CommuterPageBlog

There's no such thing as bad weather, Part 2

"Neither rain nor snow" can derail the committed walker, runner, or biker. Not one who's properly dressed for the weather, anyway. My last "bad weather" posting elicited some interesting discussions at work and at home. I have noticed that if I bundle up for the cold, by the time I walk to work, I'm hot and sweaty! So I've learned to make better use of layers.

I am mightily impressed with my colleague Ken, who bikes to work every day. He's been biking to work since 2001 and he sold his car a little more than a year ago. He makes his daily 5-mile bike commute in all seasons, and in all weather. (On rare occasions, he'll take a combination of Metrorail and bus.)

Now that the weather's colder, Ken slides a pair of sweatpants right over his dress trousers! He adds a warm jacket, gloves and a hat. (Ken gets a demerit for not wearing a bike helmet in this photo.)

I'm also impressed with Arlington's Director of Transportation, Dennis Leach, another avid bike commuter. I've seen him bike to work in a business suit, and I've seen him bike to the CVS to run a quick errand. Oh, sure, we can all come up with reasons (excuses?) why we have to take the car. These guys are a real inspiration.

Have you read "How to Live Well Without Owning a Car"? Yes, author Chris Balish has all sorts of great data, and he also includes some terrific tips on how we Americans actually CAN get around and live our lives WELL without being strapped into our cars -- and stuck in traffic -- all the time. He's got some great tips from bike commuters on biking to work... and for errands, etc.

Ya gotta read the book -- it will help open you up to new possibilities! And isn't that what the New Year is all about? Happy holidays and happy walking (and biking!), everyone!

---

Diana Sun is Director of Communications for Arlington County, a walking commuter, and a happy resident of the urban village of Clarendon.

Happy Holidays and See You Soon

Thanks for joining us here at CommuterPageBlog. Sorry there's not much new. Our writers are off for the holidays and will return in the new year. And please try to incorporate some walking and transit into your travels.

Angels of Options to the Rescue

At this time of year, what could be more appropriate than angels? And for local employers trying to help their employees battle the stress of commuting what could be better than having the Angels of Options come to their rescue? Just who are these heavenly looking Angels of Options? They are the staff of Arlington Transportation Partners (ATP). ATP assists local employers, residential property managers, developers and hotels with transportation expertise and services.

I'll admit I'm a little biased, but Archangel of ATP Lois DeMeester and her team have built one of the finest organizations of its kind in the country right here in Arlington. 73% of the nearly 200,000 people working in Arlington today work at a company that are members of ATP and provide their employees with a Commuter Benefits Program. Two thirds of these companies provide a transit benefit. These are by far the highest numbers in the region. 91% of the residential property managers in Arlington and 100% of the 41 major hotels also belong. Why is this important?

It's important because recent studies show that site associated TDM or transportation options programs such as those ATP helps implement garner twice as many transit riders and 1/3 less people who drive alone than sites that don't do these things. That means less congestion, less pollution and a better place to live, work and play for everyone. And it's extremely cost effective too.

These are just the highlights. Over the next couple of months we'll bring you a little bit more in-depth information about the programs and services that these Angels of Options provide. To learn more about these Angels now, click on their website. (Note: click on the picture to make it larger.)

It's All About Not Having To Depend On A Car

"It's all about not having to depend on a car." That's what Eric VandeMeulebroecke said in yesterday's "Where We Live" column about choosing to live in his Ashton Heights neighborhood of single family homes that is within walking distance of nearby Ballston and Clarendon (Where We Live: Leafy Spaces and Growing Family Trees; Ann Siegal, Washington Post, December 16, 2006). The article points out that Eric bikes to work downtown. He and his family are able to walk a few blocks to Metro, shopping, restaurants, schools and other activities. The article illustrates that people can indeed Live, work, shop, play...no car required.

