TheWashCycle

Discuss Capital Regional Trails and more tonight in Alexandria

The Alexandria Bicycle  and Pedestrian Advisory Committee invites you:

Please join us for a great program starting at 7 PM on Monday, May 15th. The program includes the following:

1. Discussions about the regional Trails with Katie Harris, Capital Trails Coalition Coordinator

2. An East Coast Greenway update from Tom Kaiden, Vice Chair, Board of Trustees East Coast Greenway Alliance, and Chief Operating Officer of the Alexandria Convention & Visitors Association

3. Discussion of City of Alexandria's Vision Zero with Ray Hayhurst, City Transportation Staff

4. Upcoming events and volunteers opportunities

a. Bicycle and Pedestrian counts 5 to 7 PM Thursday (5/18) and 12 to 2 PM Saturday (5/20), Contact Randy Dingwell [email protected]

b. Bike Rodeos Thursday, May 18th, Thursday June 1st and Friday June 9th, Contact Eldon Boes [email protected]

c. Bike to Work Day (May 19th). Register here:

Meeting details: Monday May 15, 2017, 7 to 9 PM at the Bradlee Safeway Community Room, 3526 King Street,
Alexandria

While I'm at it, they're also looking for suggestions for CaBi expansion in Alexandria

Alexandria is expanding its Capital Bikeshare network and invites and welcomes feedback regarding proposed future bikeshare station locations. Community input can be provided through an online form through June 1. The online form can be accessed at https://www.alexandriava.gov/95476

Are you interested in Bikeshare stations near where you live, work or play?

Of 16 potential new locations, which do you think are the "Top 10", e.g. locations near parks, such as Ben Brennan Park (#4), Armistead Booth Park (#5), or the Cameron Run Regional Park #8; or libraries, e.g. the Barrett Library (#3); destinations such as the Braddock Road Metro Station (#1) or the Foxchase Shopping Center (served by proposed location #7 at Duke Street and the Holmes Run Trail) and/or in communities such as Arlandria, with a station proposed at #14 Reed Avenue and Edison Street, or in the West End, near the Hallmark and other Condominiums with a station proposed at #11 Holmes Run Pkwy & N Pickett St? Please provide your inputs and share this note with friends. More information and the online form can be accessed here.

Alexandria to turn N Van Dorn, King and Glebe into Complete Streets this summer

As noted in the Alexandria Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) meeting notes from May, Alexandria is on the verge of realizing three important Complete Streets projects. 

N. Van Dorn

This project, last discussed here, will

• Remove one travel lane in each direction along North Van Dorn Street between Braddock Road and Menokin Drive
• Reduce the speed limits on North Van Dorn Street from 35mph to 25mph between Braddock Road and the southern most driveway to Park Place Condominiums.
• Restripe North Van Dorn to accommodate pedestrian refuge islands and protected bike lanes.
• Add a traffic signal at the intersection of North Van Dorn and Menokin Drive.
• Add Flex posts to the bike lanes next spring to provide a protected bike lane 

This was approved in by the Traffic and Parking Board in May and work on the resurfacing was to begin last month. Update: And so it has. See image by William F. Yurasko below

King Street

This project, approved last week, will

• Remove an eastbound travel lane on King Street between Chinquapin Drive and Janney’s Lane and a westbound travel lane on King Street between Kenwood Avenue and Janney’s Lane. In it's place it will add 7 pedestrian refuge islands, an eastbound bike lane (buffered most of the way) and a west bound bike lane that becomes a shared lane on the far west side. 
• Install “No Right Turn on Red” signs at southbound Kenwood Avenue at King Street
• Reduce the speed limit from 35mph to 25mph on King Street between Chinquapin Drive and Melrose Street

Roadway resurfacing will begin in August 2016, the striping and islands will be installed in conjunction with the repaving.

Glebe Road

On East Glebe, between Commonwealth and Route 1, changes were approved in May that include

• The lanes will be narrowed
• An eastbound climbing lane will be installed between Commonwealth Ave. and Route 1
• A westbound bicycle lane will be installed between Wilson Ave. and Commonwealth Ave with a shared lane east of that.
• A bicycle box will be installed on southbound Commonwealth Ave at Glebe Road

On West Glebe, the lanes will be narrowed and shared lanes will be installed in the outside lanes from Commonwealth to Russel Roa. 

Markings on East Glebe Road between Route 1 and Commonwealth Ave. were to be installed in June, the bicycle box this month and markings on West Glebe Road between Commonwealth Ave. and Russell Road to be installed next spring. 

And a couple other items from the BPAC notes

• It was reported that Ryan Brown was riding on the sidewalk on South King Street before his crash at the intersection of Duke Street and West Taylor Run on May 5. The Alexandria Police are still investigating the crash.
• Jerry King (of BPAC) and Yon Lambert (Alexandria's Transportation Director) will go to a meeting with National Park Service Staff to discuss bike lanes on Memorial Bridge

Bike Ride: In Search of the W&OD in Alexandria.

