TheWashCycle

Another DDOT bicycling billboard

  Another DDOT bicycling billboard 
  Originally uploaded by rllayman

I suppose I like these billboards more than the "Share the Road" ones from previous years. One could argue that this one propagates the 'bikes are toys' sensibility. I'd still rather see ones that really educate people - "Three feet is safe passing distance", "No Lights at night is illegal and unsafe" etc...

Intern Opportunity on Mount Vernon Trail

The Student Conservation Association volunteer will assist in developing and implementing a National Park Service Trails Forever Program (TFP) for the National Capital Region. This position, sponsored by Unilever, will provide one SCA volunteer to work with a Park Ranger to support NPS trail program interests in the Washington D.C. area from May through August 2008.

The goals of this initiative is to promote Trails Forever/Healthy Parks-Healthy Living initiatives; inviting people to add vitality to their daily lives by engaging in recreational activities in national parks. Specific goals include: support the existing NPS trail system of parks, promote recreational opportunities of NPS trails, offer safety and NCR trail network orientation, information, and education to all users, celebrate the 35^th Anniversary of the Mount Vernon Trail in 2008, provide a presence on heavily used trails of the National Park Service during peak use.

Start date of internship is early to mid-May. The duty location will be the Turkey Run Park, McLean Virginia, in the George Washington Memorial Parkway where the intern will receive intensive trail safety training as well as trail orientation by NPS staff before serving for 4 months. The representative will wear an approved polo-style uniform shirt. NPS will provide bicycle and equipment for trail use and bike repair demonstrations.

The role of the SCA intern will be twofold:

To host Trail Outreach weekend events (Saturday and Sunday 11am-3pm).

• Trail Outreach dates include June 7th National Trails Day event, June 14 & 15 Mount Vernon Trail event at the Alexandria Waterfront Festival, July 19 &20 Mount Vernon Trail outreach, August 16 &17 National Capital Region Trail event.

• Intern will coordinate event set-up, volunteer staffing, supplies, and educational displays, offer trail visitors water, trail brochures, whistles, bells, stickers, first aid, trail activities geared for children, etc.

• Intern will expand current displays and educational tools. NPS will support expanding outreach through the use of graphics, video, and the internet. These tools will offer relevant trail safety information and etiquette to a larger audience.

To provide educational support to existing NPS and community outreach programs

• The intern will make 8-10 public presentations to groups promoting trail safety and etiquette as well as the health and fitness opportunities found on the trails.

• Target audience will be NPS summer Junior Ranger Camps, volunteer bike patrols, and interpretive bike rides for the public at George Washington Memorial Parkway, Rock Creek, C&O Canal, National Mall and Memorial Parks, and to community groups such as the Alexandria Bike Jr. Bike Ambassadors.

To apply please log on to www.thesca.org and fill out an online application.  Attach Position ID 6892 (position above) to your application.

Will People Bike if They Have to Pay for Parking

Councilmen Jim Graham and Phil Mendelson co-introduced the “Clean Air Act” this month which would levy a $25 per month fee on any employee garage or surface lot parking space “used by a person … to have access to employment.” The idea is that these costs will be passed on to employees and will encourage them to rethink their transit options. Though some fear there is an ulterior motive.

If it looks like a commuter tax and it quacks like a commuter tax, it's probably a commuter tax.

This doesn't quack like a commuter tax (it only taxes people who drive to work and it doesn't matter where they drive from), but still this law does have flaws. Richard Layman is concerned that the legislation is piecemeal and that the money goes to the general fund, though the Times states that "The revenue would be directed toward air-quality improvement and traffic programs." Others have pointed out

It's hypocritical on the DC Council's part to propose this bill without eliminating all free parking for DC government employees first.

The basic idea is good, as any "High Cost of Free Parking" fans will attest. In some ways its the inverse of the bicycle commuter act - taking money from drivers instead of giving it to cyclists. Still, I want to know what EXACTLY will be done with the money - planting trees, alternative energy credits, transit improvements (and it better clean the air), bike sharing expansion, what?

And as others have pointed out, it has to be passed on to employees in some direct way. Either employees pay it themselves; or the employer pays it but is required to offer an equivalent amount of money to those who don't drive ("You can either have a free parking pass or a $25 a month Alternative Transportation Bonus - you're call"). That way there is a direct connection between the choice to drive and the cost. I think a law like this could see a modest increase in biking. High gas prices do.

