uno000 – Page 2 – bikeSpecific

DDOT and the NoMa BID Ask the MBT: What’s Your Sign?

DDOT asks how do people use the trail
Image: Author

Thursday, July 13, The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) and the NoMa Business Improvement District (BID) held a public meeting at the Wunder Garten to view potential wayfinding signage for the Metropolitan Branch Trail (MBT). DDOT and the BID want your ideas on how that signage should look and what it should say.

According to the BID, the purpose of this meeting was to engage trail users in developing a plan for additional wayfinding signage on and near the MBT between Union Station and Michigan Avenue. The team asked participants how they connected to the trail – using it to travel to and from work, for recreation, for errands, or all of the above.

Currently, the MBT and the First and M Street NE protected bike lanes contain several types of signage – some of it different from the run-of-the-mill bike lanes signs, some of it MBT-specific – to provide wayfinding information to its users. Early in the trail’s planning, DDOT adopted the familiar “mbt” white, burgundy-ish, green signs that dot the area. Later, DDOT and developers near the trail used different signs to show where users were on the trail and where they may want to go.

The BID and DDOT are considering streamlining the hodgepodge of signage or adding to it. Potentially, the signage could lead to a “branding” or designated the MBT route on maps and on connecting streets with bike infrastructure. This would allow current and new MBT users to easily identify the location of the trail and where it goes.

The images below show the variations in signage along the trail.

The original sign scheme – labeled #1 – was one of the popular signs as it identifies the trail, shows direction and distance to points of interest, and looks appealing. Signs #2 and #3 are consistent with current DDOT standards for most on-street trails and provide direction and identify that users are on a bike route. One of the least picks signs was #4, located at the Elevation residential development that abuts the trail just south of New York Avenue NE. Participants noted that it was relatively low-standing and easily missed and doesn’t provide much in the way of information. Sign #5 acts as a trailhead or starting point while #6, which is similar in design to the traditional signage but provides distance travel from the start of the trail.

If you missed the meeting – and the beer – the NoMa BID created a survey to help the team determine the best approach. The short survey asks participants to rate the usefulness of signs along the MBT corridor. Further, it how people travel along the corridor and their starting and ending points. Please take a moment to take the survey and make sure to add your comments on potential directional improvements on it.

You’ll have to get your own beer…

New York Avenue Streetscape Project Meeting Shows Draft Concepts and A Lot of Potential

The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) held a public meeting on Thursday, June 29, 2017, 6 pm through 8 pm to discuss the New York Avenue Streetscape and Trail Project draft final concepts. The ideas that DDOT proposes could be the catalyst need to create not only a transportation link to Ivy City and the Arboretum but, potentially a linear park in an area that has few public amenities.

Overview
The purpose of the meeting in the atrium of REI was to solicit public feedback regarding the development of design solutions for the proposed revitalization of New York Avenue and to comply with Vision Zero elements of safety enhancement and improved the aesthetic character along the corridor. The meeting was an open house format with a brief presentation given by DDOT staff or project contractors.

The presentation boards covered a lot of material, most of which is used only to illustrate what amenities and structures under consideration by DDOT. To be clear, not everything displayed on the boards will happen initially (or at all) but show what could be built if funding and community support materialize. When viewing this post, also view the recent post regarding the VRE Midday Train Storage Facility. To build its facility, VRE will acquire at least three properties along the New York Avenue Trail route and work with DDOT and its partners to create a trail and a barrier.

DDOT displayed about 10 presentation boards, with a couple over 10 feet long, showing the project’s length along New York Avenue from Florida to 16th Street NE. While I tried to get good photos of every board, I didn’t. DDOT stated that meeting documents, including the presentation boards, will be available the week of July 4 on the project website. Once they are, I may revisit some proposals not discussed in this post. As such, let’s discuss some of the major changes from prior meetings, of which there are quite a few.

Routing Highlights
While the previous public meeting held April 25, 2017 showed generalized conceptual drawings, the presentation boards at this meeting provided more detail regarding the proposed route along New York Avenue, streets that connect to it, and how DDOT envisions its aesthetics. Where the prior plans showed directions, the most recent meeting contain designations for bike trails, streetscape elements, some pedestrian elements, or shared use paths. The meeting was billed as a final design but the presentation boards were illustrative and not necessarily how the it will appear. Nevertheless, the illustrations provided a fair amount of detail regarding planting, lighting, and potential facilities.

