New bike lane on Old Georgetown Rd in Bethesda

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was on OGR around 8:30 on Monday and didn’t see any traffic backups at all so maybe SHA was right and people are adapting.

Monday was a holiday. Traffic was light.

I have pictures from 8:15 am on Friday where there is basically no traffic on OGR southbound or northbound. But you'll say that's a holiday weekend too. I'll try to get some from next week when it's not a holiday. And then someone can teach me how to post them! But I'm on the street regularly at various times, and really not noticing any significant backups. It used to be horrendous heading north between 5 and 6 -- would take me 1/2 hour to go 2-3 miles to get my kid to karate. That was from 2014-2019.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was on OGR around 8:30 on Monday and didn’t see any traffic backups at all so maybe SHA was right and people are adapting.

Monday was a holiday. Traffic was light.

I have pictures from 8:15 am on Friday where there is basically no traffic on OGR southbound or northbound. But you'll say that's a holiday weekend too. I'll try to get some from next week when it's not a holiday. And then someone can teach me how to post them! But I'm on the street regularly at various times, and really not noticing any significant backups. It used to be horrendous heading north between 5 and 6 -- would take me 1/2 hour to go 2-3 miles to get my kid to karate. That was from 2014-2019.

Can I ask, did you specifically go out to the road on your to take pictures of traffic? Or were you taking pictures from your car while driving to promote traffic safety? Because both scenarios seem very odd.

[Anonymous]

The State Highway Administration has already said that their traffic estimates were wrong - they will be looking at this again once the project is complete.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The State Highway Administration has already said that their traffic estimates were wrong - they will be looking at this again once the project is complete.

Yes, there do tend to be traffic back-ups during road construction. That is not unexpected, and it doesn't make their estimates wrong. It just makes their estimates inapplicable during road construction.

I have both driven and biked for transportation on OGR since the main part of the installation, after the screams of horror and outrage from drivers in December. The back-ups at the signals at Tuckerman and Democracy were nothing out of the previous ordinary before the bike lanes. I did notice less speeding, though. Less speeding was one of the purposes of the project, so that's a project success. I would expect the people who live on or near OGR to really appreciate that.

Also, for the purposes of biking for transportation, the bike lanes on OGR are brilliant. I just wish they went all the way to Rockville Pike at Montrose Crossing, on the north end, and all the way to downtown Bethesda, on the south end. But at least they go to NIH and (almost) Suburban, for those bike commuters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was on OGR around 8:30 on Monday and didn’t see any traffic backups at all so maybe SHA was right and people are adapting.

Monday was a holiday. Traffic was light.

I have pictures from 8:15 am on Friday where there is basically no traffic on OGR southbound or northbound. But you'll say that's a holiday weekend too. I'll try to get some from next week when it's not a holiday. And then someone can teach me how to post them! But I'm on the street regularly at various times, and really not noticing any significant backups. It used to be horrendous heading north between 5 and 6 -- would take me 1/2 hour to go 2-3 miles to get my kid to karate. That was from 2014-2019.

Can I ask, did you specifically go out to the road on your to take pictures of traffic? Or were you taking pictures from your car while driving to promote traffic safety? Because both scenarios seem very odd.

Did you also criticize the people who have taken photos while driving for the purpose of complaining about the bike lanes on OGR?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was on OGR around 8:30 on Monday and didn’t see any traffic backups at all so maybe SHA was right and people are adapting.

Monday was a holiday. Traffic was light.

I have pictures from 8:15 am on Friday where there is basically no traffic on OGR southbound or northbound. But you'll say that's a holiday weekend too. I'll try to get some from next week when it's not a holiday. And then someone can teach me how to post them! But I'm on the street regularly at various times, and really not noticing any significant backups. It used to be horrendous heading north between 5 and 6 -- would take me 1/2 hour to go 2-3 miles to get my kid to karate. That was from 2014-2019.

Can I ask, did you specifically go out to the road on your to take pictures of traffic? Or were you taking pictures from your car while driving to promote traffic safety? Because both scenarios seem very odd.

Did you also criticize the people who have taken photos while driving for the purpose of complaining about the bike lanes on OGR?

So you did you take pictures with phone while driving your car. Proves that you’re a hypocrite about safety but also proves that even for staunch advocates, these lanes are useless.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was on OGR around 8:30 on Monday and didn’t see any traffic backups at all so maybe SHA was right and people are adapting.

Monday was a holiday. Traffic was light.

I have pictures from 8:15 am on Friday where there is basically no traffic on OGR southbound or northbound. But you'll say that's a holiday weekend too. I'll try to get some from next week when it's not a holiday. And then someone can teach me how to post them! But I'm on the street regularly at various times, and really not noticing any significant backups. It used to be horrendous heading north between 5 and 6 -- would take me 1/2 hour to go 2-3 miles to get my kid to karate. That was from 2014-2019.

Can I ask, did you specifically go out to the road on your to take pictures of traffic? Or were you taking pictures from your car while driving to promote traffic safety? Because both scenarios seem very odd.

Did you also criticize the people who have taken photos while driving for the purpose of complaining about the bike lanes on OGR?

