tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-159826072012-02-19T12:07:37.177-06:00Froggie's blog, a transportation blog focusing on Alexandria, Huntington, and southeastern Fairfax County, but including other random bits of interest too.Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.comBlogger1321100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-24717076608354580222012-02-18T13:50:00.003-06:002012-02-18T14:02:47.004-06:00

Yesterday was nice enough (sans fog in the morning), plus it was a short day for us (4 hour shifts instead of the usual 8), so I tried bike commute #2. Route wasn't much different than before, except that I used Crystal Dr to 12th St to Old Jeff Davis Hwy to Boundary Channel Dr.Given my experience yesterday, it's looking like 40-45 minutes will be the standard for the bike commute time. I'm

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-82688492701947687992012-02-15T08:36:00.003-06:002012-02-15T08:49:29.092-06:00

Wind makes a difference. A big difference. While they were light on my bike commute into the Pentagon yesterday morning, they increased noticeably by afternoon. Based on observations from National Airport, they were gusting above 20 by the time I left to head home. And it had an effect...it took me over 45 minutes to get home, fighting that headwind the entire way home.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-5641404937384986302012-02-14T09:44:00.004-06:002012-02-14T12:43:07.690-06:00

Last week, I had a bit of a change in workplace...I'm now working at the Pentagon on a temporary duty assignment (Navy calls it TAD, Army/Air Force calls it TDY). By far the biggest change that's occurred with the office shift is the commute. Instead of my old Suitland commute where my choices were a 25min drive or a 1h10m Metrorail ride, I have many more options for commuting to the Pentagon.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-42768062683747379842012-02-06T21:47:00.003-06:002012-02-06T22:09:40.626-06:00

Tonight's MVCCA Transportation Committee meeting featured visitors from the National Park Service and US Park Police regarding the George Washington Parkway. What followed was a quick Q-and-A, mostly related to the section south of Old Town Alexandria which our committee represents. Here's a quick recap of the comments:Numerous complaints about increased traffic in BOTH directions of the

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-18148918485123259902012-01-11T14:04:00.002-06:002012-01-11T14:11:03.363-06:00

It's that time again! The Alexandria BPAC is asking again for volunteers to help with counting bicycle and pedestrian traffic at select locations across the city. The two dates/times involved are next Thursday the 19th from 5-7pm and Saturday the 21st from Noon-2pm. If interested, please contact Elizabeth Wright (BPAC member): ewright953 (at) yahoo.comThese counts are conducted as part of the

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-45233980748119402832011-12-21T11:23:00.004-06:002011-12-21T11:33:50.933-06:00

DDOT opened the inbound 11th Street Bridge this past weekend. Drivers are already confused, not from the change in the lane split from I-295, but in the route number chosen for the bridge: I-695.My photo from before the opening.Why did DDOT sign the bridge as I-695? This is a question that been pondered by blogs, the news media, and numerous tweets. The confusion got so bad that DDOT wrote

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-89683935208605112502011-12-05T21:44:00.002-06:002011-12-05T21:52:42.529-06:00

Coming out of tonight's Mt. Vernon Transportation Committee meeting: the committee is open to the concept of allowing bicycles on the George Washington Parkway on the weekends. I don't think we have support for an all-weekend allowance, but most of the committee members there tonight are open to the idea of at least partial hours for bikes on the weekend...most likely on weekend mornings.The

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-2978478572471285462011-11-28T12:47:00.003-06:002011-11-28T13:06:37.053-06:00

Most of my regular readers are probably aware of DDOT's 11th St Bridge project, which is replacing the existing 11th Street Bridge over the Anacostia with three new bridges...one for each direction of freeway and a new local bridge that'll link 11th St SE with Martin Luther King Ave SE.A few of you may know that the Southeast Freeway between the 3rd St Tunnel (I-395) and the 11th St Bridge has

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-50119463328868794972011-11-16T09:17:00.002-06:002011-11-16T09:44:17.090-06:00

Three notable meetings tomorrow (Thursday):- Fairfax County will be hosting the third in a series of eight meetings on the county's Bicycle Master Plan, focusing on the Mount Vernon area (mostly Mt. Vernon District and part of Lee District). The meeting will be at the South County Government Center on Route 1, from 5:30 to 8pm.- Alexandria will be hosting the latest of its High Capacity Transit

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-90120431941661462612011-11-08T12:39:00.005-06:002011-11-08T13:23:14.668-06:00

Many months ago, I had several people ask me to post my transit concept maps for DC online. After those months of procrastination, not to mention adding a few more maps to the pile, I've gotten around to it and created a Flickr set.The set will become a repository for the maps I create showing various transit concepts in the DC area, including my proposal for around Mark Center:Or potential

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-71827593648216104632011-11-07T06:28:00.003-06:002011-11-07T07:23:37.890-06:00

A persistent problem spot on the area's bicycle/pedestrian network has been on the George Washington Parkway near Memorial Bridge. In this area, bicycles and pedestrians transiting between the Mount Vernon Parkway and the Memorial Bridge must cross both the northbound GW Parkway main lanes plus a northbound ramp at-grade. The site has been the scene of numerous crashes this year (the latest

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-60165443270775612062011-10-12T09:01:00.002-05:002011-10-12T09:03:34.066-05:00

