CommuterPageBlog

Finding your way around the DC metropolitan area – by bike.

 
(Click the image for a route mapped out from our offices to the White House)

Finding your way around by bike is not necessarily the same as by car.  For most of us that ride, finding the safest and most comfortable way to go from A to B is more important than finding the most direct way. Personally, I would rather ride 30 minutes on a separated bike path with minimal traffic interaction than make the same trip by riding 15 minutes on a busy street with no bike lane, no shoulder and hectic, stressful intersections.  Traditional route finding software has a hard time understanding and accounting for this cyclist safety factor, so common online mapping tools like Google Maps and Mapquest are not very useful to cyclists.  

There is a new route finding tool that is attempting to pick the best routes for cyclists, including prioritizing bike paths, bike lanes, and streets with low traffic volumes.  The tool covers Washington D.C. as well as all surrounding counties, and is up and running at http://www.ridethecity.com/dc#.  I’ve been testing the tool, as have some of my cycling friends, and we all love how easy it is to drag the icons onto the map for the origin and destination points, and that the route, mileage, estimated time, and elevation gain are all calculated so quickly.  In addition to showing the route on the map, a cue sheet is provided which categorizes each segment (bike path, bike lane, etc) and can even be sent directly to your cell phone for referencing outdoors.  

It’s important, however, to remember that computers are not cyclists, so the route suggested by the tool might not be the one that you prefer.  We did get some questionable results from our tests, even when the “safer route” is requested (which is what I recommend sticking to).  The upside is that the tool will get more accurate over time.  Users can rate the routes and segments for safety on a scale of 1 to 7, and the system will use these ratings to prioritize favored segments (or vice versa) for all future users.      

Technology can be great, if used correctly, and the new bike routing tool is something that could be very useful to the cycling community, especially if we use it wisely, and if we help the program get smarter by rating the routes and segments we know well.  And having a local map in your back pocket is always a good backup!

Chris Eatough is the program manager for BikeArlington and an avid cyclist (commuting, mountain biking, and just riding for fun).

Creative Bus Shelter Ads

Some very creative bus shelter advertising and even a steaming cup of McDonald's coffee. These make waiting for a bus a little more fun.

Bobbi Greenberg is Marketing Communications Director for Arlington County Commuter Services, Department of Environmental Services

New Custis Trail Connection at Harrison Street

There is a new trail connector which just opened in early December.  It connects the Custis Trail directly with Harrison Street (Here's a map of where it is)

View New trail connector to N. Harrison St. in a larger map

Here are some photos:
This one is taken from the Custis Trail showing the east end of the connector

Here's the same spot from the opposite direction (sorry for the sun glare):

These are some old stairs.  I believe there used to be a farm road here that was used as the bed for the new connector.  These stairs probably need a railing.

Here's the other end of the connector at Harrison Street.  

I believe that they will add a bike ramp from the street in the near future. I'm not a big fan of the bollard.  Supposedly it will keep cars from driving on the trail, but I don't think there's really much risk of that.  In fact, I'd be curious to know if this ever happens in Arlington.  There are other trail entrances without bollards.  Do cars ever enter on those?  So the bollard is really just an obstacle for cyclists.  I find these difficult to navigate when I'm pulling my daughter on the trailer bike; I always get nervous that I'll smash her hand on it if I'm too close.  I think they should just save the money in instances like this and not put the bollard in at all.

The other thing I noted is that there is no signage.  Hopefully that was included in the plans and will be installed soon.  One cannot imagine that a new street would be built with no signs, yet frequently jurisdictions fail to include signs on their bicycle transportation links like this.  Please see my previous post about trail signage.

Nonetheless, it's good to be adding to our bicycling infrastructure.  For those of you who bike in this area, enjoy.
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Steve Offutt is an Arlington resident and cyclist

How to Bring Slugging to Tysons Corner (In One Easy Step!)

