Too crowded. DMV governors and mayors: please dedicate streets to walkers and bikers

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is an extremely stupid idea. This will just encourage people to go outside -- because hey it's a party in the streets! - and completely ignore social distancing. Bowser was right to reject this hare brained idea.

This.

People are going outside. For example, my parents, who are in their 80s. They are going outside on daily walks because they need exercise and sunlight. They also need to be able to stay six feet away from other people while they're getting their exercise and sunlight on their daily walks. But they can't stay six feet away from other people - unless the other people walk in the street - because the sidewalks aren't wide enough. Meanwhile there is all this street space, sitting empty. Repurpose it for the uses people are already putting it to, namely: walking in the street at appropriate distances from other people.

Yeah there needs to be some dedicated areas for older people to walk. My parents are in the same boat. They’re active and need to remain active in order to be limber and healthy and balanced and sane. I go on walks with them almost every day now and every place we try to go is overrun. Right now we are just doing loops around a parking lot of a pool in their neighborhood and even that is getting overrun.

I have been doing my morning jog along a pretty much deserted access road to 395 and even that is getting crowded. People are literally running in the middle of the street. Thankfully cars are few and far between and seem to be slowing down and giving berth...so far.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I thought density was good? Dense cities,dense sidewalks, dense advocates for getting rid of cars, lol!

Lots of dense-ness going around!

There are a lot of dumb people who post on DCUM.

Density is great.

What is stupid is dedicating so much space to cars in dense areas - space that generally benefits non residents and especially now should be transitioned to uses that benefit residents and not people driving in from the burbs.

Enough of the smart growth already ! DC residents can see through bullshit and know if is a windfall scheme for developers. If you want lots more density, move to NYC. It’s a free country.

[Anonymous]

We here you. We are working on getting our NE neighborhood closed to cut-thru traffic. Just pedestrians and bikes unless someone or a delivery is trying to get to their house.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I thought density was good? Dense cities,dense sidewalks, dense advocates for getting rid of cars, lol!

Lots of dense-ness going around!

There are a lot of dumb people who post on DCUM.

Density is great.

What is stupid is dedicating so much space to cars in dense areas - space that generally benefits non residents and especially now should be transitioned to uses that benefit residents and not people driving in from the burbs.

Enough of the smart growth already ! DC residents can see through bullshit and know if is a windfall scheme for developers. If you want lots more density, move to NYC. It’s a free country.

There you go again - no one is coming for your single family home.

In the meantime many of us in the city want traffic lanes that normally accommodate suburban drivers to be converted to use for residents to be able to safely walk around their neighborhood during a global pandemic - you might even be able to take advantage of it!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I thought density was good? Dense cities,dense sidewalks, dense advocates for getting rid of cars, lol!

Lots of dense-ness going around!

There are a lot of dumb people who post on DCUM.

Density is great.

What is stupid is dedicating so much space to cars in dense areas - space that generally benefits non residents and especially now should be transitioned to uses that benefit residents and not people driving in from the burbs.

Enough of the smart growth already ! DC residents can see through bullshit and know if is a windfall scheme for developers. If you want lots more density, move to NYC. It’s a free country.

There you go again - no one is coming for your single family home.

In the meantime many of us in the city want traffic lanes that normally accommodate suburban drivers to be converted to use for residents to be able to safely walk around their neighborhood during a global pandemic - you might even be able to take advantage of it!

This type of GGW nonsense is going to keep us in quarantine for a long time. More space for outdoor activity means more people will be active outdoors, which gives the virus an easier path.

But I guess induced demand only applies to the things David Alpert hates.

Stay home. How is this concept so hard for some people to understand?Cyclists are not a protected class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I disagree. People act so entitled about “their” streets but streets belong to the driving public. It’s annoying to have people walking in the streets when essential personnel are driving to work or trying to dash to the supermarket. The other day I had to slow almost to a crawl to dodge joggers and walkers on one of the approach streets to Cathedral Commons in NW DC. Sheesh.

