1st Street Cycletrack near Union Station
Good grief. A reader reports:
“This morning at 7:15. The driver explained to me that the bollards were meant to be run over in “emergencies”…”
BikeDC
“Dear PoPville,
Just witnessed a silver Honda Civic Hybrid either actually hit or nearly hit a cyclist that was crossing southbound in the crosswalk while driving westbound on Virginia Ave NW near 25th Street NW (close to Watergate) around 5:40pm on 7/26. I saw the Civic slam on their brakes and then the cyclist stop and tip over, but couldn’t tell if that’s because they were hit or what.
The cyclist was a young brunette woman, would guess she was in her 20s. I didn’t get as good of a look at the driver, but she had short bob of (dyed?) blond hair, and didn’t even get out of her vehicle to see if the cyclist was unharmed! Took about a minute for the cyclist to gather her things that had been strewn about the road. The she managed to finish crossing the road as she glared at the driver of the car that forced her to wipe out unexpectedly. (more…)
“Dear PoPville,
I ride my bike from my apartment to the Woodley Park metro pretty regularly. I lock it up and then take the metro to work. For the past month, my bike has either been damaged there or somehow abused. Here is a listing.
-Someone tried to steal my bike, couldn’t do it, so they undid my chain and then broke my bike bell.
-They tried to steal my bike again, couldn’t do it, so they stole my bike pedals (for some reason).
-My helmet was stolen.
-A LED light was stolen.
I know locking your bike anywhere in the city is “at your own risk” but I feel that that particular area is being targeted. Everyone who locks a bike up there should do so with extreme caution and never leave anything on it that you care about.”
photo of 11th and Florida but how could I not use it, the guy is hauling a keg for the love of God!!!
“Dear PoPville,
noticed on my bike commute this morning that ddot has finally repaved the mangled and unmarked asphalt humps at the bottom of the 13th street hill, just north of florida avenue, that were wreaking such havoc on unwary bikers over the last several years (e.g., causing accidents like this one). so, progress, i guess.”
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Photo by PoPville flickr user Eric Spiegel
“Dear PoPville,
I was in a minor bike accident near Logan Circle recently. A driver opened his door into me, which, in turn, knocked me into another vehicle. I was more shocked than injured–thank goodness–although I have a massive black and blue knot on my leg.
The door-opening-driver was unapologetic and did not even ask if I was alright. He did not believe he was at fault and, in fact, proceeded to blame me.
The driver of the vehicle that I was knocked into was much more considerate and concerned for my well-being. This driver exclaimed that he did not blame me and that it was the fault of the door-opening-driver. He then proceeded to demand the insurance information, etc. from the door-opening-driver.
The door-opening-driver also happened to be an on-duty transportation service provider (the company is irrelevant). So, I snapped a pic of his license plate and have reported the incident to his employer.
My point in sharing this in not to tell my sad little story, but to ask what is the standard procedure after a bicyclist has endured a minor incident, such as being struck, bumped, knocked over, etc.
I feel that reporting him to his employer is sufficient in this case; however, I’m not sure what I would have done if it were even a slightly more serious accident. Should I have called the police? Should I have asked for the door-opening-driver’s insurance information?
Would have others done or what would others do in such a situation?
Also, I just want to give a shout out to driver of the vehicle that I was knocked into as well as all of the kind pedestrians and fellow bikers who asked if was OK and offered comforting words. I truly appreciate everyone’s kindness and consideration.”
“Dear PoPville,
My beloved bicycle was stolen last night out of my garage on the 1300 block Spring Rd. It was a pretty amazing bike that I had custom built a few years ago in Amsterdam, road it to Paris, and then shipped it back to DC. It’s a black WorkCycle crossframe; pretty unique looking so I simply ask that my neighbors please keep an eye out for it. It was obviously a cherished possession. I’ve filed a police report, but am not expecting a miracle.
Please email Matt at [email protected] or call 215-669-4892 if you see it! Thanks!”
Photo by PoPville flickr user sssdc1
“Dear PoPville,
I/m writing to let you know about a current hazard to bicyclists heading northbound on 11th St NW.
Yesterday when heading home from work (around 6 PM), I noticed multiple large piles of shattered glass (approx 6-7 piles in total) in the northbound bicycle lane on 11th St NW, all between Irving and Monroe streets. The piles of glass were very large– they each appeared to be from multiple broken bottles (large shards of green, brown, and white glass – larger than what you typically see from a smashed car window). Also, every pile of glass was in the bike lane, none in the road or sidewalk on that stretch from what I was able to observe. In hindsight I wish I had stopped to take a picture of one or more of the piles, but at the time it was not my first thought.
When I got home I immediately called 311 to report the issue, and the operator confirmed that she would send someone out to check it out and clean up the glass. Sadly, when riding southbound on 11th this morning, I was able to observe that most (if not all) of the piles from the previous afternoon were still there. Any suggestions on how we can get this cleaned up? (more…)
“Dear PoPville,
I paid some guy 40 bucks for a bike he clearly stole from someone. It’s a grey Hyper bike in excellent condition and I got it while he was at 11th and U corner. He gladly took money and clearly didn’t ride bikes at all.
Please post so I can help get it back to its owner. Safe in my house.”
If it’s yours please email me at [email protected] and I’ll put you in touch with OP.
Thanks to a reader for sending: “Saw these on my 16th street walk. Outside the Carnegie Building. They installed a lot on both 16th and P St.”
I also was impressed with the street bike (scooter?) parking in Georgetown:
Here’s to your success…
“Dear PoPville,
The demolition of the old WashPo building has created a dangerous situation for bikers. Just wanted to let you know:
“Hello, due to the demolition of the old WashPo building, the bike lane has been removed and now bikers have a “bike path” which is not segregated from traffic on a block where the roadways are down to 2. This is a choke point and with the increasing traffic in DC due to the metro repairs, this is also becoming a serious hazardous block.
What do you intend to do about it ?
The demolition crew used to have a properly segregated bike lane until recently but it was removed. I almost got squished on the concrete barriers yesterday by a USG truck that, in spite of my banging on his truck, did not stop and continued to squeeze me. This is unacceptable. Once again in DC, there is no plan B.”
L Street, NW between 15th and 16th