Maryland football fans have been illegally parking in the bike lanes along University Boulevard (Route 193). Bill Kelly of CPABC has been working the issue with UMD and County officials for years, but seems to have run into problems with the county since the school says the road is outside of it's jurisdiction.
County police have told The Gazette that they are understaffed and that violent crime in the area is their first priority.
Reminds me of the line from Friends when Joey says they'll help him with his robbery "after they solve all the murders"
DC also has a bike lane parking/driving problem and seems to exert no effort to enforce the law. It was one of the issues brought up in most wards during the bike plan workshops. As someone once told me, the best way to keep cars out of the bike lanes is to put bikes in them.
Is that stretch outside the jurisdiction of College Park? 'Cause, geez, College Park can certainly be zealous about parking enforcement down around the shopping areas.
Posted by: taleswapper | November 03, 2005 at 08:56 PM
I've noticed this as a major problem on the trail along MacArthur Blvd. leading out to Great Falls. (Not a bike lane per se, but a Multi-Use Path). There are stretches where the trail runs in what used to be the shoulder but was converted to the trail, which is a terrible idea for a lot of reasons. Many motorists are not aware that it's not a shoulder, because it looks like one to all but the most discerning eyes. Since the trail is narrow and 2-way (also a terrible idea), when the trail is blocked cyclists have to pull out into opposing traffic to go around parked cars. Last weekend there were parked cars all the way from the start of the trail to Brickyard Road.
I've seen NPS staff directing people to park there during events at Glen Echo.
Posted by: Contrarian | November 12, 2005 at 11:52 PM