Bike lanes that literally no one uses -- why are we still doing this?

[Anonymous]

I wish we could be like Amsterdam but we have hills and disgusting summers. You'll never have a critical mass of bike commuters because it is hugely impractical for office workers. I wish they would invest more in public transit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Often times drivers don't even notice people on bikes, even in protected lanes. I suspect that is the case here too. Cycling is such a more efficient means of travel because they don't have traffic jams etc the way cars so.

There aren't traffic jams of bikes because there are so few bikers. Even in DC, it's only about 3% of commuters, and a much smaller share of the overall commuting miles.

If there were only 20,000 cars in DC, and they each only traveled a mile or two, then there wouldn't be traffic jams with cars, either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Often times drivers don't even notice people on bikes, even in protected lanes. I suspect that is the case here too. Cycling is such a more efficient means of travel because they don't have traffic jams etc the way cars so.

There aren't traffic jams of bikes because there are so few bikers. Even in DC, it's only about 3% of commuters, and a much smaller share of the overall commuting miles.

If there were only 20,000 cars in DC, and they each only traveled a mile or two, then there wouldn't be traffic jams with cars, either.

Right, cars and bikes are equal in terms of causing congestion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wish we could be like Amsterdam but we have hills and disgusting summers. You'll never have a critical mass of bike commuters because it is hugely impractical for office workers. I wish they would invest more in public transit.

Bikes / scooters and mass transit are complementary, especially for rail. Lots of people bike / scooter from their homes to the metro / MARC / VRE and then from Union Station / metro stop to their work or wherever they are going. This is why bike and scooter share are so essential.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wish we could be like Amsterdam but we have hills and disgusting summers. You'll never have a critical mass of bike commuters because it is hugely impractical for office workers. I wish they would invest more in public transit.

e-bikes are the game changer you are looking for

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wish we could be like Amsterdam but we have hills and disgusting summers. You'll never have a critical mass of bike commuters because it is hugely impractical for office workers. I wish they would invest more in public transit.

e-bikes are the game changer you are looking for

I'd still be sweaty when I got to the office. No thx

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wish we could be like Amsterdam but we have hills and disgusting summers. You'll never have a critical mass of bike commuters because it is hugely impractical for office workers. I wish they would invest more in public transit.

Hate this aspect of Amsterdam. Pedestrians are routinely put at risk as they have to cross the "bike highways" to get out of the street before the light changes, or are being dropped off somewhere by their uber. Definitely not relaxing to go walking down the street.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wish we could be like Amsterdam but we have hills and disgusting summers. You'll never have a critical mass of bike commuters because it is hugely impractical for office workers. I wish they would invest more in public transit.

e-bikes are the game changer you are looking for

I'd still be sweaty when I got to the office. No thx

Have you ever ridden an e-bike? It’s no more strenuous than getting in and out of your car.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:DC needs revenue. The city should require all bikes that go on roads to register and have a machine readable license plate, so when they speed downhill/blow through stop signs and red lights the city can issue tickets like they do for cars. want to use the road? then obey the law

The goal of most drivers is to make sure everyone is as unfree and miserable as they are. No one can escape. Crabs in a bucket mentality.

There's been multiple cyclists going around groping women. They count on the fact that, without license plates, they can't be readily identified. Sounds like you're totally cool with people committing sexual assault so long as they're on a bike when they do it.

Cyclists need license plates, and also insurance.

If ever you want a reminder of just how batty the velophobe set has become, this is a good place to start.

There's something very Trump-y about cyclists in DC. They dont think they have to follow *any* of the rules that everyone else respects and everything is always someone else's fault. Like Trump, they act like a bunch of spoiled, entitled brats.

Cyclists don’t think we need insurance or license plates on bikes because, according to the rules that everyone respects, we don’t. I do have insurance, license plates, and identification for when I’m driving. I don’t need those things on my bike or when I walk or take Metro. I don’t think it’s spoiled or entitled not to comply with your imaginary alternative regulatory scheme that requires insurance and more bureaucracy for bicycles that are very unlikely to cause any damage to anyone except the cyclist.

I actually started thinking through the implications of requiring cyclists to carry insurance and affix license plates to their bikes and, after a couple of seconds, realized that it was such an incredibly silly idea that only someone trying to parody the anti-bike folks would put it forth.