My post on GGW about Alexandria Bikeshare is now online. The maps I posted yesterday are in there, as is some details from last night's City Council meeting and discussion of the program. Just wish we could get the stations in sooner than Spring.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-48277555456868543682011-10-11T20:23:00.001-05:002011-10-11T20:24:54.352-05:00

A quick word now before I wrote a longer post for Greater Greater Washington tomorrow: Alexandria City Council unanimously approved joining the Capital Bikeshare system. First 6 stations to be implemented sometime between spring and summer 2012.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-74634038989993562432011-10-11T13:47:00.004-05:002011-10-11T14:44:37.375-05:00

The Alexandria City Council is expected to vote tonight on whether to join Capital Bikeshare. The docket item is now online.The initial round of 6 Bikeshare stations (with 54 bikes) is to be funded via already-approved FY 2012 CMAQ funding, with operating expenses to be covered from the city's pot of Transportation Management Plan (TMP) funds. No city general funds will be used, and the docket

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-59054189424610192652011-09-19T07:28:00.003-05:002011-09-19T09:04:23.980-05:00

Detailed map data offers tremendous potential to expand our understanding of the world in which we live. Unfortunately, most localities in the immediate area charge for this data, which should be publicly available to everyone.Past posts on Greater Greater Washington and here on Just Down The Parkway have featured user-created maps based on GIS (Geographic Information Systems) data from DC and

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-23663550417350232862011-09-15T06:55:00.003-05:002011-09-15T07:03:55.977-05:00

Last night was the second in a recent series of meetings stemming from last Thursday's flooding of lower Huntington from Cameron Run and the huge rains we had from Tropical Storm Lee's leftovers.Brian Krebs wrote a quick article for Patch about last night's meeting. I'm not (yet) going to do much of a writeup, but wanted to include tweets from during the meeting itself. Three people, Brian,

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-35270063647533636342011-09-11T07:17:00.002-05:002011-09-11T07:31:28.096-05:00

Another Dr. Gridlock column about whether the National Park Service should allow bicycles on the George Washington Parkway. Though it's in response to a reader question, it's a follow-up to a letter that WABA sent to NPS.The argument, as it has been said, is that cyclists use the Parkway because the existing Mount Vernon Trail is crowded and inadequate, and there are no good alternative routes.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-43379939022553347552011-08-31T13:10:00.005-05:002011-08-31T13:24:49.517-05:00

Some meetings coming up in September that are of interest to Alexandria transportation advocates: - The Transportation Commission meets the evening of the 7th at City Hall (usually starting at 7:30pm). On the agenda will be discussion of transit Corridor C, the Beauregard/Van Dorn corridor, and the recommendations made by the High Capacity Transit Corridor Work Group. This meeting will be

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-64925362883552087092011-07-18T07:14:00.002-05:002011-07-18T08:59:30.706-05:00

(Flickr photo from DDOT)Yesterday, I finally broke down and took my first Capital Bikeshare trip. I'd purchased a membership through the LivingSocial deal this past April, but I have yet to activate it. Part of my delay is that I just haven't had situations where CaBi would have been useful...pretty much every time I'm in the District, I'm either in my car, on Metro, or using my own bike, and

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-6104154151226868502011-07-07T19:51:00.003-05:002011-07-07T20:02:46.884-05:00

And during rush hour (5pm) to boot.VDOT decided to close the Route 1 path connector to Washington St/Mt Vernon Trail/Wilson Bridge, in order to do maintenance on the light poles on the bridge over Cameron Run. This in-and-of-itself isn't necessarily a bad thing, but they chose to do it during evening rush hour, when there are a fair number of people bicycling home to Huntington along the path.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-27470273618875383992011-06-29T10:05:00.004-05:002011-06-29T11:02:25.496-05:00

Some photos I took during a bike ride on Sunday, June 26, 2011. Captions below the photos:Finally open! The bike/ped path across Cameron Run and the Beltway at Telegraph Rd is now open.DDOT recently striped a bike box on 4th St NW at Pennsylvania Ave.One of the piers for the future Anacostia Riverwalk Trail bridge over the CSX rail tracks.Along the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail on the west side of

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-71266055642495271932011-06-29T06:28:00.003-05:002011-06-29T07:04:38.003-05:00

(Below are the minutes from the June 2011 Alexandria BPAC meeting:)Overview of Transportation Research Board Bicycle Transportation CommitteeDick Schaffer provided an overview of his work with the TRB committee devoted to bicycle transportation, providing insights into how this work is relevant to Alexandria. Highlights of his overview include efforts to work with the National Park Service on

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-58546191966810314372011-06-27T09:46:00.002-05:002011-06-27T10:20:05.281-05:00

This past weekend, the Alexandria City Council approved a development including a new Harris Teeter grocery store and residential units in north Old Town, basically the northern 2/3 of the block bounded by St. Asaph, Pitt, Madison, and Wythe Streets.In his Breakfast Links this morning, David Alpert of Greater Greater Washington suggests including a Capital Bikeshare station with the new

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-55010669799243746602011-06-23T13:48:00.003-05:002011-06-23T13:51:36.521-05:00

(Froggie's Note: the following letter is from the Alexandria Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC). Full disclosure: I am a member of the BPAC.)The Alexandria Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) works to provide citizen input into bicycle and pedestrian improvements and to promote bicycling and walking in the city of Alexandria. BPAC is seeking additional members to

