WABA to Hold a Charrette to Discuss How to Diversify Bicycling

Bicycling is already diverse, how can it be improved?
Image: Author

The Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) sent an email to certain members and organizations asking:

“What would it take to make bicycling more diverse? More inclusive? More equitable?”

Sunday, December 10, 2017, WABA is hoping to bring together regional bicycling groups at the Bellevue (William O. Lockridge) Neighborhood Library, 115 Atlantic Street SW from 2:00 pm to 4:30 pm to conduct a charrette, which is an intensive planning session that brings citizens, designers and others together to collaborate on a vision for development. It also provides a space for participants to discuss possibilities, problems and think, creatively about moving people or people moving.

The event is free but participants should register online.

The charrette project partners include advisers Charles Brown of Equitable Cities and Mike Lydon of Open Streets Project and is supported by a grant from the Office of Planning and the Kresge Foundation.

From the WABA email:

Bicycling locally and nationally is overly represented by individuals who are white, male, educated, and with above average incomes. How can we as a community start to change that? How can local bicycling groups, clubs and organizations collaborate to make bicycling more inclusive? How can the city support this goal?

The charette hopes to help foster new ideas regarding the generation and refinement of future programs, events, or initiatives that would help increase diversity in bicycling. The meeting will also provide an opportunity for groups, club, and organization to discuss what they are doing to make bicycling more inclusive as well as discuss their experiences and perspective with people who are typically undeserved.

WABA is inviting several groups to discuss how to meet people of color where they are with regard to bicycling and give them the tools to make their own decisions on how to bike and what bicycling looks like in areas traditionally undeserved. According to the email, the following groups were invited:

Color of Cycling
Slow Roll DC
Kidical Mass DC
Black Women Bike DC
Gearin’ Up Bicycles
Artemis
WABA’s Women and Bicycles
Capital Bikeshare
All Walks DC
Getting it in Cycling
Oxon Hill Bike and Trail Club
Anacostia Bicyclist Association
Safe Routes to School National Partnership
Tour de Bike Lane
dVELO

Cycling Without Age
Peace in the Streets Ride
Streetwize Foundation
Jews on Bikes
Red, Bike, Green
Phoenix Bikes
E. L. Haynes PCS
Latin American Youth Center
DC Bike Polo
DC Bilingual PCS
Office of Planning
Department of Parks and Recreation

If there is a group that could potentially contribute, email Greg Billing at greg@waba.org with additional names and groups.

Light snacks and drink provided. All participants will receive a thank you gift of goodies for your participation.

A Closer Look into the ACS Mode Share Data for the District

Image: Author

Bike mode share continues to increase in the District, even as other cities seen slower growth or a reduction bike use. With over 16,000 commuter bicyclists, the District is a national leader in bike mode share. While there are a number of factors that contribute to the District’s status, it appears that women bicyclists – among other groups – are helping drive the city’s success, according to data from the Census.

As reported by Streetsblog and the D.C. Bicycle Advisory Council, the League of American Bicyclists looked at 2016 Census Bureau data on how Americans commute, specifically how they commute by bike. Called the American Community Survey (ACS), it is a nationwide survey designed to show communities how they are changing over time. The ACS collects information on age, race, income, home value, veteran status, and other important data.

The League complied this data and produced a comprehensive report called Where We Ride: An Analysis of Bicycling in American Cities. The yearly report measures the growth or decline of bicycling in across the 70 largest U.S. cities; the cities with the most commutes by bike; and ranks bike usages in each state, the District, and Puerto Rico. While the League focuses on national statistics, Bike Specific will show some of the District’s statistics from the League report, the ACS, and other sources.

The Data

The ACS examines data as reported by survey participants, so naturally it excludes those who simply were not contacted or who failed to complete the survey. Also, the survey source specifically collects information on work trips, not recreational or other bike usage. Lastly, the ACS states statistical margins of error up to +/- 2.5 percent, depending on the specific question.