From Jonathon Krall of the Alexandria Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee

This informal Community Bike Ride will take us on a search for the remnants of
the Washington and Old Dominion Trail in Alexandria. There is enough of this
trail left that one could imagine a trail/road bike boulevard parallel to West
Glebe including trail sections and Tennessee Ave. Probably not realistic, but
nice to think about. One section, less than a mile, will be on wood-chip-paved
dirt and some riding will be on sidewalks, but most will be on low-speed roads
or bike paths. We will stop often to point out where the W&OD railroad once
delivered passengers to St Elmo and Alexandria Junction. We should get back to
Del Ray in time for the Dairy Godmother to open at noon.
This will be a no drop ride.

The 7-mile route (more or less): http://goo.gl/7rZeWJ

Date: Saturday May 24, 10 am - Noon
Location: Velocity Bike Co-op, 2111 Mt Vernon Ave, 22301
Cost: There is no cost to attend.
Bring: Yourself, a bicycle, water, a sense of adventure.
In Virginia, helmets are required for riders 14 and younger.

This ride will go ahead unless rain is expected.

RSVP is optional. RSVP via Meetup:
http://www.meetup.com/Alexandria-Biking-and-Walking/events/181748332/

All-powerful bike lobby swoops into Alexandria, demands bike lanes

From a LTTE in the Patch. 

The sudden appearance of outsiders lobbying to install bike lanes on a dangerous section of King Street is unwarranted interference. Together with the local bike lobby’s twisted reporting of the recent Traffic and Parking session, they create undue animosity. But this is what lobbyists do… stand in the way of change that does not wholly benefit them alone.

I don't normally think of speaking at a public hearing as "lobbying". That's usually a back-room kind of thing that usually comes with political contributions. And I'm pretty sure that lobbyist have to register as such. I doubt that Aimee Custis of CSG or Greg Billing of WABA are registered lobbyists. Maybe I'm wrong. Who cares when lobbyist is such a good way to make the opposition look bad? [What happened here was advocacy, but we like advocates]. Nor would I call these groups outsiders since they have members from Alexandria.

the bike lobby and others conduct a, perhaps unintended but nonetheless disruptive campaign targeted at people who are simply trying to get where they’re going, either on foot or in a vehicle. Like an invasive species pushing into spaces successfully occupied by natives. In Alexandria we are trying to create a new space that accommodates everyone.

Are the cars and pedestrians the natives, and cyclists the invasive species? Regardless, yes we are trying to create space that accommodates everyone.

Under cover of the mostly untried “Complete Streets” policy, lobbyists’ rhetoric was used to obscure the real difficulty of mixing multiple modes (cars, trucks, buses, pedestrians, bicycles) while ensuring safe passage for all. Despite attempts around the world, mixing modes can produce new accident patterns and many near misses. This happens most often in places like this small section of King Street. Here, a high incidence of traffic accidents, narrow roadway, limited sidewalks, and steep hill, all combine. 

You know what would help reduce the mixing? Bike lanes.

The number of lobbyists from outside the city was surprising

And that number was how many?

but about how to change this small and very dangerous section of King Street to accommodate everyone. Safely executing this for all three modes may not be possible without greatly increasing all around risk.

I fail to see how removing parking and replacing it with a bike lane decreases safety. 

Finally, it was stunning to hear the bike lobby characterize cyclists as “traffic calming devices” or “buffers.” The ethics of this rhetoric, which advocates deliberately putting cyclists in the way of harm, is immoral and irresponsible. As an early speaker, a safety expert testified: the goal of situations like the King Street renovation is to reduce—not increase—risk to ALL users.

I wasn't there, but this doesn't sound right. Bike lanes are traffic calming devices (or so the theory goes), not bicyclists. 

What's most amazing about this article is that she only mentions parking once and never in the context that this is what residents are fighting for. No, residents on King Street are concerned most about safety and the safety of cyclists. This is why they oppose the bike lanes. Bold.  

Making Cycling Irresistible in Alexandria

The Alexandria Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory (BPAC) Committee is delighted to announce that Ralph Buehler, co-author of City Cycling, will give a lecture on "Making Cycling Irresistible in Alexandria, Lessons from European and North American Cities."

Time: Tuesday February 19, 6:30 pm
Place: Durant Center, 1605 Cameron St, 22314
Cost: Free and open to the public

This lecture will be followed by the regular monthly meeting of the BPAC committee at 7:30 pm. BPAC meetings are also open to the public.

BPAC has the goal of making walking and bicycling attractive and fun for Alexandrians of all ages and abilities. We hope you will attend.

Ralph Buehler at Alexandria BPAC

 Ralph Buehler, co-author of City Cycling, will give a lecture on 'Making Cycling Irresistible in Alexandria, Lessons from European and North American Cities'

Time: Tuesday February 19, 6:30 pm
Place: Durant Center, 1605 Cameron St, 22314
Cost: Free and open to the public

This lecture will be followed by the regular monthly meeting of the Alexandria Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) at 7:30 pm. BPAC meetings are also open to the public.