The current trail travels from its east end at Bladensburg Road, NE; crosses the complicated West Virginia, Montana, and New York Avenue Circle; and turns in a southerly direction on West Virginia Avenue to 16th Street NE. The trail travels a couple block up 16th Street, reconnecting to New York Avenue where it crosses to the north side of the street until it reaches the Florida Avenue NE. Unless otherwise noted, all images are courtesy of DDOT.

In the segment above near the project’s endpoint at Bladensburg Avenue, NE, the proposal calls for the rebuilding of the sidewalks along both the north and south sides of the street. The northern side contains a typical sidewalk while the southern side contains a shared use trail. DDOT has stated that the southern side of the street will be a trail constructed as part of NewCityDC, a 1.5 million-square-foot mixed-use project. In the lower right corner, 17th Street NW would have a bi-directional protected bike lane that connects Montana Avenue and a reconstructed T Place NE with West Virginia Avenue, perhaps to avoid the intersection below.

DDOT has provided more detail regarding how pedestrians and bicyclists will cross this complex circle at Montana, West Virginia, and New York Avenues. The image above shows that a bike path and sidewalk are on the southern side of the circle, which also contains trees, bushes, and other streetscape elements. Instead of using the 1600 block of New York Avenue as a trail, the design instead places a shared use path along West Virginia Avenue for about two blocks. The path then turns onto 16th Street NE, passing Okie Street and the shops along it, returning back to New York.

The image above shows a straightforward connection to the 9th Street NE bridge in the form of a ramp and stair. This would replace the communal paths made by users attempting to reach New York Avenue without walking a extra half of a mile along the sidewalk on the street that connects the two. What the proposed improvements apparently do not do is widen the sidewalk on the south side of New York Avenue below 9th Street, which is only around three feet wide.

The presentation also made connections from the trail to the Arboretum. The plan calls for shared lanes from the rebuilt T Place NE, along 24th Street, and then to the R Street entrance.

Potential Future Connections
The plan proposes several connections to the trail that were not articulated in prior meetings. These additions should be considered alternatives and will not necessarily appear in the final design.

The most intriguing potential future addition listed in the proposal is the construction of a separate bike and pedestrian tunnel below New York Avenue near 4th Street NE. This would be a brand new tunnel, separate for the currently abandoned tunnel integral to the Virginia Railway Express’ (VRE) Midday Storage Yard plan. This new connection with the Union Market area would extend the trail along Penn and 4th Street NE to connect with the current 6th Street trail near Gallaudet University and proposed improvements on Florida Avenue, NE.

The tunnel would likely use the “cut and cover” method, which would dig a trench across New York Avenue, roughly parallel with the existing VRE tunnel. While costs were not included in the presentation, planners estimated that the total cost of the tunnel alone would exceed $13 million.

At the New York Avenue Bridge, which runs over the southern sections of the Ivy City Yard and Metro’s Red Line, the proposal calls for the widening of the sidewalks on the north side of the bridge. After narrowing some of the travel lanes, unidirectional protected bike lanes would be added in north and south of the bridge to include a protected bike lane in each direction and vantage point to see the tracks and potentially, once built, NoMa Green below.

On the north side of the bridge, a proposed ramp connection allows users to reach the Metropolitan Branch Trail. On the south side, there is a stair connection to the trail, different than the current stairs the lead to the Elevation apartments or the Washington Gateway project’s bike lobby proposal. The stairs would contain a bike ramp to help users carry their bikes.

What it’s missing
DDOT look is working to create a new trail that connects a long neglected area with the rest of the city. What’s missing is something for those who currently live their. This isn’t necessarily the new arrivals in the Hecht District but the people who have lived in Ivy City for decades and for the families in ad hoc homeless shelters in New York Avenue hotels. While the underused Arboretum and an adjacent recreation center are nearby, the trail should include something to draw area residents and visitors to it, not just through it.

This could include artwork similar to what was shown in the VRE Midday Trail Storage facility as well as exercise stations and children play areas. Bio-retention, solar arrays, and small shelter for events could be added, as well as the customary benches and bike parking. This would require coordination with other District agencies like the Department of Energy and the Environment and the Department of Parks and Recreation, and potentially an area business Improvement District to help maintain and produce programming for it, but it could be accomplished with not much more effort.

What do you think should be added? Post your thoughts in the comments section below or send a message at @BikeSpecific.

Below are additional images taken at the meeting.

VRE Storage Plans Along New York Avenue Corridor Provide Space for Bikes and Pedestrians

Project Location
Image: VRE

Virginia Railway Express (VRE) held a meeting Tuesday, June 27 to discuss preliminary plans for its Midday Storage Facility project. The VRE plans displayed at this meeting now include space for District Department of Transportation’s (DDOT) proposal, which potentially allows for better bike and pedestrian infrastructure along the emerging New York Avenue corridor.

