TheWashCycle

311 is joke in your town

Dana writes in

After the snow storm last Tuesday (17 February), bicycle commuters using the 14^th Street Bridge thought they knew two things.  Based on past experience, the bridge would be cleared and the Mount Vernon Trail would be untouched.  For my Wednesday commute it turned out the conventional wisdom was only half right – the Mount Vernon Trail was covered in snow but, while the traffic lanes on the upstream span of the 14^th Street Bridge had been completely cleared, the bike and pedestrian lane remained covered in snow.  At the DC end of the span, the ramp from East Basin Drive (in front of the Jefferson) to the actual bridge had been fully cleared, apparently by the National Park Service.

After walking my bike across the bridge, I logged into the District of Columbia’s 311 system to record a service ticket for snow removal.  That process was a bit problematic in that the on line system insisted on a street address and the 14^th Street Bridge doesn’t have one.

My ticket, recorded at 10:28 am on Wednesday read “Remove snow from the bike/ped lane on the upstream span of the 14th Street Bridge. Roadways were clear but bike/ped lanes were untouched.” The ticket was recorded as having been completed at 3:02 pm the same day. My evening commute across the bridge revealed the lanes had not been touched.

On Thursday morning, I called the 311 system and logged a second request.  I asked the 311 operator to contact me if there were any questions.  At about 10:15 am on Thursday, the 311 operator called me and conferenced in a District of Columbia Department of Transportation employee.  We discussed the location that needed snow removal and I thought success would be achieved.  Trail condition reports for the evening commute suggested that my optimism was premature as the snow and ice remained in the bike and pedestrian lane untouched. 

On Thursday evening, I logged my second on-line request, reading “Previous service ticket 15-00036086 was for the ped/bike lane on the southbound span of the 14th Bridge over the Potomac. The snow has not been removed from the ped/bike lane although the service ticket was shown as completed. Access to the ped/bike lane is from East Basin Drive in front of the Jefferson Memorial. If you think this has been completed, please contact me.”

That ticket was closed on Sunday (22 Feb) morning with the explanation that the ped/bike lane on the 14^th Street Bridge was “Private Property - Close SR” and I was advised to contact the “Federal (sic) Park Service” by the 311 system.

While I can understand the District establishing snow removal priorities, I find the process of actually logging a service request so cumbersome it might discourage the public engagement the system was intended to enhance.  It is baffling that the District’s service request process seems to make identifying and requesting municipal services by the public less effective.

To improve the process, the District needs to allow individuals identifying service requests to either point on a map or describe the location.  To rely on a pull down without some ability to provide other location information is a recipe for failure.  The 311 system should also provide some ability to challenge the conclusion of the system operators without the need to log a new service request.

The reality is that the District government, agencies, as well as members of the public all would benefit from a system that actually allows users to successfully log service requests. 

I use the app, and have had mixed results, but one nice feature over the website, which Dana used, is the ability to pick the spot on a map.

Nonetheless, I've had mixed results. Requesting bike parking installation (which does not have it's own category - should I use "Bicycle Issues" or "Parking"?) is an act of faith, a little like throwing a message in a bottle and hoping it gets found. Potholes have more success, though I battled with 311 over one particular pothole last summer. They kept reporting it fixed and I kept hitting it. It's not as user friendly as it could be, and clearly wasn't designed for dealing with bike issues like trails and sidepaths. 

In addition, pushing responsibility off to the citizen to contact NPS is a low-service move. The DC government is there to serve citizens, and dealing with the federal government is one way that they - being the professionals can do that. Certainly someone at DDOT has a better chance of contacting the right person at NPS than Joe Citizen does. In addition, I'd be surprised if clearing snow off the 14th Street Bridge is really NPS' responsibility. 

I've not used the Arlington report a problem tools, so I can't speak to how much better or worse those are.