Alexandria BPAC has the goal of making walking and bicycling attractive and fun for Alexandrians of all ages an abilities. We hope you will attend.

Alexandria BPAC: Community Ride to Celebrate Capital BikeShare

Our September ride will be a slow moving 10 mile ride to celebrate the debut of Capital Bikeshare in Alexandria! We will visit all eight CaBi stations and will point out locations where we hope to see future stations. The proposed update to the Old Town bicycle network will also be highlighted.

Because we are riding through Old Town, there will be lots riding on low volume, slow traffic streets with many stop signs.

When: Saturday September 22, 10 am - 1 pm
Where: St Elmo's Coffee Pub (meet outside)
2300 Mt Vernon Ave, 22301
Bring: Yourself, a bicycle, water, a sense of adventure
Cost: None, but limited to 20 riders

We will visit these stations in order:

Braddock Road Metro
N Henry St. & Pendleton St.
N Saint Asaph St. & Pendleton St.
Prince St. & Union St.
King Street - Old Town Metro
Commerce St. & S Fayette St.
King St. & S Patrick St.
King St. & N Royal St.

RSVP: Jonathan Krall ([email protected])

This ride will go ahead unless steady or heavy rain is expected.
We look forward to seeing you there!

Aug 2012 Alexandria BPAC meeting

The Alexandria Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) will hold it's monthly meeting at the Durant Center from 7 to 9 PM. We welcome all who are interested in promoting bicycling and walking in Alexandria.

What: BPAC monthly meeting

When: Monday August 20th, 7 PM

Where: Durant Center, 1605 Cameron Street, Alexandria, VA 22314

Why?: Because children need safe routes to school.

Agenda includes: City code on sidewalk riding and bicycle registration, Union Street Corridor Study, Slater's Lane restriping, new parking corrals, Capital Bikeshare, community bicycle rides and much, much more.

Tuesday Morning Commute - 50lb trailer

Good morning

• As alluded to here, bicycle advocates met with transportation officials at the Wilson Bridge to discuss the bollardization of America (or at least the Wilson Bridge area). In short, it's too late to do much about it, but they'll add some paint and plastic bollards to further warn trail users. 
• From that same tweet, it appears that WABA has talked to someone about allowing cyclists on the Navy Yard Promenade. 
• Have you ever wanted to ride your bike for a living while making bike parking better for everyone? If so then this is the job for you. 
• CaBi set a new record in June, with over 200,000 trips for the month.  Through the first seven months of 2012, they're at 940,000 rides. In 2011, they had 1.2 million rides for the whole year. Meanwhile stations in Alexandria are so close to being installed that "you can touch it."
• Speaking of Alexandria, their BPAC is looking for volunteers to do bicycle counts next week. 
• City Bikes is hosting a free bike repair clinic on July 4th.

Opposition to Alexandria bike share is misinformed

Townsend Van Fleet of the Alexandria Waterfront Commission wrote a letter to the Alexandria Gazette Packet recently criticizing the introduction of Capital Bikeshare to old town. 

In an historic venue like Old Town Alexandria with its narrow streets already crowded with pedestrians, tour buses, metro buses, dash buses, delivery trucks, trolleys, garbage trucks, skate boarders, joggers, and cyclists, putting more bikes on our narrow streets is just an another impediment and not one that we would consider in our best traffic practices.

He's also critical of the method of funding (with local dollars instead of FHWA money) and with outreach ["Believe it or not the Old Town Civic Association has not even been briefed on the proposed implementation of the bike share program"].

Jonathan Krall of the Alexandria Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee wrote a response pointing out that bike share would at best add only a trivial number of bikes to the road

about 2,000 bicyclists per day visit the Alexandria waterfront. Capital Bikeshare, by contrast, will roll out this summer with only 70 bicycles in the entirely of Old Town. Next to those already present, an additional 70 bicycles constitutes a very small molehill indeed.

He also points out that those cyclists represent an opportunity. 

Studies show that for a store front business bicycle traffic is like foot traffic — it is easy for a cyclist to stop and shop. People who shop by bicycle shop locally and shop often. They are important to our community and to our finances.

I would add that bike share should help to REDUCE congestion. This is because ti will get some people out of their cars or taxis and onto bikes. Since much of traffic congestion is caused by people circling the block looking for parking, that results in a benefit. And cyclists often travel in the empty spaces between pulses of traffic, or on trails, or in bike lanes or on quiet side streets or in other places where cars are not. In fact a recent report on creating a bike network in Alexandria recommends this.

it is difficult to find room for dedicated facilities on King Street. Instead, dedicated facilities are proposed for Prince and Cameron Streets.

If you're concerned with congestion, then you want more biking, not less.