The meeting provided a project update and allowed the public to comment on the proposed plan, which is at 30 percent of design. It also was an opportunity to view new sample renderings of “urban design options”. Now in the preliminary design phase of the project, the planners use the information gathered at this meeting to work with DDOT, Amtrak, other stake holders and the community to complete an environmental analysis, develop a cost estimate, and adopt a prefered alternative.

Specifically, the project includes planning, designing, and constructing a permanent midday storage facility for VRE trains that travel to the District. The proposed facility will be used to store commuter trains on weekdays between the inbound morning commute and the outbound afternoon commute. The project would replace the current storage space leased from Amtrak at its Ivy City Yard, allowing for longer trains and eventually, an increase in service.

Last year, the initial proposal was unclear with regard to how it would impact plans proposed by DDOT, which had proposed a bike and pedestrian trail adjacent to the yard. VRE plan appeared to use of the entire Amtrak-right-of-way for train storage, leaving little room for pedestrian and bike improvements.

A DDOT alternative for the rehabilitation of New York Avenue, from an urban freeway to a city street. Plans call for creating a bike and pedestrian amenities along this section of the street with alternatives on the “southern” side that runs along the new Hecht Company Warehouse development and the “northern” side, which is adjacent to the proposed VRE yard. A trail on the northern side would allow for a continuous bike route from the West Virginia Avenue circle to 4th Street NE, where DDOT’s early plans proposed connecting the trail with an abandoned 1500-foot tunnel that empties near Union Market.

While VRE still plans to use the Union Market tunnel to connect to the yard, VRE clarified its preliminary design regarding the relationship between the yard and New York Avenue by apparently reducing the required space. The image below shows what would likely be a wall or fence separating the yard from the street in areas where the yard is at ground level to the street, generally between Fairview Avenue NE (just east of 9th Street) and the Quality Inn hotel (near 16th Street NE).

The area available for a multi-use trail is listed nominally at 30 feet wide from the curb to Amtrak’s property. This could be reduced as it approaches the 9th Street Bridge. Below are artistic renderings of how the yard wall could appear along New York Avenue.

Image: VRE

VRE also provided examples of buffering along the New York Avenue corridor, which could include vegetation fencing, artwork or other decorative barrier. A wall was suggested as both a safety measure to reduce the potential for vandalism or attempts trespass, and a way to reduce sound and pollution from rail operations.

Image: VRE

For the area west of the Ninth Street Bridge, the grade of New York Avenue begins to gradually increase. In this section, the wall is eliminated.

While the total costs of this proposal was not specified, the VRE System Plan 2040 allocates $3 million (in 2013 dollars) for near term improvements (those made between 2014 to 2020), and do not include land acquisition costs. These costs do not include improvements to be made by DDOT as it relates to its project. Long-term improvements (made between 2031-2040) could total over $40 million and include a deck to allow for the construction of buildings over the area west of 9th street.

Public Meeting on the Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue Project

People Bicycling on Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue
Image: Author

Greater Southeast traditionally has few bicycling amenities, some lanes, some trails but few lanes that get people to the downtown core or across Wards 7 or 8. The Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) Revitalization project doesn’t fix this but it adds a few hundred more feet of infrastructure to an area that’s lacking it. The bigger question is what does it mean?

At the Wednesday, May 31, 2017, District Department of Transportation (DDOT) public meeting on the revitalization of MLK Avenue SE at the R.I.S.E Demonstration Center, DDOT planners were introduced to the Congress Heights community.

This section of MLK in Congress Heights is one of the few stretches of commercial and social activity in Ward 8. Congress Heights Day is celebrated near it, four schools are adjacent to it, the check cash, Martin’s Cafe, Pro Cut Family Barber Shop, and Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen are on it. People walk, bike, and drive to its business and schools; they catch the A or W series of Metrobuses to work or services; some just sit with others or by themselves to watch the world. For what it is, this is what some people love about MLK. Naturally, change of almost any type is sometimes met with uncertainty, skepticism, and resistance.

Presentation at R.I.S.E Center
Image: Author

Connecting needs of current residents with the thoughts about future development, Council member Trayon White Sr. spoke about the potential of new projects planned or underway at the of the sprawling east campus of St. Elizabeths. He noted the need for protected and signaled crosswalks as shown in the plans as more people will be attending events and crossing the neighboring streets as well as how DDOT would meet the basic services of the people he represents, pothole filling, adding speed bumps to streets where children were struck, and other basic street repairs.