The figures below are derived from ACS and League data. According to the League, there are two limitations to the data. The survey only measures those who “usually” get to work in the “last week” before the question was asked, and it only captures the mode used for the most distance. These limitations mean that occasional bike commuters and multi-modal commuters who use bikes are unlikely to be captured.

A subset of the ACS, the Commuting Characteristics By Sex data set is the source of most mode share information and identifies changes in how people get to and from work by their most common transportation modes. The mode shares identified are personal motorized vehicles (cars, trucks, vans), public transportation, walking, bicycling, car sharing or other means (taxicab, motorcycle, etc.), or working at home. Also, the ACS data aggregates data nationally, at the state, county, and city levels. Information can also be sorted at the zip code level, which could be useful at a later point.

Unfortunately, the Commuting Characteristics by Sex data set doesn’t correlate income, race, or other factors captured in other data sets, which would be help given the District’s diversity. For this post, let’s focus only on the Commuting Characteristics by Sex data and information collected by the league.

National Trends

Since 1990, bicycle commuting has seen steady growth; however, that growth has slowed or retreated. The total number of U.S. bike commuters fell slightly in 2016, for the second year in a row, to 863,979. While the overall number seems impressive, that translates into a national commuting mode share of only 0.57 percent. Streetsblog suggests that the gas price spike between 2008-2014 helped fuel the some of the mode shift to bicycling and as those prices have leveled off, some recent converts have shifted back to cars or some other commuting mode.

The figure above, which is complied from the League’s analysis, shows the bicycling commuter mode share nationally and for the 70 largest cities from 1990 through 2016. From 1990 to 2000, bike commuting saw stagnent growth. Since 2000, and with a few exceptions, overall bike use grew annually until 2014 for states and cities. From the height of the automotive fuel costs in 2014 until 2016; however, bike commuter mode share has decreases approximately 8.1 percent at the state level and 12.2 percent in the 70 largest cities where it plateaued in 2013 and has fallen each year since.

Share of Bike Commuters

Unlike many cities, the District has seen continued growth in commutes by bike, making it one of the top U.S. cities. Several factors contribute to this including that three out of four District residents work in the District, according to the survey. If you compared the District as a state, it would by far have the highest bicycle mode share in the nation. Since 1990, bike use has increased approximately 506 percent and in 2000, only about 3,000 respondents stated that they commuted by bike.

The figure above shows the top 10 largest cities with the highest bike mode share for 2016. The data shows that the District ranks second only to Portland, Oregon with the highest share of bicycle commuters at 4.6 percent. Portland may take the top spot with an impressive 6.3 percent bike commuter mode share, but its recent growth is anemic. From 2011 to 2016, Portland’s bike mode share grew only 1.0 percent, while the District grew at 46.0 percent. From 2015 to 2016, Portland experienced a 9.6 percent drop in bike commuting. Conversely, the District experienced a bike mode share increase of 12.1 percent during the same period.

Women and Bicycling

While there are many factors that contribute to the District’s bicycling status including topography, income, and bike infrastructure improvements, new women bicyclists may be the prime contributor to the growth of bicycling in the District according to the ACS.

Recently created organizations like Black Women Bike DC and the Washington Area Bicyclists Association’s Women & Bicycles program have provided a forum for women to talk about bicycling and help them develop the confidence to do so safely. Before that in 1999, cycling groups like Artemis Racing were helping women reach their bicycling goals. There no coincidence that their work has contributed to the growth of women bicyclists as well as the overall growth of bicycling in the District.

The ACS Commuting Characteristics by Sex data set reveals that 3.8 percent of women report that they commuted to work by bike in 2016. To put this increase in perspective, in 2006 total bike commuter mode share was at 2.0 percent; with only 1.1 percent of women reporting that they commute by bike. Both men and women have seen an increase in mode share since. Between 2006 to 2016, bike commuting saw a 86.2 percent increase among men. However during the same period, the District saw dramatic growth in women commuting by bike, a 245.5 percent increase.