The Washington Post reported last Thursday (Link to Article) on the efforts being made to reduce traffic congestion in Tysons Corner while construction is under way on Metro’s new Silver line.  All of the digging and utility relocations associated with the rail project have brought the famous crossroads to a standstill.  VDOT and VRPT have put a lot of time and money into creating solutions for the gridlock.  William Lecos, an advisor on the project, lamented the fact that slugging was not in place in Tysons to ease the burden of single occupant vehicles (SOV).  Here's how we can fix that.

  

With a little money and effort slugging can be expanded to the Route 267 corridor and service Tysons Corner.  It may start slowly with just one starting point and one destination but there’s no reason for slugging on Route 267 to be any less robust (eventually) than it is on I-95.

 

The secret to slugging’s success on I-95 is that it saves commuters time and money.  So how do we save Route 267 commuters’ time and money?  Step number one… 

 

1) Eliminate tolls during the morning and evening rush hours on the Dulles Toll Road and the Dulles Greenway for HOV-3+ vehicles.

 

A roundtrip commute on Route 267 from Leesburg could easily cost a commuter $10 or more per day.  Do you think it would be worth $10 to an SOV commuter to pick up slugs in Leesburg and drop them off in Tysons?   You bet it would.  Would a cost-free, stress-free ride into and out of Tysons Corner make it worthwhile for SOV commuters to leave their cars at home and slug to work?  Again, I have no doubts that the answer is “yes”. 

 

To help the process along let’s put some money aside to create a website for slugging on Route 267 (or add to David LeBlanc’s current website: www.slug-lines.com) and add signs for slug lines at commuter parking lots.  Backup transportation options are already in place through Metrobus, Commuter Connections’ Guaranteed Ride Home program, and the Loudoun County Commuter Bus System.  (Not to mention the fact that Tysons will soon have Metrorail service.)       

 

So who’s ready to take up the flag and make this happen?  The governor-elect has promised to fix congestion in Northern Virginia.  I can’t think of a faster, easier, or cheaper way for the new governor to make his mark than by getting thousands of cars off of our already congested highways. We don’t even have to build anything!  This is a win-win for everyone.  

 

Marc Oliphant (marcoliphantathotmail.com), is a native Arlingtonion and bicycle commuter who works for the U.S. Navy.  

Arlington County Community Holiday Lights Ride - RESCHEDULED!

 Sunday, December 20, 2009 
 5:30PM - 7:00 PM

Last weekend's ride was rained out so we are trying again this weekend.  Join BikeArlington and Conte's Bike Shop on Sunday, December 20th for a leisurely ride that will go on a tour of Arlington County houses that go all out with impressive holiday lighting displays.  The ride starts at 5:30pm and ends 7:00pm.

Bring your bike and a friend and meet in the Conte's parking lot (N. Quincy and Wilson Blvd.) a little bit before 5:30 for hot chocolate, warm apple cider, and cookies!  Helmets and lights are required for the ride, and lights can be purchased at a discount before the ride if needed.
 
Tim Kelley is one of the newest members of the Arlington Transportation Partners team working on the Bike Arlington program. He enjoys cycling as a form of commuting and exercise, and is hooked on triathlons.

ART real time bus information

There is excitement in the air at ART as the ART bus real time web map is ready to be tested. We sure could use your help to work out the kinks and bugs and let us know what you think. The URL is http://realtime.commuterpage.com/RTT/Public/PlatformETMap.aspx. On your first visit to this page you will be asked to install Microsoft's Silverlight, a cross-browser, cross-platform, and cross device plug-in, which is needed to use the map to its fullest.

The map is fairly easy to use. On the left is a panel with all the ART routes (and George) listed. Clicking on the route number brings up the current schedule, while double clicking the route name centers the map on that route and turns the stop dots red. The toolbar on the lower right allows you to zoom in and out to read street names, change the contrast of the screen, and offers a help file. To pan the map hold your left mouse button down and drag. 

