pandemic.

There were something like 200 public meetings and specifically because of the pandemic they were very well attended.

The ANC 3C meeting when the proposal was voted on had something like 200 attendees (most of whom supported bike lanes) which is about 4 times the number of people that usually attend a 3C meeting.

There was not a maelstrom of discontent - a bunch of entitled drivers who don't like to share (many of whom live in MD) scared the Mayor so we are stuck with a highway running down Connecticut Avenue instead of a street that serves the people who live on it.

The constant stream of lies don't help your cause.

Would you prefer, "as word got out that an anondyne sounding "reversible lane study" was being repurposed for something else it became very controversial within the community and apparent that there was not majority support for the idea."?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is there no protected bike lane down Wisconsin connecting Friendship Heights (or even into Bethesda) with downtown DC? Or most of the major avenues in NWDC?

Moved to NWDC from Cambridge/Boston about a year ago and have been familiarizing myself with the bicycle infrastructure here. I'm surprised there is no protected bike lane down Wisconsin into Georgetown. It's a popular commuting route, connects several Red Line stops, and has lots of businesses/schools/daycare along the way. Wisconsin is very wide, sometimes 6 lanes, and along many stretches there is already one lane that's basically blocked due to on street parking. Was there ever discussion for a protected bike lane, if so, why hasn't it happened? The traffic is heavy and can be fast so I don't feel safe biking on Wisconsin, so instead I've been using the sidewalks which can get clogged with scooters, other cyclists, and pedestrians.

I know you can detour on the New Mexico bike lane into downtown but that's pretty circuitous. I'm also comparing it with Mass Ave for those of you who are familiar with Boston/Cambridge - where there is great biking infrastructure that allows commuters and recreational cyclists to easily navigate all the T-Stops along the Red Line and access the business on and around Mass Ave. People say DC is cycling friendly and for how progressive it is I've been surprised at the lack of better biking infrastructure. And I'm not a crazy serious cyclist, I just would like to bike in a safe way for my daily needs like dropping kids off at preschool, groceries, errands etc.

For those of you who do live in NWDC and choose to bike into downtown (Georgetown or Capitol Hill or NOVA even) for work, what's your preferred route?

Historically bikers took the capital crescent trail
For some reason now this protected path is not good enough

Plus a "protected" lane right next to cars driving 40+ miles an hour is fiction. You are lucky if you don't get hit by a big SUV.

-with diplomatic immunity.