Monday Morning Commute - DASH

Yesterday I rode the eastside Anacostia Riverwalk Trail and while passing under the 11th Street Bridge I saw some pretty impressive icicles hanging off of the unopened local bridge - and only that one. Maybe vibrations on the in-use bridges shake the icicles free or maybe the surface absorbs more heat, or maybe the reason is that the local bridge has wooden walkways along the side, but whatever the reason they really looked fantastic and I wish I'd had my camera.

• The DC BAC is asking for input on how to improve bike connectivity to and within the areas east of the Anacostia.
• Arlington has a new bike map. It is the best map of Arlington, which you know is true because it says so right on the cover [How does that feel Arlington County Metrobus Map? Burns doesn't it?]. Arlington also has its January bike count data out.
• I might be losing my mind, but I could have sworn that I read somewhere that Alexandria was ordering new DASH buses that would have bike racks on them, but now, I can't find where I read that. Can anyone confirm this? Update: Here's the link. "Alexandria’s first clean diesel hybrid electric DASH buses have arrived! The ten hybrid buses and five hybrid trolleys ...have the first bike racks on DASH buses. The 40-foot buses will operate on the AT8 route, where increases in ridership have led overcrowding on a number of trips. The trolleys will go in to service in April 2012
• Richard Layman makes the case that a study of widening the BW Parkway should consider adding a bike trail to it. "It is a little known fact that bikeways can be included in FHWA-funded "freeway"/Interstate projects, it depends on the policies of the local state."
• Bike Maryland's Bicycle Symposium is next week.
• San Francisco puts out an RFP for a bike share system.

Comments

[JeffB]

I googled around a bit and found 2 things -

This story from April 2011 talks about a proposed Add-On Tax on commercial property to fund transportation initiatives including Dash bikes racks.

Then this article from the Washington Business Journal reports the defeat of the measure and its replacement with a general property tax increase instead with a portion reserved for transportation.

The property tax rate for fiscal year 2012 will increase to 99.8 cents per $100 of assessed value, 2.2 cents of which, or about $10.7 million, will be reserved for transportation projects.

I also found an article putting the cost to install a bike rack on a bus at $500 but the operator of the bus system also wanted an idiot light installed for the driver to indicate if the rack was down and that would cost $1000 - $1400 per bus.

[jgriesert]

Yes, the new hybrid DASH buses will all have bike racks:

http://alexandriava.gov/localmotion/

[Greenbelt]

Although I can't find information on the web anywhere, including the FHA website, apparently there's a public meeting on the BW Parkway widening project at the Greenbelt Community Center at 6:30 this Thursday evening. See Greenbelt News Review (lower left, page 1):
http://www.greenbeltnewsreview.com/current_issue.pdf

[washcycle]

Thank you jgriesert. That is where I read it.

[Shawn]

Thank goodness for the hybrid trolleys. The diesel trolleys they use on King St. put out the worst exhaust of any public transit vehicle I've encountered.