I mean, many cars that are driven dangerously in DC have obscured, fake, or no plates and potentially no insurance, but the problem is a lack of insurance and plates on bikes? Nice trolling . . .

it would be better for everyone if cyclists weren't allowed to be anonymous and unidentifiable on the road.

Why would that be better? How often do authorities need to be able to identify cyclists?

I see cyclists put children in spectacularly dangerous situations on a fairly regular basis. I saw one with an infant in the basket on the front of her bike. It would be great if they could be readily identified to the police.

My sister is raising her kids in Japan and EVERY mother of young children does this there. She regularly rode with her toddler in back seat and her infant in a basket on the front. Would the bike bros approve?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wish we could be like Amsterdam but we have hills and disgusting summers. You'll never have a critical mass of bike commuters because it is hugely impractical for office workers. I wish they would invest more in public transit.

Hate this aspect of Amsterdam. Pedestrians are routinely put at risk as they have to cross the "bike highways" to get out of the street before the light changes, or are being dropped off somewhere by their uber. Definitely not relaxing to go walking down the street.

And somehow the Dutch have survived. Everyone rides a bike in Holland. Drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists are all the same people at different times of the day. Everyone understands the norms and rules. It's only self-absorbed tourists that don't understand what's what.

That being said, DC will never be Amsterdam. And it's delusional to think otherwise. The bicycle mafia in DC - all twelve of them - are a huge hindrance to the efficient movement of people in DC. Their preciousness and their influence over the DC Council has been an enormous burden on the quality of life in DC. Invest in public transportation. It's not complicated. Why do a handful of rando cyclists have so much sway over a metropolitan area of 6.5 million people?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:DC needs revenue. The city should require all bikes that go on roads to register and have a machine readable license plate, so when they speed downhill/blow through stop signs and red lights the city can issue tickets like they do for cars. want to use the road? then obey the law

The goal of most drivers is to make sure everyone is as unfree and miserable as they are. No one can escape. Crabs in a bucket mentality.

There's been multiple cyclists going around groping women. They count on the fact that, without license plates, they can't be readily identified. Sounds like you're totally cool with people committing sexual assault so long as they're on a bike when they do it.

Cyclists need license plates, and also insurance.

If ever you want a reminder of just how batty the velophobe set has become, this is a good place to start.

There's something very Trump-y about cyclists in DC. They dont think they have to follow *any* of the rules that everyone else respects and everything is always someone else's fault. Like Trump, they act like a bunch of spoiled, entitled brats.

Cyclists don’t think we need insurance or license plates on bikes because, according to the rules that everyone respects, we don’t. I do have insurance, license plates, and identification for when I’m driving. I don’t need those things on my bike or when I walk or take Metro. I don’t think it’s spoiled or entitled not to comply with your imaginary alternative regulatory scheme that requires insurance and more bureaucracy for bicycles that are very unlikely to cause any damage to anyone except the cyclist.

I actually started thinking through the implications of requiring cyclists to carry insurance and affix license plates to their bikes and, after a couple of seconds, realized that it was such an incredibly silly idea that only someone trying to parody the anti-bike folks would put it forth.

I mean, many cars that are driven dangerously in DC have obscured, fake, or no plates and potentially no insurance, but the problem is a lack of insurance and plates on bikes? Nice trolling . . .

it would be better for everyone if cyclists weren't allowed to be anonymous and unidentifiable on the road.

Why would that be better? How often do authorities need to be able to identify cyclists?

I see cyclists put children in spectacularly dangerous situations on a fairly regular basis. I saw one with an infant in the basket on the front of her bike. It would be great if they could be readily identified to the police.

That person should be arrested for child endangerment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DC needs revenue. The city should require all bikes that go on roads to register and have a machine readable license plate, so when they speed downhill/blow through stop signs and red lights the city can issue tickets like they do for cars. want to use the road? then obey the law

The goal of most drivers is to make sure everyone is as unfree and miserable as they are. No one can escape. Crabs in a bucket mentality.

There's been multiple cyclists going around groping women. They count on the fact that, without license plates, they can't be readily identified. Sounds like you're totally cool with people committing sexual assault so long as they're on a bike when they do it.