So you did you take pictures with phone while driving your car. Proves that you’re a hypocrite about safety but also proves that even for staunch advocates, these lanes are useless.

No, I am a different PP. I don't know what that other PP did. I do not use my phone while driving. What that other PP's post mostly proves (and my experience confirms) is that the bike lanes have not caused any new backups, except initially during construction. As for uselessness, on the contrary, they've made the road safer overall and also far more useable for bicyclists.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The State Highway Administration has already said that their traffic estimates were wrong - they will be looking at this again once the project is complete.

Yes, there do tend to be traffic back-ups during road construction. That is not unexpected, and it doesn't make their estimates wrong. It just makes their estimates inapplicable during road construction.

I have both driven and biked for transportation on OGR since the main part of the installation, after the screams of horror and outrage from drivers in December. The back-ups at the signals at Tuckerman and Democracy were nothing out of the previous ordinary before the bike lanes. I did notice less speeding, though. Less speeding was one of the purposes of the project, so that's a project success. I would expect the people who live on or near OGR to really appreciate that.

Also, for the purposes of biking for transportation, the bike lanes on OGR are brilliant. I just wish they went all the way to Rockville Pike at Montrose Crossing, on the north end, and all the way to downtown Bethesda, on the south end. But at least they go to NIH and (almost) Suburban, for those bike commuters.

This post is a non sequitur. It has nothing to do with what the PP said. To repeat, SHA has publicly confirmed that the traffic levels and congestion exceed their model and will conduct a study to assess the impact. Further, they already accounted for this possibility when they issued the contract. Anything else people have to say is hot air and no, your anecdotal observations are not data.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was on OGR around 8:30 on Monday and didn’t see any traffic backups at all so maybe SHA was right and people are adapting.

Monday was a holiday. Traffic was light.

I have pictures from 8:15 am on Friday where there is basically no traffic on OGR southbound or northbound. But you'll say that's a holiday weekend too. I'll try to get some from next week when it's not a holiday. And then someone can teach me how to post them! But I'm on the street regularly at various times, and really not noticing any significant backups. It used to be horrendous heading north between 5 and 6 -- would take me 1/2 hour to go 2-3 miles to get my kid to karate. That was from 2014-2019.

Can I ask, did you specifically go out to the road on your to take pictures of traffic? Or were you taking pictures from your car while driving to promote traffic safety? Because both scenarios seem very odd.

Did you also criticize the people who have taken photos while driving for the purpose of complaining about the bike lanes on OGR?

So you did you take pictures with phone while driving your car. Proves that you’re a hypocrite about safety but also proves that even for staunch advocates, these lanes are useless.

No, I am a different PP. I don't know what that other PP did. I do not use my phone while driving. What that other PP's post mostly proves (and my experience confirms) is that the bike lanes have not caused any new backups, except initially during construction. As for uselessness, on the contrary, they've made the road safer overall and also far more useable for bicyclists.

To quote a PP:

“The State Highway Administration has already said that their traffic estimates were wrong - they will be looking at this again once the project is complete.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was on OGR around 8:30 on Monday and didn’t see any traffic backups at all so maybe SHA was right and people are adapting.

Monday was a holiday. Traffic was light.

I have pictures from 8:15 am on Friday where there is basically no traffic on OGR southbound or northbound. But you'll say that's a holiday weekend too. I'll try to get some from next week when it's not a holiday. And then someone can teach me how to post them! But I'm on the street regularly at various times, and really not noticing any significant backups. It used to be horrendous heading north between 5 and 6 -- would take me 1/2 hour to go 2-3 miles to get my kid to karate. That was from 2014-2019.

Can I ask, did you specifically go out to the road on your to take pictures of traffic? Or were you taking pictures from your car while driving to promote traffic safety? Because both scenarios seem very odd.

Did you also criticize the people who have taken photos while driving for the purpose of complaining about the bike lanes on OGR?

So you did you take pictures with phone while driving your car. Proves that you’re a hypocrite about safety but also proves that even for staunch advocates, these lanes are useless.

No, I am a different PP. I don't know what that other PP did. I do not use my phone while driving. What that other PP's post mostly proves (and my experience confirms) is that the bike lanes have not caused any new backups, except initially during construction. As for uselessness, on the contrary, they've made the road safer overall and also far more useable for bicyclists.

To quote a PP:

“The State Highway Administration has already said that their traffic estimates were wrong - they will be looking at this again once the project is complete.”

Oh, you're the poster whose assertions are simply factually wrong about who did what when. There's no sense in further discussion with you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was on OGR around 8:30 on Monday and didn’t see any traffic backups at all so maybe SHA was right and people are adapting.

Monday was a holiday. Traffic was light.

I have pictures from 8:15 am on Friday where there is basically no traffic on OGR southbound or northbound. But you'll say that's a holiday weekend too. I'll try to get some from next week when it's not a holiday. And then someone can teach me how to post them! But I'm on the street regularly at various times, and really not noticing any significant backups. It used to be horrendous heading north between 5 and 6 -- would take me 1/2 hour to go 2-3 miles to get my kid to karate. That was from 2014-2019.