In an ideal world, there would be but one regional toolset that would lead to the proper agency (DDOT, DPW, NPS, Arlington DOT, AOC, VDOT, etc...) being tasked, but that is admittedly a big lift. CaBi and WMATA are really exceptional in that regard. 

Regional snow clearing getting better for cyclists

The Gazette had an article on the first snow event to result in snow clearing.

With forecasts calling for a dusting to 2 inches of powdery snow on Tuesday, Devlin said, workers initially thought they would be able to use a snowblower to clear the trail. The 3 to 4 inches that actually fell required them to go back and plow, however.

“Had we started with a plow from the start, we probably would have done it in four hours, tops,” he said. “[The] first one out is always more difficult.”

People who wrote in said that the Bethesda-to-Washington segment of the trail was mostly cleared to the pavement by Tuesday evening, making it easy to bike and hike. They did say, however, that the Washington portion of the trail had packed snow and ice, and reminded people to watch out for black ice on the pavement

Arlington County cleared snow from trails this year and DDOT was out removing snow from trails and protected bike lanes by noon on Tuesday. So snow removal was better this year than in the past (but not perfect). 

At the Bicycle Advisory Council this week, the DDOT representative noted that they learned a lot from this snow and they're hoping to learn more throughout the season, which they're viewing as a test year. For example, the Toolcat they bought fits everywhere they want to go, but the blade on the front is wider, so it doesn't. [They plan to order a new blade]. They also had trouble getting equipment to negotiate the Met Branch Trail switchback at M Street NE. Such experiences are not just informing them about what equipment is needed, but how future projects should be designed, operated and maintained. So, things are better this year, and should get even better going forward. 

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. 

The future of Arlington bicycle facilities

Most readers by now know that Arlington added its first cycletrack on S. Hayes in August, and perhaps that the county plans to add another stretch to S. Eads this year (though talk was of doing it this September) between 15th and 23rd, but there is more that Arlington is working on and planning to do on top of that.

On S. Eads, the county will reduce the road from 4 lanes to 3 (one in each direction and center turning lane) to make room for the protected bike facility. This is a pilot project but if all goes well, it would become permanent.

Wilson Blvd between Rosslyn and Courthouse could also get a protected bike lane when it's repaved next year. This is in design and evaluation right now. Another project on Wilson will repave the road from N. Frederick to Manchester street in spring of 2015. That project will create bike lanes between Bluemont Park and N. Frederick Street. Sharrows will then connect those bike lanes to ones on N. George Mason Drive and the Bluemont Trail. Later those bike lanes could be converted to cycletracks. 

Construction is expected to begin in late 2015 on improvements to the Custis Trail around the "Intersection of Doom" in Rosslyn. This will include widening the trail from 10 feet to 16, improving visibility at the Holiday Inn entrance, removing a lane from Lynn Street that will shorten the crossing there and adding waiting areas at both corners. Control of right turns on red are in development. 

The County is working on a complete review of bicycle parking and planning to use an app to help them with this. Efforts include review of best practices from elsewhere, better coordination with other County agencies, installation of more bike parking in the curbside right-of-way (especially in commercial districts), changes to the zoning code to require bike parking minimums in all development and working with private property owners to add more bike parking. In addition, the County plans to start using an app called RackSpotter that will allow for crowdsourcing the location of every bike rack in the county in order to create a complete inventory as well as identify places where racks are needed. Users will also be able to see where the closest rack is, including a photo. Games to encourage use will be used. The product is currently in beta testing. 

The County has nearly completed the installation of 280 on-street wayfinding signs planned for the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor and 200 more along the Custis Trail. The County plans to add another 400 signs on its trail network in the near future. 

The County now has 31 automated county devices including the Bikeometer in Rosslyn. The data from these can be viewed by anyone at this website.

Arlington does plan to clear snow from trails this winter, but maybe not from the W&OD Trail. NVRPA is concerned that the trail will be damaged during snow removal.  

One unusual problem Arlington is dealing with is that the only contractor they had to paint bike lanes green went out of business, so they're trying to work through that setback to find a replacement. 

