Wednesday Morning Commute - Gunston

Good morning

• Capital Bikeshare expansion continues. A new station (now up to 202) went in at the Gunston Community Center in Arlington.  
  • In DC, "shortly before Christmas, officials announced plans to add an additional 54 stations by the end of March. So far, however, only six of those stations have been added. Holben said officials have been slowed by weather and technical issues associated with the crane used for station installation."
  • Also, on the subject of that record setting day on Saturday "for the first time since its inception three years ago, the majority of those rides were taken by day-trippers instead of annual members."  Chris Holben, director of the D.C. Department of Transportation bicycle program expects another record and possibly the first 10,000 ride day on Saturday.
  • DC has another 48 stations to add with this expansion, and Arlington has 30 more on the way. Then DC wants to add 10 more this year and Montgomery County will add 50. I'm not sure NYC's initial 293 station system is going to make them the largest (by stations at least) for very long. They're going to have about 3x as many bikes though.
• Rock Creek Park cleanup this Saturday. 
• Ralph Buehler, will speak in Montgomery County on Tuesday. 
• Mount Airy, MD has allocated $155,000 for land acquisition and construction of the town's new rail trail, built on a loop through the town that has been out of use for 60 years. 

Comments

[Two Wheels]

Last night around 10 or so two men tried to mug me at gunpoint on the Custis just before Glebe Road/footbridge over the I-66 westbound offramp. As I topped the last of the two hills, I saw one walking slowly towards me on the far left side, then saw the other on the edge of the path on the right. The one on the left pulled a semiauto handgun. I accelerated as hard as I could, rammed them, stayed upright and fled. Called 911 ASAP. They also mugged another guy. He stopped, they put the gun in his mouth and beat him, broke his collarbone. The police took his report from the hospital.

Be careful out there.

[Jacques]

I believe it was 8 of the 54 planned stations that went in. And it looks like they're finally back on the DC installation trail today, with 19 docks at 6th and Indiana up and running (a station that, IIRC, was in the original 2010 map of planned stations).

And no parking signs show at least one more on the schedule for today, at 5th and Massachusetts NW.