Options for opposing Connecticut Avenue changes?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was up and down Connecticut today and noticed something. The entire road is sloped in order to let rain run off. The slope is especially prominent by the curbs. All of that will have to get flattened and graded to put in the bike lanes. Time to add drainage and icing to the multitude of reasons why this a bad idea.

What you are describing is called crowning. Every road in DC has this.

And how will stormwater runoff be accommodated with protected bike lanes?

The same way it always is? People can bike just fine on a road with crowning.

Do you always make up inane trash then pontificate around it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was up and down Connecticut today and noticed something. The entire road is sloped in order to let rain run off. The slope is especially prominent by the curbs. All of that will have to get flattened and graded to put in the bike lanes. Time to add drainage and icing to the multitude of reasons why this a bad idea.

What you are describing is called crowning. Every road in DC has this.

And how will stormwater runoff be accommodated with protected bike lanes?

The same way it always is? People can bike just fine on a road with crowning.

Do you always make up inane trash then pontificate around it?

I think the poster may not have seen other bike lanes. The roads are crowned. The protective barriers for the bike lane either let water through to the original gutter, or contain gutters themselves.

Bike lanes are a solved problem, where they should go is the debate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Evans had a vested interest given his twice daily commute to Maret. The problem with that plan was not the plan, but that the city was redoing 37th Street at the same time, so there was more vehiclular traffic on Wisconsin. If they had waited another three weeks, 37th would have been open and the whole thing would have been fine.

Nope. The problem was that DDOT (very, very purposely) did its studies of Wisconsin's traffic in early August, when traffic is the lightest it is all year. So they came to the fraudulent conclusion that Wisconsin could handle the traffic if lanes were taken away. The changes were made based on faulty data, Wisconsin became a parking lot, drivers began using Glover Park as a high-speed cut-though and it became abundantly clear that the plan was a disaster. So it was changed back.

The changes coming to Connecticut will be much more costly to undo.

How can Glover Park be a “high speed cut-through?” that makes no sense geographically.

what actually happened is that a small group of people freaks the f out when anything changes.

I spent a lot of time in Glover Park recently and the Wisc Ave traffic is a total travesty. World class cities do not allow their premiere residential/business districts to be bisected by uncontrolled car commuters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Evans had a vested interest given his twice daily commute to Maret. The problem with that plan was not the plan, but that the city was redoing 37th Street at the same time, so there was more vehiclular traffic on Wisconsin. If they had waited another three weeks, 37th would have been open and the whole thing would have been fine.

Nope. The problem was that DDOT (very, very purposely) did its studies of Wisconsin's traffic in early August, when traffic is the lightest it is all year. So they came to the fraudulent conclusion that Wisconsin could handle the traffic if lanes were taken away. The changes were made based on faulty data, Wisconsin became a parking lot, drivers began using Glover Park as a high-speed cut-though and it became abundantly clear that the plan was a disaster. So it was changed back.

The changes coming to Connecticut will be much more costly to undo.

How can Glover Park be a “high speed cut-through?” that makes no sense geographically.

what actually happened is that a small group of people freaks the f out when anything changes.

I spent a lot of time in Glover Park recently and the Wisc Ave traffic is a total travesty. World class cities do not allow their premiere residential/business districts to be bisected by uncontrolled car commuters.

Glover Park = “premier” LMFAO.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was up and down Connecticut today and noticed something. The entire road is sloped in order to let rain run off. The slope is especially prominent by the curbs. All of that will have to get flattened and graded to put in the bike lanes. Time to add drainage and icing to the multitude of reasons why this a bad idea.

What you are describing is called crowning. Every road in DC has this.

And how will stormwater runoff be accommodated with protected bike lanes?

The same way it always is? People can bike just fine on a road with crowning.

Do you always make up inane trash then pontificate around it?

I think the poster may not have seen other bike lanes. The roads are crowned. The protective barriers for the bike lane either let water through to the original gutter, or contain gutters themselves.

Bike lanes are a solved problem, where they should go is the debate.

The crowning is more prominent on Connecticut because of its topography.