The survey sugguests that women are moving away from cars and transit and considering bikes or other transportation modes for their commutes. The figure above shows the change in commuting mode share for women in the District, comparing the change from 2015 to 2016 (blue) and from 2010 to 2016 (red). Women who commuted by bicycle increased 21.1 percent between 2015 ad 2016. Since 2010, car use in the District has experienced a 7.0 percent commuter mode share decrease while transit has seen a decrease 8.4 percent. Since 2010, more women are using taxicabs, motorcycles or car share options like Lyft and Uber to commute to work, growing by 35.7 percent. The expansion of teleworking in the District allows more women to avoid on the roads commuting, as increasing by 23.7 percent over the last six years.

Changes in Other Commuting Modes

When comparing bike commuting with all other modes over the ten year period from 2006 to 2016, we see that the change is much more compelling.

The figure above shows the commuter mode share of all modes in the District where blue is 2006 and red is 2016. In 2006, 41.7 percent of all commutes were by car, but in 2016 that number dropped to 38.1 percent, a decrease of 8.6 percent. While 38.1 percent of trips is still a relatively high, it demonstrates that people are choosing to leave their cars at home or use some other mode to get to work. The loss of transit riders in the District appears real. Transit mode share in 2016 decreased to 36.0 percent of commuter trips, a decrease of 7.7 percent from 2006.

The figure above shows the overall change in mode share, comparing 2006 with 2016. By far bicycle commuting has seen the largest increase, growing by 130.0 percent during that time. The walking commuter and those who used car share or motorcycles to get to work saw increases of 16.1 and 14.3 percent, respectively. Those deciding to work from home saw a 50.0 percent mode share increase from 4.0 to 6.0 percent. As the Coalition on Smarter Growth noted, the District has the highest share of commuters who both bike and walk, a combined total of 18.3 percent.

Other Bike Commuting Statistics

The League report also notes which U.S. cities have the largest number of bicyclists. Among the nation’s largest cities, New York and Chicago top the list with an estimated 48,601 and 22,449, respectively. The District ranks 6th in the nation with 16,647 bicyclists commuters. Streetsblog notes that Davis, California, one of the country’s longtime leaders in bicycle mode share, saw its third straight year of falling estimates in the ACS. An estimated 17.0 percent of trips were made by bike, down from 25.0 percent in 2013.

District Bike Commuter Mode Share has increased
506 percent since 1990. [ACS]

If there is one area where the District is lacking, it’s cities with the highest share of bicyclists. The District is tied 13 out of the top 20 cities of total trips made by bike. This figure ranks all cities with populations over 50,000.

Where Does the District Stand

For some, bicycling in the District may not be a year-round activity as it tends to have cold winters and hot, humid summers. Additionally, bicycling competes with at least a half-a-dozen other transportation modes including the much maligned but fairly effective WMATA, robust car-sharing, telecomuting walking, and potentially gondolas. The terrain and natural or man-made impediments may also play a role in certain areas, especially in communities east of the Anacostia River. And to be honest, bicycling isn’t for everyone.

The District has seen a solid and promising increase in the number of women bicycle commuters but it could be higher. FiveThrityEight asked in 2014 “Why Women Don’t Cycle“? While they cite several reasons including legitimate issues like hygiene and what clothes to wear, safety was the biggest concern. The 2010 Women’s Cycling Survey found that over 73 percent of women were concerned about distracted driving. About 13 percent were concerned about sexual assault, harassment or sexism while biking, which the District discussed earlier this year. The same post cited survey results from the Bikes Belong Coalition, which found that ‘women were twice as likely as men to report an “inability to carry children or other passengers” as a factor that discouraged them from cycling’.