Nope. The streets belong to the public, period. Far too much of our street space is devoted to cars under normal times, but especially now, when there is so much less driving. Essential personnel who are driving to work don't need more than one lane each way. The rest of the street space can be reallocated as public space for walking, biking, and playing.

Uh, what? Have you noticed that almost no one uses the bike lanes? There are stretches of bike lanes that I've *never* seen anyone use. By your logic, we should get rid of the bike lanes.

Really - where?

I bike and there are always people using the bike lanes, even on weekends.

You do realize that DC has very few bike lanes so you are whining about something that is pretty insignificant.

Also curious if you even live in DC?

ive been here way longer than you. and the number of people who bicycles in dc is pathetically small.

[Anonymous]

Wait, I thought DC needs to be way more densely populated? Now you're saying it's too crowded? So confusing.

[Anonymous]

Stay home, morons.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is an extremely stupid idea. This will just encourage people to go outside -- because hey it's a party in the streets! - and completely ignore social distancing. Bowser was right to reject this hare brained idea.

This.

People are going outside. For example, my parents, who are in their 80s. They are going outside on daily walks because they need exercise and sunlight. They also need to be able to stay six feet away from other people while they're getting their exercise and sunlight on their daily walks. But they can't stay six feet away from other people - unless the other people walk in the street - because the sidewalks aren't wide enough. Meanwhile there is all this street space, sitting empty. Repurpose it for the uses people are already putting it to, namely: walking in the street at appropriate distances from other people.

Yeah there needs to be some dedicated areas for older people to walk. My parents are in the same boat. They’re active and need to remain active in order to be limber and healthy and balanced and sane. I go on walks with them almost every day now and every place we try to go is overrun. Right now we are just doing loops around a parking lot of a pool in their neighborhood and even that is getting overrun.

I have been doing my morning jog along a pretty much deserted access road to 395 and even that is getting crowded. People are literally running in the middle of the street. Thankfully cars are few and far between and seem to be slowing down and giving berth...so far.

So the anti-car jihadists are really just doing it for the old people? Right.

Also, do you actually live here? There are TONS of places to walk where you will not run into anyone. If you walked up 16th Street, starting at Piney Branch, and went all the way up to the Maryland border, I bet you could count on one hand the number of people you would pass on the sidewalk.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Look, the chances of you getting Covid 19 from the outside air for someone 3 feet for a split second is very slim. People who are really sick are not going outside. I know there are some cases where people could be asymptomatic, but you also have to be practical and reasonable OP. If you anxiety is that bad, then you need to travel somewhere remote or stay home.

The 6' thing is about extended time, not a fraction of a second outside.

Just stay home. Namaste.

The writer Deborah Kogan thinks she got it while riding her bike in NYC. So yes possible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We here you. We are working on getting our NE neighborhood closed to cut-thru traffic. Just pedestrians and bikes unless someone or a delivery is trying to get to their house.

Maybe you won’t have to HEAR traffic noise anymore, huh?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We here you. We are working on getting our NE neighborhood closed to cut-thru traffic. Just pedestrians and bikes unless someone or a delivery is trying to get to their house.

If I were making a delivery to you I’d just leave it a few blocks away, where I could drive. You can come get it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

So the anti-car jihadists are really just doing it for the old people? Right.

Also, do you actually live here? There are TONS of places to walk where you will not run into anyone. If you walked up 16th Street, starting at Piney Branch, and went all the way up to the Maryland border, I bet you could count on one hand the number of people you would pass on the sidewalk.

People want to walk in their own neighborhoods, not get in a car (assuming they have a car and can drive it) and drive to somewhere else in the city so that they can get out and walk and then get back in their car and drive home.

[Anonymous]

Joggers and cyclists need to give people wide berth, given the latest research. Or wear masks?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Joggers and cyclists need to give people wide berth, given the latest research. Or wear masks?

That "latest research" isn't research. It's some engineers running a computer model.

https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/v74az9/the-viral-study-about-runners-spreading-coronavirus-is-not-actually-a-study

It's still true that people (walking, running, biking, playing, whatever) need a lot more space right now, and that space can only come from reallocating street space from cars to people.