Will DC's 2014 bike lanes get built? Probably not in 2014

Today, as noted earlier, DDOT announced their 2014 Proposal for bike lanes. Benjamin Freed at the Washingtonian asks if they will actually get built? If history is any indication the answer is probably not, at least, not in 2014. 

If you look at previous announcements you can see many lanes carried over from one year to the next. For example, Piney Branch from Missouri to Georgia shows up in 2011 and then in 2012, and then in 2013 and then again in 2014. So, yes, they put more in their plan than they actually get done. Part of this is because of the way bike lanes usually get added. Often it is part of a road repair project. The group at DDOT that repairs roads lets the group at DDOT that does bike lanes know about what work they're going to do. So then the bike lane group puts that stretch of bike lanes on the list. If, then, the road repair does not occur, then the bike lanes do not go in. But that is only some of the times. There are probably several reasons, some better than others, why bike lanes are proposed in the winter and then not installed for years. 

A couple of other notes from the Washingtonian article.

Another project listed as “ready to go” is a two-block protected lane on First St., NE, connecting the Metropolitan Branch Trail to street level. (Currently, cyclists must haul their bikes up a staircase to access the trail’s southern end.) 

This project will not change the connections to the Met Branch Trail. It's still either the stairs at L Street or the ramp at M Street. In fact, I heard that DDOT may have to postpone the L Street ramp for now. Bristol Property, the owner, is concerned that there's a hazmat issue with the land where and does not want DDOT to take any soil borings which would indefinitely stall the project. 

Comments

[Crickey7]

Piney Branch from Missouri to Georgia is a no-brainer. Plenty of room for that. Not a high-volume route, but should have pretty consistent useage.

[Joey]

DDOT fails again. They don't do what's in the plan, and even if they did, there really is not much there. And what is there is mostly low-hanging fruit.

Improvement in bike infrastructure have been glacial since the Gray administration took over.

But that seems to be okay for some Washington cyclists, who generally seem to think that a staircase amounts to bike infrastructure.

[washcycle]

Well, that's a little harsh. DDOT is not doing as good a job as it could, with that I agree. But there is quite a lo in the bike plan. If they were do to all of that before 2016, I'd be pretty happen, and not all of it is "low-hanging fruit". Any time they take out parking, that's not low-hanging fruit.

A staircase with a bike trough is bike infrastructure. Why would you say that it is not?

[Joey]

Point made.

[Uptowner]

Indeed. Half of these have been in the "yearly plan" for years: West Virginia, Cathedral Ave, Piney Branch, Rock Creek Church, M Street, to name just a few. Let's be clear: the plan for this year is NOT ambitious at all, and yet I can say with confidence that most of it will probably not get built this year. Even the wording of the text makes it sound like DDOT isn't anywhere near ready with a lot of these. Here is a quick translation of actual timeframes for implementation:

"additional analysis and outreach required" = at least 2-3 years away
"In design" = next year... hopefully
"Ready to go" = good chance this will happen this year

What's the point of making a yearly plan if there is very little intention of following it?

[washcycle]

No joey, you showed that you don't know what is and what is not a bike facility.

[Joey]

I said some cyclists in Washington seem to think that a staircase amounts to bike infrastructure.

I'm standing by that assertion.

[washcycle]

Yes, and a staircase with a bike trough IS bike infrastructure. So what is your point?