Can I ask, did you specifically go out to the road on your to take pictures of traffic? Or were you taking pictures from your car while driving to promote traffic safety? Because both scenarios seem very odd.

Did you also criticize the people who have taken photos while driving for the purpose of complaining about the bike lanes on OGR?

So you did you take pictures with phone while driving your car. Proves that you’re a hypocrite about safety but also proves that even for staunch advocates, these lanes are useless.

No, I am a different PP. I don't know what that other PP did. I do not use my phone while driving. What that other PP's post mostly proves (and my experience confirms) is that the bike lanes have not caused any new backups, except initially during construction. As for uselessness, on the contrary, they've made the road safer overall and also far more useable for bicyclists.

To quote a PP:

“The State Highway Administration has already said that their traffic estimates were wrong - they will be looking at this again once the project is complete.”

Oh, you're the poster whose assertions are simply factually wrong about who did what when. There's no sense in further discussion with you.

“ Del. Marc Korman (D-Dist. 16), whose district includes the Old Georgetown Road bike lanes, said in an email that he has asked SHA officials for a post-installation study to see the project’s impact on traffic times, pollution, and car crashes.”
https://bethesdamagazine.com/2022/12/27/residents-called-for-safety-measures-on-old-georgetown-road-then-the-bike-lanes-showed-up/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was on OGR around 8:30 on Monday and didn’t see any traffic backups at all so maybe SHA was right and people are adapting.

Monday was a holiday. Traffic was light.

I have pictures from 8:15 am on Friday where there is basically no traffic on OGR southbound or northbound. But you'll say that's a holiday weekend too. I'll try to get some from next week when it's not a holiday. And then someone can teach me how to post them! But I'm on the street regularly at various times, and really not noticing any significant backups. It used to be horrendous heading north between 5 and 6 -- would take me 1/2 hour to go 2-3 miles to get my kid to karate. That was from 2014-2019.

Can I ask, did you specifically go out to the road on your to take pictures of traffic? Or were you taking pictures from your car while driving to promote traffic safety? Because both scenarios seem very odd.

Did you also criticize the people who have taken photos while driving for the purpose of complaining about the bike lanes on OGR?

So you did you take pictures with phone while driving your car. Proves that you’re a hypocrite about safety but also proves that even for staunch advocates, these lanes are useless.

No, I am a different PP. I don't know what that other PP did. I do not use my phone while driving. What that other PP's post mostly proves (and my experience confirms) is that the bike lanes have not caused any new backups, except initially during construction. As for uselessness, on the contrary, they've made the road safer overall and also far more useable for bicyclists.

To quote a PP:

“The State Highway Administration has already said that their traffic estimates were wrong - they will be looking at this again once the project is complete.”

Oh, you're the poster whose assertions are simply factually wrong about who did what when. There's no sense in further discussion with you.

“ Del. Marc Korman (D-Dist. 16), whose district includes the Old Georgetown Road bike lanes, said in an email that he has asked SHA officials for a post-installation study to see the project’s impact on traffic times, pollution, and car crashes.”
https://bethesdamagazine.com/2022/12/27/residents-called-for-safety-measures-on-old-georgetown-road-then-the-bike-lanes-showed-up/

The best case for bikers is the restoration of three narrow car lanes and smaller bike lanes, with similar improvements to other arterial roads that are space constrained. The best case for drivers is that SHA leaves everything as is but never does something like this to another arterial road.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was on OGR around 8:30 on Monday and didn’t see any traffic backups at all so maybe SHA was right and people are adapting.

Monday was a holiday. Traffic was light.

I have pictures from 8:15 am on Friday where there is basically no traffic on OGR southbound or northbound. But you'll say that's a holiday weekend too. I'll try to get some from next week when it's not a holiday. And then someone can teach me how to post them! But I'm on the street regularly at various times, and really not noticing any significant backups. It used to be horrendous heading north between 5 and 6 -- would take me 1/2 hour to go 2-3 miles to get my kid to karate. That was from 2014-2019.

You must be a unicorn then.
I live off of Greentree.
Returning from a dental appt around 3:42 today, Thurs. A few hours "before" typical rush hour, yet it was jam packed in the 2 lanes.
Northbound OGR was packed and crawling as far as the eye could see.
Bike lanes empty, again (I am on OGR 1 or more times per day).

[Anonymous]

I am pp above. I was returning from Rockville, and started south on OGR from 355. Full of cars going nowhere. At 3:42.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am pp above. I was returning from Rockville, and started south on OGR from 355. Full of cars going nowhere. At 3:42.

Have you considered using a bike for some of your errands between Bethesda and Rockville? It's a very bikeable distance, the bike lanes are great, and you would avoid sitting in traffic.

I'm looking at Google Traffic right now, 5:00 pm, and Old Georgetown Road is mostly green, with just the regular back-ups at the traffic signals where you would expect there to be back-ups at 5:00 pm on a weekday. The 270 spur and the Inner Loop are solid red. Maybe the bike lanes caused that too.