Yes, I would say that a speeding highway and a sheer marble cliff just might "discourage pedestrian traffic." I vote to close RCPP and reroute the cars over to the empty stretch of I-66 on the other side of the Ken Cen. Then, a simple fireman pole would provide adequate access from the River Terrace down to the trail!

Oh, and closer to home, in Quebec, driver and car registration fees include an annual premium for universal, province-run auto injury insurance. Drivers of larger vehicles and drivers with demerit points pay more each year.

Nearly 300 people are injured every day by hit and runs in the USA. It's not exactly uncommon... Which is why other countries have socialized car insurance, as well as health insurance. In New Zealand, the Accident Compensation Corporation set up for workers' comp claims also handles auto insurance -- and is paid from fuel taxes and registration fees, which have the added benefit of raising the price of (and thus deterring) driving.

That particular author might actually be more offended by saying that D.C. would be more like Paris or Copenhagen -- which brings with it the notion of a gentrified urban core and suburbanized, multiracial poverty. In a city and region that are majority non-white (but where a supermajority of cyclists are white), I wouldn't want to perpetuate the unfortunate stereotype that only white people bike. I doubt that letter-writer can be persuaded of much, and obviously seems to prefer Manichean views on matters of both faith and state, but I'd respond with: 1. Churches should be good neighbors 2. Many people of faith don't drive to their places of worship 3. Nobody has ever proposed to ban all cars, much less emergency vehicles; "5% fewer" is very different from "none" 4. If you do want to talk about Asian cities, how about Tokyo? A global capital that's objectively more prosperous, safe, and clean than any U.S. city, headquarters to major automakers like Honda and Subaru, where countless trains run on time and yet 1/6 of trips are on bikes.

I've ridden Broad Branch a few times recently. The drivers are generally courteous, but it's pretty harrowing due to the incline, poor sight lines, and some confusing intersection geometries (particularly at Beach, Brandywine, and 27th). If it's the second public meeting, you'd think that DDOT would have something more than an informational notice on the web.

In other election news, "not anti-bike" Grace Daughtridge lost ANC 6D05, and along the way assaulted someone in an alleged hate crime.

Oh no, socialism! “I’ve been giving that a lot of thought, and I kind of believe that maybe there is a place for government to build streets.” -- Ayn Rand

Re: Bixi daily use. There probably isn't any technical challenge to allowing out-of-town Bixi keys (e.g., ours) to function that way.

The NoMa BID has invested in a few of these. However, the other night the two I visited (NWC 1st & M and SEC 1st & K) were both broken.

Sorry. I need to close the tag. Whew, much better.

The pedestrian cluelessness at this location knows no boundaries. I once had to yell at a crowd of people who had set up huge cameras on tripods in the middle of the trail -- at night! I've taken hundreds of photos while momentarily standing in the middle of the street, but I cannot fathom anyone being so stupid as to just plop down $1000s of camera gear in the middle of a busy road. The people parking on the grass last weekend were using the bike path as a drive aisle to reach said "informal parking lot." The last thing I was expecting to nearly run into while rounding the corner was a car driving up the path, but sure enough... Whenever I've needed facilities in this stretch (including Mayorga coffee and wi-fi), I just duck into the airport. For those on bikes, it's an ever so slight detour, and there are bike racks to lock up to.

Private bike usage in Paris doubled in the year after Velib' was introduced, with a corresponding increase in shops' sales. The effect of CaBi would be difficult to tease out from any number of other factors that have led to growing bike sales for the past few years, but I am certain that CaBi has not hurt bike shops. Helmet provision is the natural next step from the initial response of "you can buy a helmet at these locations," and given the limited audience I don't see that it would make a big difference. I actually renewed early to buy a CaBi helmet as a backup to have for houseguests, etc. It's about as universal fit as any you'll find on the market, with a nice cam adjuster. Besides, most <$50 helmets are one-size anyways. Then again, I'm the kind of person who usually wears a >$100 helmet, so I wouldn't really be the target market for a $16 helmet in the first place.

Not sure if it's a brand standard, but the Park Hyatt Chicago had similar bikes available even in the dead of winter.

Another thing about performance parking: by guaranteeing available spaces, it will reduce the number of drivers who are circling around looking for parking (and who drive very erratically as a result).