Are you saying that the bike lanes will not be level and that there will be no change at all to the grade?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was up and down Connecticut today and noticed something. The entire road is sloped in order to let rain run off. The slope is especially prominent by the curbs. All of that will have to get flattened and graded to put in the bike lanes. Time to add drainage and icing to the multitude of reasons why this a bad idea.

What you are describing is called crowning. Every road in DC has this.

And how will stormwater runoff be accommodated with protected bike lanes?

The same way it always is? People can bike just fine on a road with crowning.

Do you always make up inane trash then pontificate around it?

I think the poster may not have seen other bike lanes. The roads are crowned. The protective barriers for the bike lane either let water through to the original gutter, or contain gutters themselves.

Bike lanes are a solved problem, where they should go is the debate.

This is what happens when everyone decides they can play civil engineer. Seriously people, let the professionals do their jobs.

[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:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At the ANC 3/4G candidate forum, the commissioners describe the bike lanes as a done deal. There wasn't a lot of room for the candidates to distinguish themselves on this issue, and in fact, none of them came out abjectly against them.

Two of the candidates were painfully non-committal, retreating to the 'we need to improve engagement' argument.

So they were embarrassed that this was caught out before they broke ground and think it's just a pr problem.

Let us all remember the names of the people responsible for our impending traffic nightmare. DDOT came up with the plan but those ANC commissioners are the ones that own it.

You are missing the point. The decision has been made. The bike lanes are going in. There are no options for reversing the decision.

If you want to hold anyone accountable, it is the Mayor. So if you want to vote against her, she will only get 80% of the vote instead of 81%.

Nope. I blame the ANC commissioners in our neighborhood. It is they who deserve our ire. It is they who should have known better. It is they who need to accept that their own responsibility will last and that people will not forget.

Actually, you are responsible. You and anyone else who failed to keep up with local community development initiatives. Failed to attend meetings and voice your concerns. Failed to answer surveys. If all these folks on these 120 pages had gotten off their couches and participated in democracy, this may have turned out differently. Go ahead and complain but don’t say you never had your chance. You blew it. It’s on you.

People have lives. Also, the D.C. government tries to sneak things like this by the public because they know people will hate it and kill it. You're dreaming if you think this project is actually going to happen.

"People have lives." You are completely off your rocker. Many ANC reps hold down busy jobs and have families and yet still find time to not only participate in the meetings but organize and lead them. The "D.C. government" held multiple virtual public meetings to present their plans and receive feedback from the community. The plans have been revised on account of that feedback. The local community not only likes this plan, but has endorsed it. Please get over it and stop insulting the rest of us by posting such bovine excreta.

The local community clearly does not like this plan. The amount of messages on the listserv and posts on this thread are quite telling.

I live on Connecticut Avenue. I am the local community. I like this plan. Just because you don't., please don't speak for the rest of us.

The ANC Commissioners up and down the Avenue LISTENED to their constituents and voted for a plan the majority of their constituents support. Why is this so hard to believe? Get out of your single family home bubble.

Please stop with the “single family home” nonsense. You’re sowing divisiveness for no reason. There is nothing wrong with living in a single family home and there’s nothing wrong with living in a multi-unit dwelling. There are people in both who support Concept C and people in both who oppose it or have serious concerns that they want to make sure are addressed. Stop stereotyping.

The claim that “the majority” of constituents support Concept C is not valid as it has never been placed on a ballot. It may be true that it’s supported by the majority of people who went to the meetings, but that’s not evidence of a majority of constituents.

In our political system, each action by the government doesn't get put to a popular vote. The way the majority can register their approval or disapproval is by voting. And all the ANC members and mayor were duly elected. SO.

Stiop pretending that ANCs are more than they are. ANC commissioners are not legislators.

Great, but the D.C. Council isn't against these bike lanes, either.

The expression of the council is through the budget. They have not yet approved the funds for this bike lane. Maybe they still will. Maybe they will consider it too expensive for now with other priorities more pressing.

The council has been, with the exception of Trayon White, in support of multi-modal transportation enhancements like bike lanes. Everyone understands how important Connecticut Avenue is to the city wide network.