The District’s inclusion of people of color and lower income residents has been mixed. For years, these communities did not have access to affordable bikes or safe infrastructure that allowed them to safely access the city’s core or its jobs. While there are plans to reconstruct infrastructure to encourage bicycling, many of the these projects will take years to complete. Even then, the District government and the bike community must work with communities to address specific needs. For example, the average cost of car ownership could be as high as $11,000 per year. By contrast, bike ownership is relatively low at a less than $400 per year.

However, the initial investment of a bike purchase could be high and bicycle maintenance is a potential deterrent as some areas of the District have no local bike shops. The introduction of Capital BikeShare and dockless bike sharing in 2017 has the potential to lower that entry costs to a few dollars per use and also eliminates maintenance costs. Connecting dockless with lower income residents could lead to substantial growth in bike mode share for both recreation and commuting.

Getting women and children on bikes is important.
Image: Author

Since the District initiated MoveDC, its multi-modal long-range transportation plan, bicycle commuting has grown about 46 percent, which is likely not a coincidence. This suggests that if the city plans and builds bike infrastructure, people will use it – women, children, the poor, and the elderly can use it. Also, new infrastructure like the 15th Street protected bike lane, the Metropolitan Branch Trail, and and the L and M street protected lanes have likely helped ‘induce demand’.

As the data suggests however, the growth in bike commuting mode share could become stagnate or drop as it has in other cities. The District, its regional partners, and the bike community should continue to both improve and maintain the transportation network and reach out to communities and groups that were historically ignored. This means constructing safe bike parking, access to shower or changing facilities, and understanding how traditionally underserved groups see bicycling.

Working together, they can encourage the use of non-single occupancy motorized vehicles – removing cars from the road and potentially allowing more space for biking, walking, transit – and one day perhaps – gondolas and funiculars. This will potentially make bicycling safer for everyone, increasing the likelihood that more people will chose to bike to work. The ACS data seems to suggest that the key to the expansion of bicycling in the District – and nationally – is to continue to focus on women and those who haven’t experienced the the joy of the bike commute.

ANCs in Ward 6 Want to Make K Street NE Safer for Bicyclists and Pedestrians

K Street Makes Moves. Image: Author

The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) discussed the K Street NE Traffic Study at the 6C Advisory Neighborhood Commission’s (ANC) September meeting. One alternative would add bicycle lanes along K Street NE, potentially creating what would be one of the few direct, crosstown bicycle routes in the city. As expected, there were concerns about the loss of vehicle parking for all 4 presented alternatives, however; DDOT will continue its study.

As reported by Elizabeth O’Gorek of the HillRag, Washcycle, and WABA, ANC 6C contacted DDOT requesting that it initiate a study to determine how to create safer streets for pedestrians and bicyclists. The corridor, from approximately North Capitol Street to Florida Avenue NE, is prone to speeding and other forms of aggressive driving.

In May of this year, ANC 6C and 6A jointly requested that DDOT examine bicycling along K Street. DDOT presented preliminary findings in August as part of its K Street Corridor Safety Assessment to analyze safety concerns. The assessment included the evaluation of vehicular crash history and existing traffic operations along the corridor. The assessment also discussed the potential impact of the NoMa Bicycle Network study currently underway. That study will review existing transportation plans to determine how they relate to the current and planned bicycle network, overall travel demand, and safety road user safety.

Community Response

According to HillRag, the committee noted it had received considerable feedback, particularly from residents of K Street and especially regarding to the parking aspects of proposals. The committee’s representative said they were sensitive to parking concerns but, as the overall purpose of the study was to enhance safety, felt bike lanes were the most important addition to K Street, the only corridor proceeding both east and west for that distance.

The committee chair noted that cyclists will continue to use K Street regardless or what actions are eventually taken, it was thought. The representative emphasized that this was only a preliminary study and would also affect ANC 6A.Community members voiced opposition to the four proposed plans, especially option four. Concerns about the elimination of parking safety and the necessity for bike lanes were expressed, especially by residents of the 600 block of K Street NE.

