Click here to see our petition to end the 17th St Bike Plan
It’s not just 17th street! DECAA has joined forces with other DC residents to ask for reconsideration of plans for bike lanes.
click www.DCSafeStreetsCoalition.org to see information about the DC coalition on bike lanes
and saveconnecticutave.org to see information about Connecticut avenue.
PEOPLE WITH MOBILITY DISABILITIES SUE THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
FOR STREET REDESIGN VIOLATING ACCESSIBILITY LAWS click here to see information about this lawsuit
A Resolution on Urban Safe Streets
Developed at the Brooklyn-DC Bike Safety Conference of Aug. 15, 2022
(Recorded on YouTube channel Dupont East Civic Action Association)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZOYnhb9bao
“In the interest of safety for all users of urban streets, we support the following:
Use of bikes in urban traffic be regulated; Cyclists obey traffic regulations and traffic regulations be enforced. We call for:
Formal education and training on how to use a bike on city streets and bike certification,
A requirement to wear helmets,
Registration of bikes used in city traffic and licensing of cyclists,
A requirement for bike insurance, as the insurance industry is skilled at collecting data and assessing liability,
A Requirement that cyclists carry their bike registration, license and insurance card, just as drivers do.
Requirements for renting bikes/scooters should be similar to car rental – including insurance”
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Opinions how safe is safe?
Accidents occur most often at intersections; The city must focus on making intersections
safer before installing Protected Bike Lanes (PBLs) which cannot make the intersections safer. The term PBL is a rebranding of the correct term, cycle track, to give the feeling of safety when in fact PBLs can be more dangerous, depending on the frequency of interruptions in the road. The proliferation of PBLs fails to protect the rights of the disabled under ADA.
Use of the term “low stress bike lanes” in urban transit is counterproductive because it encourages a low attention. The streets will never be safe unless all of us are alert and cautious and take responsibility for our behavior.
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Press release Wednesday June 29
by Nicolas DellaDonne
‘How Can We Stop This Project?’ –
Day 1 of 2 Public Meetings on Conn Ave. Bike Plan
More than 90% of questions raised at Tuesday’s virtual presentation of Mayor Muriel Bowser’s Connecticut Ave. Bike Plan opposed the Plan. Amy asked, “How can we stop this Project?” and former head of the Pedestrian Advisory Council Eileen supported Amy. The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) will present the Plan again tonight at 6 pm in person at the University of the District of Columbia (UDC). (Details below)
Based on DDOTs data on the number of cyclists currently using Conn Ave., on a typical day, 68 cyclists were observed on Conn Ave all day. No more than 11 bikers cross the intersection at Nebraska Ave., so presumably no more than 11 would use the full length of the proposed lanes. This revelation supports critics like the city-wide Coalition on DDOT Bike Plans who say the network of Protected Bike Lanes (PBLs) will benefit a tiny demographic of privileged young men, who work downtown. https://saveconnecticutave.org/f/only-handful-of-cyclists-use-conn-ave-each-day
DDOT further reports that both the number and percentage of cyclists in DC peaked in 2017 and have fallen every year since. Nonetheless, DDOT projects a more than 1,000% increase in bike ridership. PBLs in the District are not increasing bike ridership, DDOT reports. Is it possible that cycling was a millennial fad that peaked in 2017, and as they age, they are biking less?
DDOTs Connecticut Avenue Bike Plan is getting a public airing at a propitious moment. In Cambridge, Mass., residents and businesses are suing the city over bike lanes, citing objections to the loss of parking and failure to engage the community. https://savemassave.com/
Meanwhile, studies continue to surface warning of hazards from PBLs, depending on the frequency of interruptions in the road, like intersections, alleys and driveways. The University of Nebraska’s study of PBLs and bicycle crashes in Denver, Colorado, in 2019 showed that a cycle track, that physically separates cyclists from traffic, was more likely to cause crashes. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1061&context=arch_crp_theses Similarly, the 2019 study by the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety (IIHS) demonstrated that PBLs are not safer but more dangerous. https://www.iihs.org/news/detail/some-protected-bike-lanes-leave-cyclists-vulnerable-to-injury
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Press Release Feb28 2022 Nick DellaDonne
Mendo Puts Finger on DDOT Failures
Proposed Changes Lack Data, Comprehensive Planning
Traffic Calming on 17th Street NW
DC Council Chair Phil Mendelson put his finger on a core problem in the District Department of Transportation’s (DDOT) implementation of Vision Zero and other bike-centered policies. Namely, there is little evidence that DDOT really analyzes the full range of traffic issues in the planning process before installation.
The head of the City Council was speaking last evening, March 29, at a candidate forum organized by the Washington Area Bicyclists Association. A bill in the Council, for example, would ban right turn on red (RTOR) to make intersections safer, but the public has yet to see any data to show that the present law which allows RTOR causes accidents.
A complex of traffic bills pending in the Council include Safe Routes to School, Walk Without Worry and the Safer Intersections bill, all justified as safer. Current law, for instance, now requires cyclists to obey the same traffic regulations as car drivers. But one provision, the so-called ‘Idaho Stop,’ would allow cyclists to run stop signs and treat red lights as stop signs, a reckless practice without supporting data. It would sanction bad behavior. That is a novel approach to legislation.
Mendelson also correctly named the Mayor as directly responsible for the administration of DDOT, not the Council, and no legislation cannot substitute for inept administration. Even DDOT Director Everett Lott has cautioned the Council that excessive laws can hamper administration and make us less safe.
“The thrust of these bills would put DDOT on automatic pilot, triggering an automatic response, when what we really need is consideration of the problems to find appropriate solutions and more community engagement,” said Nick DelleDonne, president of Dupont East Civic Action Association (DECCA) where DDOT installed the controversial 17th St. Bike Plan that has caused massive confusion, threatens the many businesses that depend on truck deliveries, and jeopardizes the livable walkable community so highly prized.
DECCA and the city-wide Coalition on DDOT Bike Plans encourage all interested parties to participate in the Council hearings on the RTOR and Idaho Stop bills on May 5.
Feb. 18, 2022