Back to the dog whistles and euphemisms.

Being in favor of bike lanes does not equal being in favor of permanently shutting down two lanes of Connecticut Avenue
Being against permanently shutting down two lanes of Connecticut Avenue does not equal being against bike lanes or being anti-semitic.

It does not appear that propoenents are aware of how important Connecticut Avenue is to the regional transportation network.

They are well aware. They just think this will prompt everyone to discover a love for biking.

They assume that half of the traffic from constraining Connecticut Ave will be diverted onto bicycles. What a fantasy. Far more likely that the traffic gets diverted to Reno-34th St and Wisconsin Ave, with lots of frustrated drivers toggling back and forth on side streets between them and Connecticut on a Waze-craze to find the fastest route. Remember DDOT’s cluster-f fiasco in Glover Park 8 or 10 years ago, which they had to rip out. Connecticut will be that on steroids but far more difficult and costly to undo once the impact are felt.

stop.lying. that is not the DDOT projection.

oh and the glover park project was scuttled due to the influence of the notoriously ethical CM Evans.

I’ve spent time this week in Glover Park, Cleveland Park, and Capitol Hill. Once the bike lanes are installed on Ct Ave people are going to be clamoring for them on Wisc Ave.

Especially when the DC government pays millions in taxpayer $$ to WABA to lobby for more bike lanes.

But if Connecticut Avenue is narrowed and Wisconsin Ave is narrowed, how will commuter traffic get from Bethesda, Rockville, Kensington into DC? “I-34”(34th St) one supposes.

drive to metro or MARC, get on train to DC, proceed to destination.

No, the answer will be that they do not go into DC. Having lived in the inner MD suburbs for decades, I have generally avoided the Bethesda/SS restaurants in favor of DC restaurants. But given the expected changes in parking and traffic, I likely will be avoiding DC restaurants. I have no interest in taking the METRO on a Friday evening.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was up and down Connecticut today and noticed something. The entire road is sloped in order to let rain run off. The slope is especially prominent by the curbs. All of that will have to get flattened and graded to put in the bike lanes. Time to add drainage and icing to the multitude of reasons why this a bad idea.

What you are describing is called crowning. Every road in DC has this.

And how will stormwater runoff be accommodated with protected bike lanes?

The same way it always is? People can bike just fine on a road with crowning.

Do you always make up inane trash then pontificate around it?

I think the poster may not have seen other bike lanes. The roads are crowned. The protective barriers for the bike lane either let water through to the original gutter, or contain gutters themselves.

Bike lanes are a solved problem, where they should go is the debate.

This is what happens when everyone decides they can play civil engineer. Seriously people, let the professionals do their jobs.

The professionals that claim traffic will disappear?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Exactly how does adding bike lanes make a place whiter?

Really? Bicylcing is the "whitest" hobby there is. It's even whiter than tennis and golf. That doesn't mean that non-white people don't bike. But if your goal is diversification...

Is this a real comment because it’s funny.

Totally ignores that every nonwhite commissioner up and down Connecticut in Ward 3 voted for the bike lanes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, I remember the hundreds of pages Hearst Pool thread where people vilified Cheh, called DOOM on parking and "people from across the city" coming to Hearst.

What happened?

Pool was a little late in opening and was packed every.single.day.with people from the neighborhood who LOVE their new neighborhood pool that they can walk anbd bike to.

Same thing with Cathedral Commons - this was going to be the end of the historic district. Instead, there is minimal parking impact and the restaurants are busy every night, mostly with people from the neighborhood.

When Babes was being redeveloped into Tenley View, the neighbors went crazy over the idea that the building wouldn't have very many parking spots. Impact? None, but the three quick food places that are well supported by the neighborhood and AU students.

So much complaining about change which has translated to...a better quality of life.

Same thing with this. Just watch.

Same thing with the Woodley Place bike lanes.

[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:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At the ANC 3/4G candidate forum, the commissioners describe the bike lanes as a done deal. There wasn't a lot of room for the candidates to distinguish themselves on this issue, and in fact, none of them came out abjectly against them.

