Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

Because this year, the region is actually going to clear it from bike trails and facilities so that bike commuters who rely on them can still use them - unlike what has happened in other years.

Arlignton County will be clearing snow from up to 10 miles of trail 

The targeted areas include 5.2 miles of the Custis trail from Lynn Street to the Washington & Old Dominion trail; 1.25 miles of the Bluemont Junction trail from Fairfax Drive to the W&OD; 2.25 miles of the Four Mile Run trail from National Airport to Shirlington Road; and 0.4 miles of the Route 110 trail between the Iwo Jima Memorial and Arlington Cemetery.

Sorry W&OD Trail fans, but NVRPA was concerned the trail would be damaged. 

DC will be clearing all bike lanes and most of their trails.

And finally, Montgomery County 

is launching a pilot snow removal program this winter for the Montgomery Parks portion of the Capital Crescent Trail, located in Bethesda. Parks staff will clear snow on three and a half miles of the trail starting at the Bethesda Avenue entrance point to the Montgomery County / Washington D.C. line, as well as along 12 feeder trails. Parks staff will begin clearing the trail within 24 hours from when snow stops falling.

It remains to be seen what NPS will do about Rock Creek and the MVT. 

Comments

[DaveS]

"I think we had a good year last year, and we're going to have an even better year this year!"

Can't wait to see.

[DE]

There has already been blowback on the Arlington $300k expenditure on places as far removed as the Arlington streetcar article in the Post. They appear to be patterning their protests after the million dollar bus stop, streetcar, and bike counter whinges. I fear that unless we are vocal in our support of this, it could easily be dropped in the future.

I'll make sure to get counted every day by the Arlington bike counter.

[Greenbelt]

Any idea if MNCPPC might plow parts of the NE and NW Branch trails that get a lot of commuter traffic?

[Chris Slatt]

NVRPA WILL be doing some snow clearing on the W&OD, but they will do it themselves and with a snow blower not a plow.

http://regionalparks.blogspot.com/2014/03/snow-on-w-trail.html

Arlington allocated $300,000 for plowing equipment and a storage shed to put it all in. This is not the annual amount spent on trail clearing because that would be completely ludicrous.

Both of these are important pieces of information to make clear when talking about trail clearing!!!

[Fred]

W&OD was horrible when it snowed last year. Hope they will be able to better this year.

[jeffb]

FYI,
Park Service has cleared the snow from the DC portion of the CCT for the last several years.

Now that Montgomery County will be doing their share the CCT will no long be the "trail to nowhere" during the Winter.

[AtlasCesar]

One problem I remember from last year was that after the L St Cycletrack was plowed, the entrance bollards were not replaced. With nothing to stop them from entering, motorists used the cycletrack as a way to skip the traffic. Once one person did it, others often followed suit. I don't use those dangerous cycletracks anymore, but when I did in the past, I got honked at a bunch of times from behind for "getting in the way". Hopefully, the bollards will be replaced this year once plowing has occurred. Won't make much of a difference for me, but I'd imagine there are still a lot of people brave enough to use the cycletracks.

[dynaryder]

Dude,tough up.
http://www.scmp.com/news/china-insider/article/1642217/photos-brave-beijing-expat-standing-car-bike-lane-go-viral

[Lit up]

I'm pretty surprised that the NPS cleared the CCT. Given the (lack of) care they put into pretty much everything, I figured they'd give cyclists the finger in that respect, too.

[DE]

Why do I feel that if that person in Beijing tried that here he'd be run down, then cited by the police?

[AtlasCesar]

The funny thing is, I did that once last year to a taxi driver and the passenger got out to berate me. I felt like a bit of a dick; it wasn't his fault that the driver was a criminal

[Crickey7]

MontCo residents need to remember the role Roger Berliner played in making this happen.

[T]

Wait, NPS cleared the CCT but won't do the MVT? I demand equality!

I did notice the cool thing on 15th Cycletrack last night with reflects or maybe they're partially lit lane dividers by solar? Couldn't tell quite which it was as it was dark, but neat nonetheless.

[Jeffb]

@Lit Up
Over the years I used the CCT for commuting the Park Service maintenace folks have been first class.

Always prompt to remove downed trees and snow. One time a rider crashed because of tree roots. The Park Service promptly shaved them down.

Awhile back when the trestle bridge required major repair they insisted the crews work at night and provide a plywood overlay for cyclists to continue crossing when the bridge deck was removed.

[John]

I don't think it remains to be seen, I think we know exactly what they'll do for the MVT: nothing. They certainly didn't last year, which was why I took several spills even riding at quite low speeds. I'm sure they'll continue to not put any resources into clearing the trail this year, regardless of how major a commuter trail it is.

[me]

FYI In the District, taxis are required by law to pull over to the curb, when it is free of parked cars, to pick up or drop off passengers. The law might need updating to handle cycletracks, but that's how it stands.