Project Background
According to DDOT, the first meeting to discuss the rehabilitation of MLK began as a Corridor Traffic Study that analyzed current conditions for all transportation modes to support the Vision Zero Initiatives, which aims to eliminate traffic-related deaths by 2024.

While the project states that all mode were considered, the corridor improvements listed by DDOT focus mainly on improving pedestrian infrastructure. This includes intersection realignments, installation of street furniture, roadway resurfacing, and the reconstruction of sidewalks, curbs, and landscaping.

Bicycling Improvements
There is a common misconception shared by many that African Americans do not ride bikes. Uniquely, this idea is strongly held by African Americans, although the reasons why are many. The League of American Bicyclists and the Sierra Club stated in their report, The New Majority: Pedaling Towards Equality, that the fastest growth in bicycling is among people of color – Latino, African American and Asian American populations. According to their analysis, between 2001 and 2009, those three groups grew from 16 to 23 percent of all bike trips, with African American bicycling growing by 100 percent.

While DDOT spoke of creating a complete street, one that accommodates multiple users, they did not include much with regard to bicycling. The plan proposed connect lanes from 4th street, with the current bike lanes along the southern sections of the project. The plans does add sharrows, improvement to pick up and drop off for schools. Planners did indicate a potential for a new capital Bike Share station at what would be open space due to the elimination of high speed right at Alabama and 5th Streets.

The segment above represents the lower portion of the of the study corridor from about South Capitol Street to 1st Street / Upsal Street S.E. The plan creates a shared bike / vehicle lane which would include rush hour parking restrictions.

This segment includes currently existing bike lanes. It will replace current sidewalks and new crossing markings. The segment from 4th Street to Alabama Avenue contains no bike lanes.

General Roadway Improvements
The planners discussed changes to the site plan as a result of the initial meeting held in 2015 and a subsequent meeting in 2016. This planned presented DDOT’s 30 percent conceptual design for the project. This includes the addition of pedestrian safety features including the elimination of a higher speed turn lane off of MLK to 4th Street, the elimination installation of a median and pedestrian bump outs to shorten the distance pedestrians need to travel across the street and reduce U-turns and other vehicle actions that could injure pedestrians.

The presentation highlighted that desire to slow down vehicular traffic with the proposed use of up to six traffic signals: a combination of standard signals and pedestrian-activated High-intencity Activated Crosswalk signals. DDOT also included making Randle Street SE one-way, creating queue space for Democracy Prep.

Public Feedback

Many, many signals
Image: Author

With about 10-15 people in attendance, the discussion focused on concerns raise mainly by a few, who stated that their positions reflected those of residents. Early on, a member of the District Bicycle Advisory Council spoke about the inclusion of bicycle lanes to this corridor as he was a frequent bicyclist. A few commented with regard to bicycling that as speeding is problematic and because African Americans wouldn’t bike on MLK, lanes should not only be excluding from the project but removed from where it currently exists.

Some attendees suggested that bike lanes are not for the community, not what the community wants. Some said that lanes, along with a proposed median would hurt local business. A woman stated that a median on Malcolm X or anywhere in the project area would block the entrance to Popeye’s. Later, an ANC commissioner stated that her constituents viewed shared lanes or bike lanes in general were ‘not welcomed in the area’, that the lanes ‘should not impede vehicles’, as they ‘have no motors’. An man stated that bike lanes should be disregarded as they could potentially cause more accidents.

How to proceed
While a few others stated that they bike regularly and wanted more bike infrastructure privately, they did not speak publicly. The ANC commissioner who was publicly opposed to bikes stated while she personally enjoys biking with her son, she felt obligated to voice her opposition based on her constituent requests, who also wanted speed bumps installed, potholes filled, and better delivery of basic services.

It’s not that people in this community hate bikes, they bike there all the time and have done so for decades. What they want is the power to decide for themselves. While bicycle advocates can vigorously discuss reports and necessity, they sometimes fail to consider that no one wants a government entity and perceived carpetbaggers telling them what to do or want to want. For those who lifvee there, perhaps they need to be sold on the idea that bikes, cars, and people can coexist.

4th Street NE Protected Lane is a Connector We Didn’t Know We Needed

The 4th Street bike route no one knew about
Image: Author

The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) held an Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) transportation meeting to discuss plans for a cycletrack, also known as a protected bike lane, along 4th Street NE in Edgewood. Held at the request of Commissioner Edward Garnett and prior to the full ANC 5E meeting Tuesday, June 20, 2017, this meeting allowed the public to learn more about the project and provide initial comments.

This connection could make bicycling in this area safer, fills in a gap in the bike transportation network by creating a parallel street route for much the Metropolitan Branch Trail and making travel from east to the north and west of the District a little easier.