Two of the candidates were painfully non-committal, retreating to the 'we need to improve engagement' argument.

So they were embarrassed that this was caught out before they broke ground and think it's just a pr problem.

Let us all remember the names of the people responsible for our impending traffic nightmare. DDOT came up with the plan but those ANC commissioners are the ones that own it.

You are missing the point. The decision has been made. The bike lanes are going in. There are no options for reversing the decision.

If you want to hold anyone accountable, it is the Mayor. So if you want to vote against her, she will only get 80% of the vote instead of 81%.

Nope. I blame the ANC commissioners in our neighborhood. It is they who deserve our ire. It is they who should have known better. It is they who need to accept that their own responsibility will last and that people will not forget.

Actually, you are responsible. You and anyone else who failed to keep up with local community development initiatives. Failed to attend meetings and voice your concerns. Failed to answer surveys. If all these folks on these 120 pages had gotten off their couches and participated in democracy, this may have turned out differently. Go ahead and complain but don’t say you never had your chance. You blew it. It’s on you.

People have lives. Also, the D.C. government tries to sneak things like this by the public because they know people will hate it and kill it. You're dreaming if you think this project is actually going to happen.

"People have lives." You are completely off your rocker. Many ANC reps hold down busy jobs and have families and yet still find time to not only participate in the meetings but organize and lead them. The "D.C. government" held multiple virtual public meetings to present their plans and receive feedback from the community. The plans have been revised on account of that feedback. The local community not only likes this plan, but has endorsed it. Please get over it and stop insulting the rest of us by posting such bovine excreta.

The local community clearly does not like this plan. The amount of messages on the listserv and posts on this thread are quite telling.

I live on Connecticut Avenue. I am the local community. I like this plan. Just because you don't., please don't speak for the rest of us.

The ANC Commissioners up and down the Avenue LISTENED to their constituents and voted for a plan the majority of their constituents support. Why is this so hard to believe? Get out of your single family home bubble.

Please stop with the “single family home” nonsense. You’re sowing divisiveness for no reason. There is nothing wrong with living in a single family home and there’s nothing wrong with living in a multi-unit dwelling. There are people in both who support Concept C and people in both who oppose it or have serious concerns that they want to make sure are addressed. Stop stereotyping.

The claim that “the majority” of constituents support Concept C is not valid as it has never been placed on a ballot. It may be true that it’s supported by the majority of people who went to the meetings, but that’s not evidence of a majority of constituents.

In our political system, each action by the government doesn't get put to a popular vote. The way the majority can register their approval or disapproval is by voting. And all the ANC members and mayor were duly elected. SO.

Stiop pretending that ANCs are more than they are. ANC commissioners are not legislators.

Great, but the D.C. Council isn't against these bike lanes, either.

The expression of the council is through the budget. They have not yet approved the funds for this bike lane. Maybe they still will. Maybe they will consider it too expensive for now with other priorities more pressing.

The council has been, with the exception of Trayon White, in support of multi-modal transportation enhancements like bike lanes. Everyone understands how important Connecticut Avenue is to the city wide network.

Back to the dog whistles and euphemisms.

Being in favor of bike lanes does not equal being in favor of permanently shutting down two lanes of Connecticut Avenue
Being against permanently shutting down two lanes of Connecticut Avenue does not equal being against bike lanes or being anti-semitic.

It does not appear that propoenents are aware of how important Connecticut Avenue is to the regional transportation network.

They are well aware. They just think this will prompt everyone to discover a love for biking.

They assume that half of the traffic from constraining Connecticut Ave will be diverted onto bicycles. What a fantasy. Far more likely that the traffic gets diverted to Reno-34th St and Wisconsin Ave, with lots of frustrated drivers toggling back and forth on side streets between them and Connecticut on a Waze-craze to find the fastest route. Remember DDOT’s cluster-f fiasco in Glover Park 8 or 10 years ago, which they had to rip out. Connecticut will be that on steroids but far more difficult and costly to undo once the impact are felt.

stop.lying. that is not the DDOT projection.

oh and the glover park project was scuttled due to the influence of the notoriously ethical CM Evans.