Safe Routes to School Deadline - May 1st

DDOT will select eight schools to participate in the DC Safe Routes to School Pilot School Program. Each school will receive assistance in the development and implementation of a Safe Routes to School Plan. The Safe Routes to School Plan will identify education, engineering, enforcement, encouragement, and evaluation measures in order to get more kids walking and biking to school and to make it safer for them to do so. DDOT will also provide assistance with the implementation of each school's Safe Routes to School Plan.

What will DDOT Provide to Successful Pilot School Applicants?

DDOT, with assistance from consultants, will provide each pilot school with the following:

 Help with the development of a Safe Routes to School Plan that covers each of the five E's (education, engineering, enforcement, encouragement, and evaluation).

 Pedestrian and bicycle safety training in the classroom.

 Increased law enforcement from the Metropolitan Police Department within the School Zone.

 Ideas about what has worked at other schools around the United   States.

 Technical assistance with the implementation of education, enforcement, evaluation, and encouragement programs.

 Planning and possible implementation of engineering changes to improve the safety of children walking and bicycling to school.

 Small prizes to be used as incentives to encourage students to walk and bicycle to school.

Who Can Complete an Application?

The SRTS application may be filled out by anyone with a relationship to the school, for example, a teacher, a parent, a school principal, or a school nurse.

Which Schools are Eligible to Apply?

DDOT will select ONE school in each Ward for the Pilot School Project, for a total of 8 schools. Public, Private, and Charter schools are eligible to apply.

In order to be eligible for selection, a school must meet each of the following criteria:

 School grade level should include K-8 (or a sub-set, such as K-6 or 7-8). (By law, SRTS activities must focus on grades K-8).

 Schools should be scheduled to stay open per DC Public School's School Consolidation Plan.

 School must not have policies that prohibit or discourage walking or bicycling to school. If a school does have such a policy, it must be willing to change the policy as part of the SRTS program.

What Is Your School Required To Do? (Program Requirements):

Schools that are selected for the Pilot School Program will be required to do the following:

 Form a Safe Routes to School Team: The team should consist of a variety of individuals as described later in this document. The team will meet during the duration of the Pilot School Project. It is likely that meetings will occur once a month for several months, and then every other month thereafter.

 Provide a Team Leader: Each school must designate a team leader. The team leader may be a teacher, administrator, or other school employee, parent, or other individual. The team leader will be the primary point of contact between DDOT and the school.

 Schedule and Host Safe Routes to School Team Meetings: The Team Leader will coordinate with the school and the SRTS Team to schedule SRTS-related meetings. The school is responsible for providing a location for SRTS meetings.

 Conduct evaluation activities: Schools must conduct before and after surveys of students and parents, using the forms provided on the DC SRTS website www.ddot.dc.gov/saferoutes. At a minimum, Student In-Class Travel Tallies and Parent Surveys are to be completed and tallied in September 2008 and May 2009. Schools have the option to send their completed Tally and Survey forms to the National Center for Safe Routes to School; they will scan and tally the results.

 Coordinate SRTS encouragement activities: The Safe Routes to School Team will choose encouragement activities for the school, such as a Golden Shoe Contest or Frequent Walker/Biker Cards. Each school is responsible for working with the Safe Routes to School Team to implement the chosen Safe Routes to School encouragement activities, with technical assistance from DDOT.

 Provide in-class time for bicycle/pedestrian safety education in the school, ideally as part of Physical Education, Health, Science or other classes which can tie-in SRTS to existing curriculum.

 Send home information about SRTS to parents in backpack-mail and other methods.

 Promote at least one school-wide Walk and Bike to School event at the school, preferably Walk and Bike to School Day on October 8, 2008.

Selection Criteria:

In order for an application to be considered, a school must meet all of the eligibility requirements and agree to the program requirements. Evaluation of eligible applications will be based on responses to the questions under "Selection Criteria/Application Questions" in the application. When answering the application questions, be sure to answer all parts of each question. Applications will be scored on a 100 point scale. Each question is worth a specific number of points, as noted on the Application.

Go to the Safe Routes to School website for more.

Complete Streets

A nice - albeit NYC-centric - article on Complete Streets from the Brooklyn Eagle.