Presented Alternatives

The HillRag states that while the study is ongoing, DDOT presented four traffic-calming measures, each instituting a road diet: removing rush-hour no parking restrictions and making parking full-time for residents, among other actions.

Study Corridor. Image: DDOT

Alternatives 1 through 3 are generally car-specific options that provide increasingly longer vehicle turning queues. They include a reduction in the total number of travel lanes from 2 peak lanes in each direction to one in each direction at all times, adding left-turn lanes along the corridor. These alternative reduce current off-peak parking from a total of 216 to 171 full‐time on‐street parking spaces in alternative 1, a total of 155 full-time spaces in alternative 2, and 144 full time spaces in alternative 3. The alternatives also adds protective bulb outs also called curb extensions to reduce the crossing distances for pedestrians and an school drop‐off zone at the 600 block of K Street.

Road Diet Alternative #4 – Bike Lanes. Image: DDOT

Alternative 4, recommended by the study and moveDC, adds east and west bicycle lanes along the corridor. This option eliminates on‐street parking on south side of street and retains the fewest number of parking, 110 full-time spaces. This option maintains school parking and a drop‐off zone on north side of the street, curb extensions or on north side of roadway as seen in the other alternatives, but appears to eliminate turning queues that appear in alternatives 1 through 3.

Typical cross section of K Street NE. Image: DDOT

Other Alternatives

NoMa Bike Study looks at the feasibility of bike route through the area. Image: DDOT

While the K Street option is attractive, other bike-related studies being evaluated. Related to the K Street safety review, the NoMa Bicycle Network Study currently underway is examining existing and planned bike facilities through and to this area. The study is also examining the feasibility of creating new or extending current bike routes from east-to-west along M, N, L, and K Streets. Just as K Street is in the MoveDC plan with bike lanes, the plan also anticipates the extension of the L Street protected bike lanes from their current terminus at Massachusetts Avenue NW to 1st Street NE. While currently not a fully-realized bike route under consideration, L Street NE is used by bicyclists as an alternative to K Street as it generally sees fewer cars moving at high speeds.

In the East West Corridor Feasibility and Barriers to Cycling image above, DDOT identifies impediments to connecting NoMa to its eastern neighbors. DDOT seems to suggest that an L street bike lane from east to west might be marginally more feasible. South of K Street, I (eye) street has shared lanes or contraflow bike lanes. Containing less vehicle traffic and fewer stop lights it provides an alternative to the busier K Street but ends at 2nd Street NE.

A Closer Look at the FY 2018 – 2022 DDOT STIP

The DDOT STIP is a 4-year Transporation Plan.
Photo: Author

The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) presented its draft Fiscal Year 2018 – 2022 State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP), Monday, October 2 at the Shaw Public Library. The plan includes several important projects like the continued rehabilitation of Rock Creek and Capital Bikeshare maintenance and expansion, but there were a few missing.

The $1.1 billion Draft Fiscal Year 2018-2022 STIP is a District-wide, long-range funding plan that prioritized transportation projects that are eligible for federal grant funding. The projects listed are consistent with the District’s statewide transportation plan, also known as moveDC, which differs from STIP as it doesn’t allocate funding.

The STIP tracks federally funded and regionally-significant projects that directly address the transportation needs of the District. The STIP is produced every two years and is a cooperative effort that requires the input of District stakeholders, regional partners, and the public. The STIP does not include projects that are funded exclusively through local resources, which would include elements of the District’s Streetcar or Circulator projects. The full list of projects can be seen here.

The plan contains 117 projects and while many are allocated by ward, the majority deal with District-wide operational or administrative needs. The STIP has nine project categories that include Major Multimodal improvements, which build key transportation corridors, typically addressing travel by a mix of modes (including transit, vehicular, bicycle, and pedestrian), operations, safety, curbside uses, and public space quality; to Asset Management, which maintains and upgrades transportation assets including roadway pavement, streetlights, traffic signals, and signal systems.