History

Long before the current movement to create more bicycle infrastructure, 4th Street NE was part of the District’s old bicycle route system. According to the 2005 District Bike Plan, the District’s interest in bicycling as an alternative to motorized transportation grew in the 1970s in response to the energy crisis. Its first official bicycle plan was prepared in 1975 and adopted in 1976.

Budget for the 1976 Bikeways Initiative (click to enlarge)
Image: Author

The 1976 Bike Plan called for approximately 16 miles of bike lanes, 17 miles of trails, and 38 miles of signed bike routes. The budget for 1976 was $330,000 or an inflation-adjusted $1,435,500 with a total 5-year spending total of $7,177,700 in today’s dollars. Originally, the University Route started at Dave Thomas Circle. Similar to current bike lanes in the community, the route meanders through Eckington until it connected to 4th Street. The route had no bike lanes or other infrastructure, just a sign. Due to budget cuts, much of the plan was abandoned.

Today, the area has seen population growth with the addition of dozens of new homes as a part of the Chancellor’s Row townhome development and the expansion of Catholic University of America near Monroe Street NE. Currently, this section of 4th Street isn’t particulary appealing to bicyclists with 4 lanes of vehicular traffic moving at above the posted limit (except if a spead camera is present). A better bike lane on 4th Street may provide a potential connection to the proposed Irving Street Protected Bike Lane as part of the Crosstown Multimodal Transportation Study. In addition, this street could be an alternative to or parallel route of the Metropolitian Branch Trail (with a few adjustments).

Project Scope

The project will install a new protected bike lane from the current lanes that run along 4th Street NE terminating at Lincoln Road. The two-way lane would run on the west side of 4th Street for about a third of a mile to Harewood Road NE, there connecting to existing bike lanes. The DDOT representative stated that the total cost of the plan as presented is $25,000 – $30,000.

As part of his presentation, the DDOT representative described the nature and types of protected lanes considered explaining that the current plan calls for flexible bollards and parking blocks or bumper — the lanes looking similar to the center lanes of Pennsylvania Avenue NW. To reduce potential crashes, conflict zones or areas where cars and bicycles could interact would be painted green. Getting cyclists into lane at Lincoln will have separate bike signals.

Below are highlights of the plan, which represents the design at 60 – 70 percent.

Figure 1
Image: DDOT

Figure 1 is the planned route of the protected lane at Lincoln and 4th Streets NE, where 4th Street north and south runs horizonally with the northbound side on the bottom. The current northbound lanes would cross 4th Street using a bike-priority signal. Northbound cyclists would queue in a 10×8 foot protective green bike box and wait for the traffic signal. The bike signal would be timed, providing 10 to 20 seconds to cross as currently planned, requiring cyclists, vehicles and pedestrians to wait. A signal sensors is under consideration.

As the traffic movements are somewhat complicated, an alternative discussed included moving the northbound crossing south by one block to Franklin Street. This would reduce potential conflicts between bikes and southbound 4th Street vehicles.

Figure 2
Image: DDOT

In figure 2, the protected lane is near the center of the image, running bidirectionally on the westside of 4th Street. The protected lane is 11 feet wide and replaces a peak hour vehicle travel lane. The new vehicular configuration of 4th street will add permanent parking spaces on the eastside of the street, creating one northbound and two southbound lanes.

Currently, there is a green right-turn arrow for vehicles turning from 4th to Lincoln. The plan calls for this to be a red arrow signal for vehcles turning right. Protective flexposts every begin 60 feet from the Lincoln Road intersection and green paint identifies automobile conflict zones along the protected lane. Like Pennsylvania Avenue, a combination of reflective white paint, flexposts, and rubber parking blocks line the route. Also, a new High-Intensity Activated Crosswalk pedestrian signal could be added somewhere along this section.


Figure 3 Image DDOT

Figure 3 depicts the crossing of the protected lane at Michigan Avenue NE and Harewood Road, with north at the top of the image and south at the bottom. The cycletrack is on the west side of Harewood road to cross Michican using the pedestrian signal. On the northbound side and not currently included in the design, a bike box would be required to allow bicyclists to travel from the southbound side of Harewood continue northbound north of Michigan.

The full ANC discuss the 4th Street cycletrack at its monthly community meeting on Tuesday, June 20 at 7:00 pm. The meeting will in the cafeteria of the Friendship-Armstrong Public Charter School, located 1400 First Street NW. DDOT will seek a Request for Support for the lanes so that the project can move foward. If approved, the cycletrack could be installed later this fall.

Below is the draft lane design.