NoMa BID installs bike pump and repair stand

Photo by John

This was installed last week at M Street near the Metro station. 

I've heard varying reports that other pumps, including the one at College Park Metro and another one in NoMa, have fallen apart and so it seems vandalizism and use are going to be an issue. Maintenance will be key to keeping the assets from becoming useless. 

Arlington budgets $300,000 to plow trails

NoVa winter bikers rejoice. 

The Board also funded ... $300,000 for plowing snow from bike trails.

Winter Trail Maintenance Discussed at County Board Meeting

At the February Arlington County Board Meeting, WABA President Mark Blacknell testified on the issue of clearing snow from trails.

County Staff responded that they cleared 18 miles of trails including the W&OD, the Custis Trail and the Four Mile Run Trail among others. Jay Fisette asks if there is a more systemic set of changes that can be carried out to deal with the issue. Another councilmember talks about the communication aspect of this, and how to let people know which trails are cleared. Walter Tejada congratulates the county on their trail clearin during the last storm. 

 

 

Snow hearing right now

Sorry about the lateness of this, but Mary Cheh is holding a hearing on the city's snow readiness right now.

"The hearing will take place at 11 a.m. in the Council Chambers, Room 500, John A. Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW."

If someone can go, it would not be a bad idea to ask about trails, cycletracks and bike lanes. 

Wednesday Morning Commute - longtails

Good morning

• Comparison photos of the new 11th Street Bridge which includes sections of the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail and a much better bike/ped facility. 
• DDOT filled a lot of potholes, but many were not patched well - and not with cyclists in mind. 
• On the Fort Totten Metro "Anna Chamberlain, a DDOT transportation planner, talked about how streetscape improvements could calm traffic, making streets around the Metro station more pedestrian- and bike-friendly. DDOT is also working to improve connections to the Metro, as some areas lack clearly defined walking paths. The agency will begin designing a path connecting the Metro to the Metropolitan Branch Trail within the next few months."
• Failed to report this earlier. CaBi set new one month records in April and then again in May, with 256,968 trips in month as the new high. Ridership was up 38% from 2012 in April and 31% in May. Though mileage data hasn't been updated since March, it's likely the system had it's 5 millionth mile in June. Trips per bike per month are down only a little from 2012, despite a nearly 40% increase in bikes. 
• Bicycle related crashes in Farifax County are up 25% from 2011 to 2012. That seems like a lot even if increased cycling is considered. I wonder if it's better reporting. "As part of their study, Fairfax County police also determined about a quarter of the bicyclists were not wearing reflective clothing at the time of their crashes. Police said they're teaming up with private cycling groups to help educate folks on how to properly share the road." OK, but how many of those crashes were at night? And did the bike have reflectors or lights? I often don't wear reflective clothing, and it isn't required by law. 
• Cargo bikes are catching on, and they aren't just for cargo either. 

Tuesday Morning Commute - New Mexico Avenue

Good morning

• WABA is calling on cyclists to attend the ANC 3D meeting on May 1st to support bike lanes on New Mexico Avenue. "The bike lanes will be about 1 mile in length from Nebraska Ave NW, continuing south to Tunlaw Rd. NW."
• There's a planning meeting tommorrow night on the Rosslyn Plaza project (site plan below) that includes a bicycle and pedestrian bridge would extend over I-66 and the GW Parkway from an esplanade to the Mount Vernon Trail. "Its feasibility has not been determined and will be discussed during the review of the PDSP."
• One man puts Potholepalloza to the test. "Over the next four weeks, I will be biking all over DC to find and report as many potholes as possible. I will track all of the requests to see if and how quickly the potholes get filled, and how well." Is he a hero or just a man who hates potholes? Perhaps the answer is both.
• LAB on Mayor Foxx. "Under his leadership, Charlotte has invested in light rail, a bikeway network, and a bikesharing system. The city’s Complete Streets approach to building a transportation system that serves all users is a model for the nation."