Of the total number of projects, about 14 specifically state having a bike component or are designated as one of the nine project categories as Bicycling and Pedestrian initiatives. Projects that focus solely on expanding or maintaining bike infrastructure represents about 3.9 percent of total STIP spending or about $45 million over 4 years. Adding in the projects that contain bike components, like Safe Routes to School, the total stated investment in bicycling is approximately 13.6 percent or $159 million of STIP planned spending.

DDOT is conducting a short online survey to gather public comments and determine how the STIP is perceived and what should be the District’s top transportation priorities. Additionally, the survey asks general questions regarding how residents use the District’s transportation network. The survey also has a section that allows you to add what you believe is missing from the STIP. The comment period ends October 25, 2017. The DDOT STIP management team will also accept feedback by email.

Below is a table listing all projects that have a bicycling component or are bicycling specific. Certain projects like bridge replacement and equipment purchases may make the roads safer for bicycling but is not included in this list.

While the STIP has many improvements for bicycling and pedestrians, there are a few missing projects or projects that descriptions that don’t specify bicycling improvements. The New York Avenue corridor contains several planned projects but is not shown in the STIP. DDOT staff stated that projects that are in the early planning stages or do not have a funding stream attached are not included. Irving Street (at North Capitol Street), the Metropolitan Branch Trail extension, and the reconstruction Southeast Boulevard are also absent. Although the rebuilding of New Jersey Avenue between Massachusetts and N Streets NW and the replacement of the Fredrick Douglass / South Capitol Street Bridge projects should include protected infrastructure, it was not stated in the draft plan so it was excluded from this list.

The Draft Plan October 2 meeting. Photo: Author

The STIPs included improvements help link the District’s Wards and maintain the current infrastructure in a state of good repair. The Arboretum Bridge and Trail project would provide a much-needed link from Ward 7 to Wards 5 and 6. Currently, the neared pedestrian crossing is Benning Road, which is poor given its focus on moving vehicular traffic. And because of its current inhospitable state, the replacement of the Benning Road Bridge over Kenilworth Avenue in northeast will greatly improve the ability of pedestrians and bicyclists to cross the Anacostia safely.

Replacement of the Monroe Street Bridge is a Lost Opportunity for #BikeDC

The Brookland Homecoming Bridge
Image: Author

The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) held a meeting at the Luke C. Moore High School in NE regarding the replacement of the Monroe Street Bridge over the Baltimore and Ohio railway and Metrorail Red line in August.The meeting gave about 30 members of the public an opportunity to comment on the structure and the improvements that will be made.

By improvements, the bridge will look identical to how it now appears, maybe less colorful with wider sidewalks, relatively unchanged from the plan presented about a year ago.

This bridge could have been more. The District had the opportunity to build a better bridge that served multiple users and allowed for safer access to the Metropolitan Branch Trail and the Brookland and Edgewood communities. It could have been an attractive structure that provides a symbol of its the past and connects a budding arts district with its future. Unfortunately, what we will have a bridge that crosses tracks, that lacks character and potentially doesn’t make crossing it any easier or safer – for the next 75 years.

History
The bridge connects to Historic District neighborhoods Brookland and Edgewood NE. The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1873 created the Metropolitan Branch, which connected Point of Rocks, MD with the District, and the physical barrier that separates Brookland from Edgewood today. Monroe Street connects the old commercial strip of 12th Street NE, Brooks Mansion, and ‘downtown’ Brookland with the Catholic University of America, Dance Place and the newer residences and businesses and just over the bridge. Between them, the Red line’s Brookland Station helps get people around the region, when it runs.

Rendering of New Old Monroe Street Bridge
Image: DDOT

Many in the community see the bridge as a focal point as residents worked with artists to paint and adorn it with artwork. Also, Monroe Street is one of only six streets along a 3.3-mile corridor that provides an east/west connection north of New York Avenue and south of Riggs Road NE, making it important to bicyclists and motorists.