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-46647375863826698992011-06-21T05:43:00.003-05:002011-06-21T05:48:43.094-05:00

Last week, I noted how the connection under Eisenhower Ave at Cameron Run was open. Spoke too soon...the fencing seen in the photo has been draped back across the trail. According to the city's bike-ped coordinator, the contractor still has a few things to finish on the punch-list.Meanwhile, the Telegraph Rd connection across the Beltway is still closed...it's now been 2.5 weeks since VDOT

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-9842140225931299282011-06-15T16:47:00.003-05:002011-06-15T17:02:52.536-05:00

A few photos from a bike ride I took this past Saturday to check on some bicycle infrastructure projects and items.CLOSED: the new bike/ped connection across Cameron Run and the Beltway at Telegraph Rd. VDOT had said at this month's Alexandria Transportation Commission meeting that it'd be open by now...but I guess not.OPEN: though not official yet, the new bike/ped underpass under Eisenhower

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-84836848812600388352011-06-02T08:51:00.002-05:002011-06-02T12:04:44.313-05:00

Some good news, and some not so good news for Alexandria bicyclists coming out of last night's Alexandria Transportation Commission meeting.The not-so-good news focuses on funding of future facilities. Previously, in the city's 10-year funding plan, funding for development and construction of multi-use paths along Old Cameron Run (connecting Eisenhower Ave to Hoofs Run) and Backlick Run (

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-10562166962339946352011-05-16T20:38:00.004-05:002011-05-16T20:54:45.649-05:00

Two quick notes from tonight's Alexandria BPAC meeting:- Alexandria has grant money available to implement 6 Capital Bikeshare stations and pay for 1 year of operations. This is in addition to $400K of FY 2013 CMAQ funding that I tweeted about last week. The first round of stations would be focused on Old Town and Carlyle. The CMAQ funding would go for additional stations, either more in Old

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-73725923269820497432011-05-10T16:21:00.003-05:002011-05-10T17:34:34.770-05:00

Earlier this morning, the National Park Service had a minor oops on the Mount Vernon Trail, specifically, on one of the trail bridges between Daingerfield Island and Four Mile Run.As of about 4:30pm, they were about halfway done with replacing the wooden planks that make up the bridge deck:While I was there, the NPS workers came back to continue work:I chatted with one of them, who mentioned

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-52637828402155152682011-05-04T09:00:00.003-05:002011-05-04T10:47:21.948-05:00

Last week, BeyondDC posted a series of thematic maps of DC created using GIS data available from the DC Office of the Chief Technology Officer (OCTO). Maps were created for topography, building footprint, and basic land use.Inspired by that, I created similar maps for Alexandria using data from the city's GIS Division.Basic Land UseThis map simplifies the city's zoning into four categories:

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-66858262608785466282011-05-02T21:38:00.003-05:002011-05-04T10:48:47.475-05:00

The Alexandria City Council approved the city's FY 2012 budget today. The Transportation Add-on tax, discussed often on this blog and in the city's Transportation Commission meetings in the past, was not approved. In its place, City Council approved the equivalent of 2.2 cents of the overall real estate tax rate paid by all property owners be reserved for transportation, with 2 cents of that

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-2317679615981501512011-04-19T06:25:00.006-05:002011-04-19T06:39:27.499-05:00

It's been a busy month, to say the least. Combine that with some procrastination, and the result is no blog updates. So in an attempt to clear out the backlog, I'm going to start with what I hope will be a monthly occurrence: posting of the Alexandria Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) minutes. This first set is from the inaugural BPAC meeting (the group being realigned from the

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-30719475042019135382011-03-20T08:44:00.003-05:002011-03-20T08:45:31.467-05:00

My post from a couple weeks ago on DC land/water area has been picked up by Greater Greater Washington. My first GGW post...and it probably won't be my last, as I'm talking with David Alpert about possibly writing some Alexandria and southeast Fairfax County articles for GGW. Hopefully I'll get one of them written later today.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-22425269101579010972011-03-16T07:39:00.003-05:002011-03-16T07:40:51.882-05:00

Apologies to those of you who read my blog via an RSS feed. It appears that when I edited my old posts to include labels, it reposted EACH ONE on my RSS feed. This was not intentional, but now that everything's labeled, it shouldn't happen again.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-17508735491442880712011-03-15T19:53:00.004-05:002011-03-15T20:50:20.681-05:00

If you follow my blog with any regularity, you'll notice a new look and a new name tonight. Given my transportation focus in general and my more specific focus on Alexandria, Huntington, and the southeastern part of Fairfax County (along/east of Richmond Hwy), I decided to give a new name to the blog and do some layout revisions. I'm also adding labels to my blog posts for easier

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-52502648976002654922011-03-15T12:42:00.003-05:002011-03-15T19:50:41.423-05:00

Lots of things I need to catch up on with the blog (I have at least 3 items I'm backlogged on and need to write about), but for now, a quick bike bit.Last week, the National Association of City Transportation Officials released their Urban Bikeway Design Guide. I haven't taken a deep look into it yet, but it appears to be a "best practices" guide for things like bike signage, bike lanes,

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-27614176002155654272011-03-07T07:36:00.008-06:002011-03-15T19:59:41.195-05:00