By hovering over a dot you can view the location of the stop, its Stop #, and which route/s the stop serves. If you click the stop the arrival time/s of the net bus/es for that stop will be shown. The site remembers what you were viewing when it is closed and will reopen in the same position next time.

There is also an app being created for mobile devices. It is still in beta, but the developer has asked for commuter feedback. The app can be reached at http://www.commuterpage.com/mobile/realtime.cfm. This application shows the timepoint stops for each route. It also offers a search box for the Stop # from the web map to be entered to see the arrival time at your stop. If you want to add your comments about the mobile app please include which phone you are using and the software version installed.

Tom Scherer is the Public Transit Technology Manager for the Transit Bureau in the Arlington County Department of Environmental Services. He can be reached at tscherer@arlingtonva.us

How Many Cyclists Does it Take to...

The old joke about how many <insert profession here> does it take to change a light bulb has been reexamined in a new way by the BBC. With global climate change increasingly upon us, the question isn't about changing a light bulb, but rather powering a light bulb, or make that light bulbs, TV, and shower. The BBC's show Bang Goes the Theory asks how many bicyclists does it take to power a house for a day?

Any guesses on the number of bicyclists? 8, 80, 800? Well, watch this video to find out. It'll make you think differently next time you take a shower.

by Paul DeMaio, MetroBike, LLC, a consultant to Arlington County Commuter Services.

Rock Star Panel Promotes Cycling

Last night a few hundred people gathered for a forum at The Newseum entitled Cities, Bicycles, and the Future of Getting Around. The "rock star" panel included from left to right Bruce Katz of Brookings, the musician David Byrne of Talking Heads fame, Portland, Oregon Congressman Earl Blumenauer, and I think the real rock star of the show, Janette Sakik-Khan New York City's DOT Commissioner. She's just a fantastic speaker with much to be proud of. 

Mr. WashCycle did such a good write up of the event, that we're just going to link to his recap here (Cities for Cycling, December 9, 2009). Please check it out!

The event was used to help promote David Byrne's new book Bicycle Diaries and launch a new platform for advancing biking called Cities for Cycling sponsored by the National Association of City Transportation Officials. The hightlight of the event for me was the absolute energy in the jam-packed room for doing more about making it easy for people to choose cycling as a transportation mode. In fact some of the most spirited exchanges and applause lines revolved around doing more locally. And I was happy to see the discussion centering on adding cycle tracks and lanes, bike boxes, bike parking and other onsite facilities as well as education and encouragement "culture" and safety campaigns. It sounded like the Washington, DC region is ready to take on Portland's supremacy as the biking mecca of North America. And that would be a good thing for all of us.

Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Transportation Bureau Chief for Arlington County in the Department of Environmental Services, manager of CommuterPageBlog and a Metro/biking commuter from Rosemont in Alexandria.

Cool Subway Designs

Some pretty cool subway designs featured in the DesignBoom blog. Can you imagine Metro approving any of these?

Bike Ride: Arlington County Community Holiday Lights Ride

Sunday, December 13, 2009 
 5:30PM - 7:00 PM 

Join BikeArlington and Conte's Bike Shop on Sunday, December 13th from 5:30pm to 7:00pm for a fun, social, community bike ride that will take you on a tour of Arlington County houses that go all out with impressive holiday lighting displays.  

Beverages and light refreshments will be provided before the ride and there will also be a drawing for a Conte's Gift Card - to have your name entered, you must bring a $10+ gift card from a store such as Borders, Target or Best Buy, etc.  Gifts are being collected for the Warriors in Transition Program at Walter Reed. 

Bring your bike and a friend and meet in the Conte's parking lot (N. Quincy and Wilson Blvd.) a little bit before 5:30. Helmets and lights are required for the ride, and lights can be purchased at a discount before the ride if needed. 

Tim Kelley is one of the newest members of the Arlington Transportation Partners team working on the Bike Arlington program. He enjoys cycling as a form of commuting and exercise, and is hooked on triathlons.