But what would our streets look like if they were redesigned, building-to-building, to first accommodate walkers, bicyclists, the disabled and surface transit? The days of living at the margins are over: the Complete Streets revolution has begun.

One of the most important benefits of building Complete Streets is the dramatic improvement to bicyclist and pedestrian safety that comes with fewer cars, slower speeds and better visibility. In this redesigned landscape, there is greater communication between people on the street and the sidewalk.

Bicycle Friendly Communities 2008 (Preview)

Cities to receive Bicycle Friendly Designations will come out later today and Portland is expecting to become the largest city to be recognized as Platinum.

The much-anticipated decision came from the League’s Executive Director Andy Clarke via a conference call last week in Commissioner Sam Adams’ office while local advocates, industry leaders, and key city staff were present

A press conference to announce the news is scheduled for later today.

Phoenix Bikes Bike show

You are cordially invited to

 

Phoenix Bikes' First Annual

B I K E    S H O W

 

May 1st

7 - 9 pm

NRECA Building

4301 Wilson Blvd

near the Ballston Metro

 

Join us, and guest MC Walter Tejada, as we celebrate one year of community cycling with food, drinks, music and more.

 

Sip on a bike-blended smoothie,

View rare, beautiful and extraordinary bikes,

Bid on silent auction items,

Enter the raffle to win a legnano single-speed or PB bike customized by you,

and...

Support Phoenix's youth & community programs!

 

$20 in advance

$30 at the door

 

RSVP today at http://phoenixbikes.bikeshow.googlepages.com/

 

Please pass the invitation on, and check out our shop on the morning news - Fox5 April 7th

Phoenix Bikes is a non-profit commmunity bike shop, serving youth and cyclists in Arlington, Virginina.

Located in Barcorft Park, Phoenix Bikes works with middle and high school mechanics

to recycle donated bicycles back into the community.

Our programs give teenagers the opportunity to develop business skills, become leaders, and have fun.

Visit us to volunteer, meet the mechanics, or find a bike!

4200 S. Four Mile Run Drive, Arlington, VA, 22204 (703) 575-7762

More on Phoenix Bikes in this article.

3rd Annual World Naked Bike Ride

The World Naked Bike ride makes it's third (revealing) appearance here in DC. On June 7th.

DC DDOT bicycling billboard

  DC DDOT bicycling billboard 
  Originally uploaded by rllayman

Morris Warren, Father of the WB&A trail, memorial service

A memorial service will be held on May 17th for Warren Morris, the driving force behind the creation of the WB&A Trail.

    Morris's wife, Marge and his family will be holding a Memorial Service on Sat. May 17, 2008 at 2:00 PM at the Ivy Hill Cemetery 8103 Old Sandy Spring Rd. in Laurel, Md. (Just north of Route #198). A Reception is to follow after the cemetery service at the Warren Bowie Homestead for folks from the DC Area to stop by and pay their respects and remember Morris. Morris was well known and respected and did great work to advance Bike/Ped Travel in the DC Area.

    His key interest was the enhancement of the burgeoning hiker/biker trails system both in and around Bowie. He was instrumental in the location of a key segment of the East Coast Greenway and the American Discovery Trail through the center of Bowie and Crofton. His staunch advocacy for completion of the WB&A trail in both Prince Georges and Anne Arundel Counties made these links possible. The Bowie link was dedicated to Morris by the Maryland National Capital Park and Planning Commission.

Speaking of the WB&A, I checked out the recently completed Phase II of the trail in Anne Arundel County. The trail now runs south from Odenton's Babington Green to Conway Road.

There is a second older portion of th trail in PG County but the two are separated by the Patuxent and some reluctant landowners. The gap between the two pieces is a little more than mile. The gap needs to be closed soon. There aren't many places to cross the Patuxent River. From North Crain Highway (I'm not even sure if this is a legal or safe road for cyclists to use) to Brock Bridge Road is nearly 10 miles as the crow flies (I don't think Meyers Station Road actually has a river crossing, despite what Google Maps says) - making for a sizable barrier. In addition to giving a much needed safe river crossing, the two trails once combined will make for one 11 mile long trail.

The WB&A needs a better PR department. Trail additions go unreported in the MSM and even the sites dedicated to the trail(s) don't really keep up with it. Though the Friends of AA trails does mention that work on the South Shore trail (from Odenton to Annapolis) will begin soon.