The Monroe Street
Image: Author

The “What Could Have Been”

Several years ago, DDOT and Toole Design proposed an alternative alignment of the Metropolitan Branch Trail. Then, the Edgewood side of the bridge was largely undeveloped, consisting of a vacant lot. The planned assumed that when the Monroe Street Bridge was replaced, an opening would be made in the bridge abutment allowing the trail to continue under Monroe in a tunnel, as the rendering below illustrates.

The “What Could Have Been Trail” tunnel
Image: Toole Design

According to Katie Harris of the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA), the tunnel option was excluded from consideration. Last year, the DDOT engineering team assigned to the bridge rehabilitation stated that the District neglected to acquire the right-of-way on the south side of the bridge. When design option show above was presented in 2004, the lot at the corner of 8th Street and Monroe Street on the south side of the bridge was unimproved. The Edgewood Art Center now sits too close to the bridge abutment, making it expensive and technically difficult to construct a tunnel.

Planned Replacement
The DDOT states that the existing Monroe Street Bridge was built in 1931 and underwent a major rehabilitation in 1974 and emergency repairs in 2014 and 2015. However, with the bridge’s current condition, DDOT states reconstructing the superstructure and partial substructure of the bridge is more cost effective than repair it or completely replacing it. The replacement bridge will cost approximately $12.7 million and include the major elements above as well as other minor improvements. These include the placement power lines underground, new steel mesh fencing, and improved curb cuts and other streetscape changes.

Figure 1.
Image DDOT

Figure 1 illustrates the typical orientation of the bridge during reconstruction. The reconstruction should begin in August of 2017 and last just under 2 years, ending in March of 2019. The bridge will be replaced in halves, with at least two travel lanes in each direction remaining open at all times. Sidewalk access should be available but alternate on the north and south sides accordingly. DDOT will have personnel to maintain traffic flow.

DDOT proposes that bicyclists share the travel lanes with cars and buses, placing signage along the bridge to inform motorists that bicyclists may use the full lane”. Without turning lanes, access to the Metropolitan Branch Trail and 8th Street from or across Monroe could be challenging, especially during rush hour and when buses turn in the the Brookland CUA Metrorail station. Additionally, non-motorist traveling from or to Monroe Market or the Arts’ walk may see that during contraction, most of the north side of the street blocked. This would force pedestrians and bicyclists to share the west side crosswalk. As the parking lane would be converted to a travel lane and without a signal, crossing could be difficult.

Figure 2
Image: DDOT

Figure 2 shows that the rebuilt bridge will have a configuration similar to the current bridge, each bike lane will be 5 feet wide, sidewalks 6 feet wide, and vehicular travel lanes 11 feet wide.

While most concluded that the replacement of the bridge was needed, the community voiced concerns regarding something not directly part of the bridge reconstruction, the addition of a traffic signal at 8th and Monroe Street. Motorists were concerned that a signal at that location would create gridlock during rush hour. Bicyclists were also concerned that the when starting from a standing stop, the sharp incline at the foot of the budget at 8th Street be difficult for most bike users traveling eastbound. During construction, the problem would be exacerbated as there would be no stop sign at 8th so motorists would be encouraged to travel at speed through the constriction zone. On the bridge, bicyclists would have curb to the right, on coming traffic to the left, and cars and buses behind them.

DDOT says that after construction, it will evaluate traffic patterns and make a change to signal timing if necessary. The signal will be timed, based on standard rush hour intervals, and will be monitored so that if backups occur, the signal can be controlled manually. There was discussion regarding alternative traffic control methods like a HAWK signal or stop signs; however, the DDOT representative stated that traffic studies recommended a signal.

The community was also concerned about the planned bridge aesthetics. Currently, a mural exists on the the edges of the bridge, Made by local artists, the community was concerned that this would be removed with nothing created in its place. DDOT stated that the current mural would not be maintained but that the community should contact the Commission on Arts and Humanities to determine if or how some artistic element could be reflected.