A question brought up on a recent WashCycle post asks about the land/water area and percentages for the four DC quadrants (SW, SE, NW, NE). So a quick project here, using shapefiles from DC OCTO.Here's a quick map I created using some of the shapefiles available from DC OCTO. Background image is 2008 ortho imagery. The red outline is the city boundary plus the quadrant boundaries. Blue-shaded

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-31550568181521860402011-03-02T20:54:00.004-06:002011-03-15T19:52:47.319-05:00

As I tweeted earlier, the big news out of tonight's Alexandria Transportation Commission meeting is that the commission voted to forward a revised Complete Streets resolution to City Council. Two more changes from even this revised one: the reporting will be every 6 months instead of annually, and language was inserted to revisit and "reaffirm" the resolution in 2 years.I'll do a larger writeup

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-43126800018504755672011-02-28T12:06:00.004-06:002011-03-15T19:52:31.449-05:00

WashCycle beat me to the punch here, but there's a lot of bike stuff that will be discussed at this Wednesday's Alexandria Transportation Commission meeting.First, and likely foremost, will be Complete Streets. During the meeting two months ago, staff had raised concerns about the then-proposed Complete Streets ordinance, and recommended a resolution and checklist instead. After a good bit of

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-33650754640056542112011-02-15T22:03:00.005-06:002011-03-15T19:53:02.871-05:00

So I didn't get voted in as chairman (sorry, Allen). But all in all I think it was a good start to the BPAC. Lots of issues to tackle in the upcoming months.Will post meeting minutes once our secretary writes them up.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-6431274542038820662011-02-15T14:13:00.004-06:002011-03-15T19:57:58.884-05:00

The "inaugural" Alexandria Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) meeting is tonight at VeloCity (on Union St) at 7pm. This is where we finalize our reorganization (from the old BikeWalk Alexandria), elect officers, and continue the business of advocating better bicycle and pedestrian transportation in Alexandria. If you read this blog post in time and can spare a little time, feel free

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-68283778848694279092011-02-07T06:38:00.005-06:002011-03-15T20:00:09.294-05:00

DC Councilmember Phil Mendelson got an earful from residents Friday at a hearing he held on bicycle and pedestrian safety enforcement. The basic gist from the stories, reports, and tweets is that there's a chronic problem both with a general lack of traffic enforcement. There's also a lot of errors, inconsistencies, and falsehoods regarding MPD officers knowledge of bicycle and pedestrian

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-45830345479641492922011-02-02T20:09:00.004-06:002011-03-15T20:01:24.379-05:00

Tonight's Alexandria Transportation Commission meeting was a short, quiet one, largely focusing on updates on several bike/ped projects in the city.All 17 of the projects briefed are being funded via grants of some sort, whether CMAQ, Safe Routes to School, or some other sort of transportation grant. 14 of the 17 projects are fully funded. The remaining 3 (of which 2 are effectively the same

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-6720988983650209262011-01-18T06:28:00.004-06:002011-03-15T20:01:53.089-05:00

Short answer: BikeWalk Alexandria is reorganizing into the Alexandria Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC).Longer answer: As of the beginning of the year, BikeWalk Alexandria is no longer affiliated with the larger BikeWalk Virginia. So the core of the old organization has been working over the past few weeks with new people, the VeloCity co-op in Old Town, and Alexandria's bike/ped

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-67743630980232448692011-01-08T07:44:00.008-06:002011-03-15T20:02:26.274-05:00

At the end of what was already a lengthy Alexandria Transportation Commission meeting on Wednesday, the subject of Complete Streets was revisited.First, some background. Back in July, the Transportation Commission approved a draft Complete Streets resolution and a draft city ordinance to be forwarded to the City Council. It was expected to go on City Council's docket sometime in the Fall, then

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-10902891904406903212010-12-21T03:01:00.003-06:002011-03-15T20:06:51.230-05:00

A view of the lunar eclipse early this morning, taken around 3:30am EST:

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-43272710007580466792010-12-08T09:00:00.004-06:002011-03-15T20:02:56.173-05:00

Thanks to FABB for bringing this up...Right now, Fairfax County is considering new standards for neighborhood street widths. The county was all set to adopt VDOT's standard, which is 29ft for low-volume streets with parking on both sides.Enter Fairfax County Fire & Rescue. They complained. Loudly. Stating that the proposed widths are too narrow for their equipment in the case of a fire or

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-84594792496544722872010-11-30T19:13:00.004-06:002011-03-15T20:03:24.765-05:00

I'm woefully behind....between meetings and a mini-vacation for Thanksgiving, it's been a busy month.But today, I found this of note:It's a Variable Message Sign that was recently placed on Belle Haven Rd, just east of Fort Hunt Rd, looking for any witnesses to the November 14 bicycle crash that killed Christopher Benton. Witnesses are asked to call the number on the VMS...the number happened to

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-7617174917057594842010-11-02T20:57:00.004-05:002011-03-15T20:08:26.371-05:00

Not one but two transportation-related meetings for me last night. With two more later in the week.First up was a quick in-and-out at the Alexandria Pedestrian and Bicycle Citizens Group meeting (out quickly because I had to leave early for meeting #2), where I learned a few interesting tidbits:- A planning study for the Holmes Run Trail tunnels near I-395 has begun.- The Royal Netherlands