The French say "modes doux" (doux = sweet, light) to describe not driving. I've never liked the patronizing "alternative transportation" label, despite generally being a fan of alt-this and alt-that. I used the new ART bridge yesterday as an alternative to Capitol Hill streets for a ride between H St and the Capitol Riverfront. Added about 50% in terms of mileage, but twas a great day to go the extra distance.

Aw, thanks, Will. Can't take much credit for much, though; the camera was hoisted above my head, and since I'm colorblind I let the computer/camera take care of the colors.

re: bicyclebug's CaBiChallenge. S/he could have used two credit cards. Arrive at a full station with bike, use CC#2 to check out a bike, return bike paid for with CC#1 into newly empty dock. Or, if you just want to verify that you've visited all the stations, you could just ride your own bike around and print off an unlock code from each station. (I guess that wouldn't work if the printer's down, though.) Sounds like a fun little summer game.

As I understand it, the northbound green signal on 15th would also get a flashing yellow left-turn signal. That would indicate that those turning left on the green phase (as opposed to the green-arrow phase) should cautiously turn. Actuating the left turns would also help. I've often stopped at red lights only to see that a green arrow was directing no one to turn left.

I also just noticed signs in the Yards Park which also say "no bikes." So yes, them's the rules: you must walk your bike between 2nd and 11th St SE.

VERY glad to see signal timing called out on the east half of Pennsylvania. As for 15th, I have gotten 90% red lights before while riding down; the stretch south of Mass with lots of left-turn signals is particularly bad. Given that so much of DC has traffic lights every 500' or so (including many lightly trafficked residential areas like Capitol Hill), and given that we're getting into I'm-dripping-sweat weather, I'm beginning to really pay attention to signal timing. Likewise, I'll echo RLL that the 16/U/NH bike box doesn't function very well. IME, it's always been faster to just cross with the crosswalks. 60% red light compliance is also much better than the 0% red light compliance that many people insist they see from cyclists! I very rarely see cyclists completely blow through lights; it's rare enough that I typically call them out ("not cool") when I do.

I heard that Navy Annex was going to become cemetery land from Arlington staff at a Columbia Pike meeting last summer, but the deal was signed in 2008. Southgate's a nice, if unnecessarily steep, bike route alternative to the Pike along there.

Yeah, I realized that when I thudded someone's hood for turning right without yielding to a crowd of pedestrians. Even with dozens of witnesses (and one traffic cop), the guy still got out of the car and started yelling. Nowadays I just yell if I'm on foot, or ding my bell -- which unfortunately doesn't always get heard, or somehow sounds "un-manly" to others (like a bystander who thought my bell-ringing was hilarious, which was just even more maddening while I was being cut off by an oblivious bike lane swerving driver). However, I just can't bring myself to go the air-horn route.

Montreal also bans bikes during rush hour, even though it was the first target of a street theater campaign à la WashCycle. (Toronto also bans bikes at rush hour.) I currently sometimes take a bike on board at around 3:45PM, and always I feel like a total tool whenever I do. I also have a "station bike" near work and bikeshare near home. I recently had a rear rack stolen from my bike while it was locked outside a Metro station one evening (since I couldn't bring it aboard). I fought a 40MPH headwind for an hour once because I was denied entry to empty trains on the desolate south side of Chicago.* I even own a folding bike. Despite all this, I support the rush hour restriction. It's mass transit, intended to move masses of people. Strollers are supposed to be folded, luggage is not something people typically travel with daily, but bikes are. In my estimation, major Metrorail stations have fewer entrances and fewer vertical circulation points than other systems, both to the surface and to the platform. In addition, the X-shaped transfer stations bottleneck at the crossing point. * Before anyone says this is racist, I lived on the south side and was trying to board the Green Line, which is epically underutilized.

Last I checked, there were still some no-bikes signs on the closed streets south of Independence, between the LOC and House office buildings. Sidewalk riding is a-okay, but not in the street -- a pain for anyone headed to NW from the Navy Yard area. (Never noticed any such signs on the Senate side.) @Will: I like the idea of the "security woonerf." This approach could reconcile the feds' security obsession with better, more pedestrian-friendly urban design and with a less congested urban core. Coincidentally, NCPC is accepting public comments on federal urban design -- and it really does take just a moment to suggest that Lafayette Square is a great, pedestrian-friendly, secure urban space.

I first spotted the fat-bike on the ride near the White House. He wasn't at Brookland, where I joined.