Cyclists need license plates, and also insurance.

If ever you want a reminder of just how batty the velophobe set has become, this is a good place to start.

There's something very Trump-y about cyclists in DC. They dont think they have to follow *any* of the rules that everyone else respects and everything is always someone else's fault. Like Trump, they act like a bunch of spoiled, entitled brats.

Cyclists don’t think we need insurance or license plates on bikes because, according to the rules that everyone respects, we don’t. I do have insurance, license plates, and identification for when I’m driving. I don’t need those things on my bike or when I walk or take Metro. I don’t think it’s spoiled or entitled not to comply with your imaginary alternative regulatory scheme that requires insurance and more bureaucracy for bicycles that are very unlikely to cause any damage to anyone except the cyclist.

I actually started thinking through the implications of requiring cyclists to carry insurance and affix license plates to their bikes and, after a couple of seconds, realized that it was such an incredibly silly idea that only someone trying to parody the anti-bike folks would put it forth.

I mean, many cars that are driven dangerously in DC have obscured, fake, or no plates and potentially no insurance, but the problem is a lack of insurance and plates on bikes? Nice trolling . . .

it would be better for everyone if cyclists weren't allowed to be anonymous and unidentifiable on the road.

Why would that be better? How often do authorities need to be able to identify cyclists?

I see cyclists put children in spectacularly dangerous situations on a fairly regular basis. I saw one with an infant in the basket on the front of her bike. It would be great if they could be readily identified to the police.

That person should be arrested for child endangerment.

It's curious how, if you put a 10 year old in the front seat of a car, people would think you're wildly irresponsible and almost no parent would even think to do it, even though that kid is strapped down with a seat belt, there's at least one airbag protecting them and there's two tons of steel around them. But no one bats at eye if you do this:

https://bunchbike.com/products/the-original-4-upgraded-electric-cargo-bike-for-families?srsltid=AfmBOopgF9JVUlhcWqgtCDCqzR1K5nGzwExl3YLCVcHVTkWkoYIYQ6iW

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:I wish we could be like Amsterdam but we have hills and disgusting summers. You'll never have a critical mass of bike commuters because it is hugely impractical for office workers. I wish they would invest more in public transit.

e-bikes are the game changer you are looking for

I'd still be sweaty when I got to the office. No thx

Have you ever ridden an e-bike? It’s no more strenuous than getting in and out of your car.

With a helmet on in August? Not going to happen for most professionals.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:The bike lanes on Arizona Avenue seem purely punitive on Virginia drivers. My fellow DC neighbors hate them because they’ve pushed traffic into the neighborhoods. The Connecticut Ave residents were smart to fight that proposal.

Virginia drivers are purely punitive on DC residents. They drive fast through DC streets and don't pay taxes here, yet contribute to congestion on the road. And most of the ones driving on Arizona Ave are coming from Maryland, cutting through DC to get home.

The VA <-> MD transit traffic is a pox unto NW DC. This relentless stream of speeding vehicles destroys local roads, endangers local residents, pollutes the local environment, and - through the incessant honking of entitled sh*tbags enraged by any other driver who doesn’t drive recklessly enough - destroys the quality of life of an otherwise pleasant area, while giving absolutely nothing back to the city. The notion - advanced by some on here - that DC local government officials should encourage this plague is absurd.

Homeless and violent drug addict voucher residents have destroyed the quality of life in our NW neighborhood. I’ll take my chances with the drivers who spend money in DC and support CRE.

Folks commuting between MD and VA via NW DC don’t spend money in the city. That’s the point. Not sure why you like superbugs.

They pay a lot of taxes when they park their cars, buy their meals, and sit in office buildings. Lots and lots of taxes that our Council fritters away on bike lanes and violence interrupters.

They pay almost no taxes just sitting in office buildings. The buildings pay taxes, but we don’t collect income tax revenue from non-D.C. residents who work in D.C.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wish we could be like Amsterdam but we have hills and disgusting summers. You'll never have a critical mass of bike commuters because it is hugely impractical for office workers. I wish they would invest more in public transit.

e-bikes are the game changer you are looking for

I'd still be sweaty when I got to the office. No thx

So I guess you also rule out public transit for the same reason, unless you have a metro stop or bus stop a block from your office?