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-84196651513387261472010-10-21T06:20:00.005-05:002011-03-15T20:06:42.748-05:00

I've known about this one for a few months, but it's just recently been completed, uncovered, and turned on.The city of Alexandria got rid of an annoying stop sign on the Mt. Vernon Trail at the entrance to the Porto Vecchio Condominiums...a stop sign routinely ignored by cyclists and at an intersection that already had a traffic signal. What they did was replaced it with an "experimental" (per

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-40491470150642454372010-10-07T05:25:00.008-05:002011-03-15T21:15:39.432-05:00

Been lax in posting lately (yeah, yeah)...so I'll try to make up for it here with some happenings from last night's Alexandria Transportation Commission meeting.A good chunk of the discussion centered on the Beauregard corridor plan. There's a general feeling from basically all parties involved (city staff, local residents, elected officials, etc etc) that transportation solutions for the

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-40301841380711386372010-08-28T11:45:00.003-05:002010-08-28T11:48:13.119-05:00

Can't bike into town, because of all the rallies mucking things up. Can't take Metro anywhere, between rally-goers and trackwork on the Yellow Line. Can't go east cause 50 is all ripped up. Can't go west cause 66 is single-lane at the Beltway. Can't go north cause it's too late to get out. Can't go south cause 95 is...95.So I guess I'll stay home and laugh at all the lunacy...

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-48010288980902591922010-08-11T08:56:00.005-05:002011-03-15T20:09:37.383-05:00

Greater Greater Washington has a post this morning about the new contraflow bike lanes on New Hampshire Ave NW, for a block or so on either side of the 16th/U St intersection.But there's a curious twist to them...the contraflow lane is between the opposing travel lane and the parking lane, as is suggested on the edges of the below graphic:I don't see anything wrong with the intersection layout

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-22224895343802687892010-07-31T05:27:00.004-05:002011-03-15T20:09:59.953-05:00

My curmudgeonly associate had this to say on Twitter last night:dear fellow cyclists on H street—cutting other cyclists off & then riding down the wrong side of the road epitomizes why drivers hate us.To which I'll add red light runners (REGARDLESS of mode) and those who don't even bother to slow down at 4-way stops...both of which I see all the time in Old Town. I'll admit that I don't always

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-45436102750506208812010-07-20T06:50:00.003-05:002011-03-15T20:10:46.552-05:00

A bit late on this, but the big news out of last week's Alexandria Transportation Commission meeting was that Complete Streets was approved by the Commission, with a draft resolution and a draft ordinance being forwarded to City Council to be placed on the docket sometime this fall. There was concern from one Commission member about the lack of a public hearing by the Commission on Complete

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-69644327795420720412010-07-12T12:48:00.003-05:002011-03-15T20:11:25.179-05:00

Mississippi recently passed a 3-foot passing law for vehicles to give bicyclists at least 3 feet of space when passing. Quite impressive, given Mississippi's near-complete rule-by-car mentality.So yesterday, the SunHerald (Mississippi Gulf Coast newspaper) writes an article about the new law. The comment section, as expected, has some negative comments...many of which have been heard before in

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-35937783993082145872010-07-12T12:00:00.003-05:002011-03-15T20:11:48.744-05:00

Transportation Commission meeting apparently got moved to this Thursday, so I'll be able to make it after all. It's also the Public Hearing on the BRAC-133 Transportation Management Plan, so if you're interested in speaking, be sure to be there.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-55138686044010147972010-07-02T10:00:00.003-05:002011-03-15T20:12:27.206-05:00

On vacation for the next week and a half or so, so I'll be missing next week's Alexandria Transportation Commission meeting where they're expected to approve the draft Complete Streets ordinance and send it to the City Manager (for eventual approval by City Council, expected this fall). Also, don't miss the public hearing part of the commission meeting, covering the BRAC-133 Transportation

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-20109536227646104312010-06-15T06:03:00.004-05:002011-03-15T20:12:46.023-05:00

Got a bit of a surprise over the weekend. I've received a few E-mails from the Wilson Bridge public affairs team E-mailed me regarding my complaint about debris on the Route 1 ATL and the clogged drains near the start of the bridge.First off, right after I sent my original E-mail, a team was dispatched to clear the drains of the debris I had noted. This has been done, though the rest of the

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-18859865713287394152010-06-10T21:18:00.004-05:002011-03-15T20:13:01.713-05:00

Checked earlier this afternoon...still the leftover mudpuddle, so no cleanup yet. If there's nothing by tomorrow, I'll be calling VDOT back (and sending out another E-mail)...

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-20405751132115255822010-06-04T09:56:00.006-05:002011-03-15T20:39:40.747-05:00

Yes, lake. Not lane. Lake. But first, an update on another issue.The other issue being the traffic signal at Route 1 and Fort Hunt Rd, just south of the Beltway. The pedestrian signals here have been hiding behind black plastic bags for months. It got to the point where Turbineblade (coincidentally a neighbor of mine who's a bicycle enthusiast) complained on TheWashCycle on Tuesday.So I did

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-82574420577354437712010-06-03T08:11:00.003-05:002011-03-15T20:50:55.711-05:00

Okay, I think I have my settings right for an RSS feed. Here's the URL. If it's not working, someone please let me know.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-92208480471562826892010-06-03T05:57:00.003-05:002011-03-15T20:58:13.914-05:00