Join The Metro Discussion

Nothing like the threat of a fare increase to get folks talking about Metro. Ever since WMATA presented a budget proposal for next year (Metro Proposed FY 2008 Budget) that included a raft of different fare increase ideas, the local online media and blogesphere have been abuzz with advice for Metro. And much of that comment and advice isn't complimentary towards Metro and the Board. Since the commenting started, the Metro Board has said "A fare increase should be the next-to-last thing we consider." (Metro Board Skeptical About Fare Hike Ideas, December 15, Examiner). And that's good news. But it hasn't quelled the public from saying what's on their mind. Let's hope everyone at Metro is listening. If you'd like to join the fun, there are many places to get things off of your chest.

• Write to daily Examiner Sprawl and Crawl transportation columnist Steve Eldridge. Many of his reader's comments make their way into his column. His email is steve@sprawlandcrawl.com. And by the way, the Examiner does one of the best jobs of covering everything about transportation in all of the local print, online and over the airwaves media. Just look at the amount of content they put out by reviewing our monthly Commuter News archives.
• We all know Dr. Gridlock from his columns in the Washington Post. He's got a daily "Get There" blog too. He's had a few posts on the subject during the last week that have generated TONS of reader comment including What Should Metro Do? on December 11, Creating a Fair Fare on December 14 and Would You Stop Riding? on December 15. Pick a post, read the comments and say something too.
• Another great source for commenting is the online versions of stories that appear in the Washington Post. They just added this feature a few months back. For example, Washington Post WMATA beat reporter Lena Sun's December 14 story Rush-Hour Metro Fares May Rise as Much as $2.10 generated 14 pages of comments. So next time just view your favorite stories online and comment away.
• One of my favorite places to go for good comments on transportation issues is the DCist.com site. In Transportation blogger Colin Peppard's column you'll always finds an interesting and fun angle on stories and lots of comments. The proposed fare increase was no exception.
• Another place to go for good discussion is the Rebuilding Place in the Urban Space website. Blogger Richard Layman regularly and thoughtfully writes about transportation issues and the proposed WMATA fare increase has generated a number of stories. As with any blog, you've got the opportunity join in. Check out the other blogs listed in our "Favorites" here too.
• And you can always let the WMATA Board, staff, and Riders' Advisory Council know how you feel directly. There's a whole section about the Board on their web site. Write to them at BoardofDirectors@wmata.com. You can find out more about the Riders' Advisory Council here and about Metro staff here and use their Metro Customer Comment form here. Again, lets hope the WMATA Board and staff are out there taking this all in.

Lastly, if you want to keep up with news about transportation, check out our Commuter News on our CommuterPage.com site or sign up for our daily Email News or get it on your web enabled phone and handheld device. We now include the ability to receive our CommuterPageBlog posts via email too.

Happy commenting.

What Bikers Want For Christmas

The good folks at the WashCycle blog are taking a look at their Christmas Wish List for the upcoming calendar year. Before they do, they took a look back at their 2005 list of project wishes (Christmas Wish List 2005 - Review, December 11, 2006) and provide a status on the 12 items. Since much of the 2005 list saw little progress, for this year's list (Christmas Wish List 2006 - Preview, December 12, 2006) some changes were made. 1) They eliminated projects being considered somewhere else and 2) eliminated projects that were too big. So basically they'll be showcasing a whole new list and describing each one over 12 days leading up to Christmas. How fun is that?  On the first day of Christmas (2006 Christmas Wish List #1 RDF Secure Access, December 13, 2006) they discuss a small project that would make a big difference for people biking along the Pentagon. On the second day of Christmas (2006 Christmas Wish List #2 Francis Case Bridge Connection, December 14, 2006) they discuss fixing "the crazy zig-zag ramps that connects the Case Bridge to Banneker Circle." And for the remaining days of Christmas we recommend you simply tune in to WashCycle blog and enjoy the countdown on some great ideas to improve things for bikers.