I’ve spent time this week in Glover Park, Cleveland Park, and Capitol Hill. Once the bike lanes are installed on Ct Ave people are going to be clamoring for them on Wisc Ave.

Especially when the DC government pays millions in taxpayer $$ to WABA to lobby for more bike lanes.

But if Connecticut Avenue is narrowed and Wisconsin Ave is narrowed, how will commuter traffic get from Bethesda, Rockville, Kensington into DC? “I-34”(34th St) one supposes.

drive to metro or MARC, get on train to DC, proceed to destination.

No, the answer will be that they do not go into DC. Having lived in the inner MD suburbs for decades, I have generally avoided the Bethesda/SS restaurants in favor of DC restaurants. But given the expected changes in parking and traffic, I likely will be avoiding DC restaurants. I have no interest in taking the METRO on a Friday evening.

How often were you driving in to DC on Friday evenings? Also traffic volume is light on the weekend. You are not going to have any issue driving in. But thanks for confirming that you (a non-DC resident) think it is your manifest destiny to speed through DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was up and down Connecticut today and noticed something. The entire road is sloped in order to let rain run off. The slope is especially prominent by the curbs. All of that will have to get flattened and graded to put in the bike lanes. Time to add drainage and icing to the multitude of reasons why this a bad idea.

What you are describing is called crowning. Every road in DC has this.

And how will stormwater runoff be accommodated with protected bike lanes?

The same way it always is? People can bike just fine on a road with crowning.

Do you always make up inane trash then pontificate around it?

I think the poster may not have seen other bike lanes. The roads are crowned. The protective barriers for the bike lane either let water through to the original gutter, or contain gutters themselves.

Bike lanes are a solved problem, where they should go is the debate.

This is what happens when everyone decides they can play civil engineer. Seriously people, let the professionals do their jobs.

The professionals that claim traffic will disappear?

Stop.Lying. There is no claim traffic will disappear.

You guys are really absurd. From made-up new problem (“bike lanes won’t allow drainage!”) back to lies and then on to the next fantasized problem.

[Anonymous]

Looks like someone who posts here has tried their hand at making flyers: https://www.reddit.com/r/bikedc/comments/y5tt2v/thanks_for_letting_me_know_who_to_email_that_i/

Whoever it is, I'd also like to extend my thanks for letting me know who to write to in order to express my support for the lanes.

[Anonymous]

We like bike lanes but are confused by one thing: why does the Connecticut Avenue bike lane project feel like it’s a policy priority driven by the Smart Growth lobby?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was up and down Connecticut today and noticed something. The entire road is sloped in order to let rain run off. The slope is especially prominent by the curbs. All of that will have to get flattened and graded to put in the bike lanes. Time to add drainage and icing to the multitude of reasons why this a bad idea.

What you are describing is called crowning. Every road in DC has this.

And how will stormwater runoff be accommodated with protected bike lanes?

The same way it always is? People can bike just fine on a road with crowning.

Do you always make up inane trash then pontificate around it?

I think the poster may not have seen other bike lanes. The roads are crowned. The protective barriers for the bike lane either let water through to the original gutter, or contain gutters themselves.

Bike lanes are a solved problem, where they should go is the debate.

This is what happens when everyone decides they can play civil engineer. Seriously people, let the professionals do their jobs.

The professionals that claim traffic will disappear?

Stop.Lying. There is no claim traffic will disappear.

You guys are really absurd. From made-up new problem (“bike lanes won’t allow drainage!”) back to lies and then on to the next fantasized problem.

So traffic will just go to the surrounding neighborhood streets? You can't claim both ways. You all have been lying, dissembling and exaggerating at every turn while pitching this asinine proposal as the magic cure for all of society's ills.

Too much traffic and congestion? Let's eliminate car lanes and add bike lanes.
Too many white people? Add bike lanes
Not enough mass transit? Add bike lanes
Mediocre restaurants and dying retail? Add bike lanes
Neighborhood safety conerns? Add bike lanes

It's all circular. There will be a massive increase in congestion and neighborhood traffic with this plan. That is, unless traffic magically disappears. So which is it?