First off, an apology on the lack of posting lately. I was either sick or out-of-town during last month's meetings, and I spent most of my free time in May on roadtrips or working on some of my other projects (one or two of which I may post to the blog here later).Two main highlights out of last night's Alexandria Transportation Commission meeting: Complete Streets, and a brief preview of the

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-11118248814014578422010-05-04T13:58:00.003-05:002011-03-15T21:00:11.108-05:00

Stephen Miller over at GreaterGreaterWashington is reporting that DDOT is moving the previously-planned cycle track along I Street to M Street. Amongst other reasons, this was done since an M Street track would have less traffic impact, allows for potential bus improvements along I Street (to be studied with WMATA), is only one block from the planned eastbound cycle track on L Street, and

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-39554081930049577692010-05-01T13:21:00.004-05:002011-03-15T21:00:27.406-05:00

Found almost by accident as I was perusing Google Maps:These are on Columbus Blvd in Philadelphia. The blue paint was used where the bike lanes were crossing other traffic areas.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-22095108193830440102010-05-01T08:01:00.004-05:002011-03-15T21:00:49.932-05:00

They're going in! (photos by Eric Gilliland). I should take a trip up there soon myself.Alas, one part of the earlier bike lane plan is a no-go: the Commission of Fine Arts pulled the plug on painting the bike lanes green.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-12413066524702381912010-04-25T08:30:00.004-05:002011-03-15T21:01:16.406-05:00

A couple months ago, I wrote an article about what bicycling on Andrews AFB could be like, providing both low cost and medium cost options that could be combined to improve the culture of bicycling on the base.And boy does it need it. I just discovered this morning that the base PROHIBITS bicycling and jogging on the stretch of Virginia Ave through the golf course. UNSAT!

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-27225182436855435762010-04-22T21:13:00.004-05:002011-03-15T21:16:57.608-05:00

Just got back home from the Northern Virginia Streetcar Coalition meeting. Will post a more fleshed-out article either tomorrow or over the weekend, but for now, here's the collection of Tweets I made from the meeting...you'll catch the basic gist from these.At the NOVA Streetcar Coalition meeting. Curious to see what they're going to put out.Abi Lerner (Alex): CCPY transitway needs to be done

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-66262211133325722072010-04-19T15:52:00.002-05:002011-03-15T21:17:20.702-05:00

I got an E-mail back from the city about the bike box I mentioned in my previous post. It was actually striped by a contractor for the adjacent Triangle property redevelopment and was done as part of that redevelopment. City staff felt a bike box here was justified due to the large number of bicyclists, the signal cycle, and what the city perceives as difficulty for bicyclists making the left

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-51158508163060318492010-04-18T15:01:00.003-05:002011-03-15T21:17:40.255-05:00

My cohort at TheWashCycle is reporting that Alexandria has installed a bike box on Commonwealth Ave at the 5-legged mess with Mt. Vernon and Hume Aves. It's purputedly the first bike box in the region.I'll have to get over there sometime to take a look.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-90625073455439754712010-04-08T11:13:00.006-05:002011-03-15T21:28:31.165-05:00

Last month, I described one of the new alternatives proposed by the BRAC Advisory Committee for the BRAC-133 project at I-395/Seminary Rd/Mark Center. But at the time, there were no online maps and all I had was a paper copy of the proposed concept.After some further searching, I found this PDF on the city's website, which shows maps of the new alternative, also shown in the graphics below.This

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-89552030884558431662010-04-08T07:02:00.001-05:002011-03-15T21:29:20.836-05:00

The bulk of last night's Alexandria Transportation Commission meeting was about two street items: Street Smart, and Complete Streets. The Complete Streets item in particular has been long-awaited.A subcommittee of the Commission met last month to evaluate the 10 elements that comprise Complete Streets (on page 2), and also drafted up a proposed ordinance...some members of the Commission think a

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-12516405397692566582010-04-08T06:01:00.002-05:002011-03-15T21:27:57.419-05:00

Yes, you heard that right...It was reported at the end of last night's Alexandria Transportation Commission meeting that the city received a letter from VDOT about the BRAC-133 project (I-395 access at Seminary Rd/Mark Center). VDOT is apparently agreeing to not only drop Alternative A1 (which the city first supported, but more recently the BRAC Advisory Group opposed), but also Alternative D as

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-56016118216946992832010-03-29T20:12:00.004-05:002011-03-15T21:27:36.210-05:00

WMATA is in the process of having six budget meetings to gather public input on how to address its $190 million shortfall for FY 2011.And it just dawned on me that, except for ONE meeting in Anacostia (which has already happened), they're having *NO* meetings south of a line along US Route 50.One could attempt to make an argument that those in southwestern Prince George's County could have

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-75943843520466764392010-03-21T19:01:00.002-05:002011-03-15T21:26:42.166-05:00

No offense to the good folks at The District Curmudgeon. I know Geoff...he's a friend of mine. But if he's a curmudgeon, then I'm an outright Archie Bunker...