More Carsharing Is Good News

Metro reports today that they've signed new agreements with Zipcar and Flexcar (Carsharing Program Expands, Companies Will Share Presence at Metro Stations; December 13, 2006; WMATA Press Release) to add 50 new cars and 6 new station locations over the next few months. This means there will soon be 89 cars at 34 stations. More carshare vehicles in more locations is good news for everyone who walks, bikes and takes the bus and train to live, work, shop and play in the DC area.

The WMATA press release notes that "Although Metro does not earn income from the partnership with Zipcar and Flexcar, the agency believes that car sharing encourages transit ridership..." Recent studies by Arlington County and the Transportation Research Board agree. Both Arlington and the District also have partnerships with the two companies. With both companies doing well and recently receiving infusions of venture capital, these local governments are aggressively pursing increases in vehicles, including those distinctive on-street spaces with the orange poles (DC has 83 and Arlington has 72 with expansions coming in January and March), in the name of supporting a transit-friendly lifestyle for their residents. Good for Metro for doing the same! For more information about carsharing, including links to research and more visit www.commuterpage.com/carshare.

Give the Gift of Zipcar or Flexcar for the Holidays

Zipcar, one of the area's two carsharing companies, is running a fun promotion during the holiday season. Zipcar says "Give someone the gift of freedom and convenience in a really cool package like a Mini Cooper or Mazda and they'll thank you for it." How fun. You can purchase gift certificates online for your friends who normally walk, bike and take transit but may occasionally need a car. Zipcar will send you the gift certificate by email and you can pass it on or print it out.  Very easy to do.

And if you or your friend's and loved ones are bikers, both Zipcar and Flexcar have promotions for you as they've teamed up with the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) to provide you with great discounts. Zipcar provides 1/2 price memberships to WABA members. And Flexcar is offering up to $75 in free car usage if you are or become a WABA member. In addition, each new Flexcar membership that provides the WABA promo code will provide WABA staff with $20 of free business usage. With either company you can help yourself and you can help a great organization like WABA out at the same time. How cool is that?

What Should Metro Do?

That's the question Dr. Gridlock asked his loyal Get There blog readers this morning (What Should Metro Do?, December 11, 2006) and boy did he get a lot of feedback. Over 70 comments have been posted by the end of the work day. The question was in response to Post Reporter Lena Sun's story in today's Post that Metro is considering fare increases and service cutbacks. Dr. Gridlock asked "What would you like the Metro board to consider as it begins to review the budget proposal for next year? See any creative solutions to the fare increase issue?" He said that Ms. Sun says she also would like to hear from riders because she'll be writing a lot more about Metro's proposals this week. So join the discussion and post your ideas on the Dr.'s Get There blog. Enjoy!
Note: Photo is from Ms. Sun's story and is credited to Robert A. Reeder.

Connecting Living and Getting Around Without a Car

"Live, work, shop, play...no car required." That's one of our slogans here at Arlington County Commuter Services (ACCS) because it aptly describes why we exist. To help people live, work, shop and play in Arlington without a car we are further developing our Way To Go Arlington website (an Arlington specific website that's a subset to our regional CommuterPage and that supports our Way To Go Arlington marketing campaign) to include more pertinent lifestyle information. Huh? Why would a transportation agency do that?

By trying to provide information about all the great Things to do in Arlington like Arts and Entertainment, or Shopping, Dining, Nightlife, or Events, or Parks and Recreation or Points of Interest along with Getting Around information we hope to show people that they can get to these places by walking, biking or taking the bus or train. We've even organized the information by Arlington's Urban Villages. And if you are going to major sports, entertainment, shopping, museum and sightseeing destinations in Arlington or throughout the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan area we've even provided a Take Public Transportation To Almost Anywhere section.

We are sharing this because we've been tweaking the Way To Go Arlington page and we'd like some feedback and help on making these pages even more useful to our customers who live, work and play in Arlington. Post your ideas here or send them directly to me (Chris Hamilton). And thanks in advance for your help!