DDOT's Action Agenda

The Action Agenda that DDOT released this week is the most positive new document to come out of DDOT since the Master Bike Plan. It includes initiatives that should help make streets safer for cyclists like (emphasis mine). It features five Core Values each with several polices. Under the Sustainable Living, the first Core Value is to "Make walking the mode of choice for trips of less than one mile and biking the mode of choice for trips of less than three miles." Implementing the recommendations of the Bicycle Master Plan and Pedestrian Master Plan are only part of the plan to get there. They also want to

• Transform the DC bike-share system into a substantive transit option with 100 stations and 1,000 bicycles.
• Set aside 5% of the capital budget each year as a core program for pedestrian and bicycle improvements.
• Quadruple the lane miles of separated cycle facilities.
• Formally adopt bike boxes for bicyclist safety at intersections into DC standards and implement them in at least 100 locations.
• Repurpose on-street parking spaces for bicycle parking in at least 25 locations.
• Add four more bike stations.
• Increase marketing and private sector promotion of non-motorized modes.
• Improve the District travel-demand model to capture non-motorized trips.
• Update and expand the Bicycle Master Plan for the next decade.
• Support non-vehicular travel and unique place-making in the public space.

Yes. That just happened. Turns out that the goal is to more than double bicycle mode share by 2012 from levels in 2009 (2.3% to 5%).*  And by 2012 they aspire to double bike lane mileage to 80 miles, have 0 bike fatalities and reduce crashes from 335 to 250.

But on-street facilities are only part of the solution. The fourth policy is to "encourage development projects that promote and support non-auto mobility"

• Partner with developers to ensure private sector implementation of transportation demand management (TDM) strategies.
• Require convenient, covered, and secure bicycle parking in new development; require building owners to allow bicycle access.
• Support zoning code updates that expand bicycle parking and amenity requirements and implement vehicle parking maximums where feasible.
• Meet the challenges of a 21st century urban DOT by incorporating a new administration—the Progressive Transportation Services Administration—that will focus on non-auto mobility.

In the 6th Policy they suggest moving toward fourth generation bike sharing - one card gets you on Metro, bike sharing, car sharing and pays for parking meters. [Factoid: DDOT’s bike-sharing program has 1,200 members who use the system for an average of 90 trips per day. The average rental time is 27 minutes.] In the Firm Foundation section they mention regional bike sharing.

But wait, there's more. Many other policies would make the roads safer or more fun for cyclists, like (emphasis mine)

    -- Train bus and taxi drivers on pedestrian and bicycle laws and safety.
    -- Pursue legislation requiring that new drivers receive bicycle and pedestrian education before obtaining a driver's license.
    -- Develop and expand the annual Feet in the Street event, whereby the city closes select streets to vehicle traffic and allows full bicycle, pedestrian, and retail use.
    -- Expand the enforcement powers of traffic control officers and school crossing guards.
    -- Consider lowering speed limits on local roads.
    -- Reduce speeding on local and collector streets. Ensure appropriate traffic speeds on all roads. Pilot lowering speeds below 25 mph on select local streets.
    -- Implement traffic calming studies citywide.
    -- Continue and build upon regional campaigns such as Smooth Operator, the annual effort to curb aggressive driving.
    -- Improve safety at the top 50 high-crash intersections.
    -- Expand mobile photo enforcement to work zones.

If they pull half of this off, it'll start to look a lot like Portland around here. Very exciting stuff. It's like our DMV has grown up into a real Transportation Department.

*Who's a transportation blog now DCMud?

Comments

[PWBikedude]

The chart indicates that there are no bike commuters in Prince William County. That may have been true in 1994-2007, but it is not true in 2009. I know because I bike to work from PW to Fairfax. The bike shops in PW can verify that we have people biking to work in the county. As a matter of fact, PW will be holding a Bike to Work pitstop in May as part of Bike to Work Day to highlight bike commuting in the county.

[washcycle]

That could be a rounding issue. So it means between 0.0% and 0.05%.

[Richard Layman]

not DMV... the DOT calved off the DPW. The DC DMV is still a separate agency.

[Washcycle]

Back in my stand-up days we'd call that TBNF, or True, But Not Funny.

[Scott F]

That chart (from page 26 of the PDF) looks wrong. The given 1994 numbers for DC, Arlington, and Alexandria (2.2%, 1.1%, 0.7%) look more like the 2008 numbers I remember. Indeed, page 23 gives the 2008 DC bike commute share as 2.3%.

Anyway, good news in this report! Even if it doesn't all get done, sounds like DDOT's moving in the right direction.

[Contrarian]

In addition to training bus and taxi drivers in pedestrian and cyclist law they should also train police officers. There are just too many horror stories of vulnerable road users becoming victims twice when they are in a collision, first when they get hit and second when the police tell them that they are at fault, essentially for not being a motorist.

One thing I've realized is that since we entrust law enforcement with a great deal of discretion in enforcing the laws, it is important that the officers be representative of the communities they serve. That is the only way they can understand all of the perspectives of their constituents. Ideally the representation should extend to choice of transportation mode as well. Our police department currently is far more auto-centric than the city as a whole; it would be good to have pedestrianism and cycling represented as well.