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-34519757721463474582010-03-19T13:26:00.003-05:002011-03-15T21:26:57.973-05:00

Just heard about this one, where a lady was recently killed on an Alabama Interstate after getting hit by a rock that was kicked up from a pothole and went through the windshield of the car she was in.So what is ALDOT's solution? You'd think it would be to fix the potholes, right?Wrong.Their solution is to lower the speed limit on an 18-mile stretch of I-20 from 70 to 55. As if that will make

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-70823243853618439972010-03-19T05:42:00.002-05:002011-03-15T21:26:26.486-05:00

More to follow, but let's just say that last night's streetcar meeting hosted by the Capitol Hill Restoration Society was...entertaining...

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-17048952193067716632010-03-15T17:39:00.010-05:002011-03-15T21:26:08.157-05:00

Also could be called "what you get when you're late to the party".As most in the D.C. area have probably heard by now, there was a bit of a flood concern along the river last night and this morning along the Potomac in the usual areas...mainly Georgetown and in Old Town Alexandria. The peak of the flood was sometime this morning, generally coinciding with the morning high tide. Most of the high

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-38222446832217794192010-03-12T04:58:00.003-06:002011-03-15T21:25:40.295-05:00

In a last-minute decision (over an hour into it), I went to the meeting anyway. Good thing too, because there were a few juicy tidbits I'd have otherwise missed.The meeting setup was VDOT standard fare, with various posterboards set up, VDOT and consultant personnel standing around to answer questions, and a formal presentation (which I was too late for). There were boards showing the overall

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-24810781079707267432010-03-11T18:31:00.004-06:002011-03-15T21:24:56.632-05:00

Stupid me forgot about VDOT's public meeting tonight on the I-395/Seminary Rd interchange, and I don't feel like getting (re)dressed to go trapse out to the meeting at this point. Hope somebody from Alexandria made it and could comment on what went on.So instead, I provided the following online comment to VDOT on the interchange study:Suggest VDOT look at new options that would provide the

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-23947664540887823582010-03-09T05:29:00.005-06:002011-03-15T21:24:35.840-05:00

Last night's Alexandria Transportation Commission meeting can be summed up in two words: budget, and BRAC.The budget was the main topic of discussion for most of the meeting, focused on an update from city staff on the city manager's proposed Capital Improvement Program budget for FY 2011 thru FY 2020. In a nutshell, it doesn't look very good. As currently proposed, there is no money for DASH

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-82224371388253207462010-03-07T14:49:00.003-06:002011-03-15T21:23:48.093-05:00

A few musings from a bike ride this afternoon.- Now that the snow's gone, it'd be nice if local jurisdictions could get some street sweepers (or similar) out to clean all the dirt/sand/gunk off the roads and ESPECIALLY the trails and sidewalks. The Route 1 trail connector to the WWB in particular has several layers of crud on it.- If NPS isn't going to widen the Mount Vernon Trail, how about

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-30887904245781193502010-03-04T06:04:00.003-06:002011-03-15T21:23:05.412-05:00

A few days late, but better late than never.Coincidentally, on the same day that WashCycle posts a Snowmageddon After Action Report, the Alexandria Ped/Bike Citizens Group has their bi-monthly meeting and discusses just that...snow removal.The basic gist from Yon Lambert's viewpoint (he spent 10 days straight at the city's EOC, plus a couple nights of snowplowing) is that Alexandria (like the

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-35909420906470442702010-02-24T17:51:00.003-06:002011-03-15T21:20:27.419-05:00

Same URL as before, but a new look and a new design. I'll withhold judgement on the design itself, as I'm more of a function person than a form person. But it would've been nice for them to including EVERYTHING on the new design instead of doing parts at a time. For example, the Projects page, previously full of project information, is now quite lacking, with an announcement that "DDOT will

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-54975783479805258032010-02-13T16:31:00.003-06:002011-03-15T21:20:09.531-05:00

My colleague over at WashCycle recently posted a writeup relating to BRAC transportation improvements and Andrews AFB. In a nutshell, Prince George's County will have a share of about $9.2 million from a recent appropriations bill for BRAC-related transportation improvements. While the county's BRAC Action Plan lists several highway and transit improvements, it basically has nothing for bikes

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-7903074533137594872010-02-10T15:45:00.004-06:002011-03-15T21:19:28.396-05:00

Not even dug out from the last storm, and we're in the middle of another. It's almost like a Minnesota winter. Except that this is D.C...So whenever you take a break from digging out (again), check this out:View Larger MapIt's a railroad crossing signal, of course. But it's on a bike trail! It's off US Route 301 just north of Baldwin, FL.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-58363525486740247162010-02-05T12:47:00.003-06:002011-03-15T21:19:04.363-05:00

NWS is predicting 18-24 inches...a total that would even make the hometown pause. Already curled up for what is looking like a long weekend within the house. May try to head out into Old Town tomorrow or Sunday, but I don't expect to get out very far until Monday at the earliest.So in the meantime, I'm curled up with my bed blanket, with the cat at my feet inside the blanket. Will probably be

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-72091848171211828062010-02-04T20:55:00.001-06:002011-03-15T21:18:29.329-05:00

Tonight was my first, but the group's last, Potomac Yard Planning Advisory Group (PYPAG) meeting. This group has spent the last several months working on the Small Area Plan for the Potomac Yard area, and tonight's meeting, the final scheduled meeting, was a wrap-up of sorts.Of course, there was some new material to discuss. On several people's minds was the rumors that an agreement has been

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-74089751324419456572010-02-04T17:33:00.001-06:002011-03-15T21:15:26.645-05:00

Last night was the monthly meeting of the Alexandria Transportation Commission, my second attendence of such meetings. Here's a breakdown of what was discussed:The city is submitting a funding request for an FTA Livability grant...$8.5 million to go towards the Potomac Yard Transitway.WMATA appararently has approved two "reimbursable projects" for Alexandria. One is a $1.8 million project at

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-41552971387034001212010-02-01T20:37:00.005-06:002011-03-15T21:13:40.475-05:00

Just got back from the semi-monthly meeting of BikeWalk Alexandria, a fairly informal affair held at a local coffee shop in Del Ray. Was my first attendence of these meetings...was mainly there to "get my feet wet", though I'd met a few of the attendees (including Dave Levy and Elizabeth Wright) on previous occasions. Also met fellow WashCycle commenter Jonathan Krall.The main gist of the

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-16759364264426421332010-01-20T18:40:00.004-06:002011-03-15T21:13:12.461-05:00

Just heard about this one. Per today's CTB resolution, VDOT plans to reopen its closed rest areas by mid-April, according to this brief. These were the 19 rest areas they closed last summer due to budget cuts. The new Governor (sworn in this past Saturday) vowed to make reopening them a priority, and apparently it worked.Which is fine by me. Because the Welcome Center on westbound 66 near

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-66376647922063683802010-01-13T09:14:00.005-06:002011-03-15T21:12:57.455-05:00

The city has updated the LocalMotion webpage to include the material from Monday night's meeting:2009 Year in Review. Which I just noticed is organized via the "5 E's" that the League of American Bicyclists uses.Meeting notes. Taken by one of the city staff members present. Looking at the sign-up sheet, I was pretty close on meeting attendence. Excluding city staff, the guest speakers, and

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-3561896769615554092010-01-12T13:52:00.006-06:002011-03-15T21:11:53.518-05:00

Last night was the year's first meeting of the Alexandria Pedestrian and Bicycle Citizens Group. This is an informal meeting held every other month by which city staff can provide information on city projects and plans and solicit input and comment from Alexandria citizens regarding walking and bicycling. These meetings are headed by Yon Lambert, one of the city's Transporation Planners and

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-30371138380638175002009-12-15T05:55:00.004-06:002011-03-15T21:10:19.182-05:00

Went to the city of Alexandria's Strategic Planning meeting for Goal 3, which relates to transportation.Two "quotes of the night", from one of the meeting attendees:- (not verbatim, but close) Transit is a "social safety net" and is "equal opportunity". (made in response to a planned $600K cut from DASH)- (verbatim) If it's not a dedicated bike lane, I'm afraid of traffic.

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-43019064487256158662009-11-11T07:58:00.004-06:002011-03-15T21:09:57.129-05:00

After doing some hiking in western Maryland on Sunday (to the highest point in Maryland, amongst other places), I headed home via the Corridor H area. Below is a field-check of the construction projects along the corridor, generally from west to east.- Earthmoving and grading is now underway on either side of WV 93 north of Scherr, extending east to CR 1. No bridgework yet at either WV 93 or CR

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-79144303081946245322009-09-14T17:27:00.003-05:002011-03-15T21:05:32.156-05:00

So, after an hour-long bike ride this evening (something I'm trying to do more often), it occurred to me that the more I get back into bicycling, the more I find myself in favor of the "Idaho Stop".For those not familliar, the Idaho Stop, named so because it's coded within Section 49-720 of the Idaho statutes, basically allows bicyclists to treat stop signs as a yield sign, or treat red traffic

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-74807113025814683092009-09-14T14:58:00.004-05:002011-03-15T21:05:06.492-05:00

Did this one over the weekend...something I've been thinking about for awhile, but forgot to post it to the blog.It's my idea for a remake of the I-295/South Capitol St/Malcolm X Ave interchange area in front of Bolling AFB, with the net result being more streamlined access, better signal spacing on Malcolm X, and a smaller footprint.It'd also tie in well with the #6 I mentioned on my bicycle

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-18038310941652773022009-09-10T20:41:00.002-05:002011-03-15T21:04:26.543-05:00

Christmas is a few months away, and Santa Claus will be coming with presents for all. The big kid bicyclist in me has a Christmas wish list he'd like to share, with the Huntington (and Alexandria too) bicyclist in mind, in hopes that Santa (and the politicians) take notice...1. Wayfinding/guide signageIf roads and highways can have decent guide signage (like the big green signs on the

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-59335205614852265692009-06-06T21:15:00.003-05:002011-03-15T21:03:01.290-05:00

And I was one of the first on it!It's been announced for at least a month that the bike/ped lane on the new Woodrow Wilson Bridge was opening on June 6. Later on, it was put out that the public opening would be at 1pm (after an invite-only opening ceremony).After several "antsy bikers" approached the west end asking if it was open, plus the Alexandria Police wanting an opening-related lane

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15982607.post-50884446629406245742009-05-17T14:22:00.003-05:002011-03-15T21:02:08.215-05:00

As a few of you may know, I live very close to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge (I-95/I-495/DC Beltway across the Potomac). I've been more or less watching the progress on the bridge project, and the related interchange and Beltway reconstruction projects on either end, since I moved here. Especially since I use the WWB every day on my commute. It's been neat to watch the progress on both the bridge

Froggiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12843594625467349428noreply@blogger.com0