BikeDC

“Dear PoP,

I work at 1333 H St. NW and there is a bike in front of the building that looks like it was stolen. I say that because it has been there for about two weeks, was sloppily painted, has two very different tires, and it is locked with a cheap chain and master lock. It’s an older Schwinn with a nice women’s saddle and bar end shifters. It looks like it use to be silver and most of it was spray painted green. The left shifter has a black plastic or rubber cover while the right one is just metal. The rear tire is a hybrid and the front tire is a road tire and flat. I’m assuming someone just locked up the front tire and someone stole the rest of the bike by using the quick release. Anyway, I hope this bike finds it’s way home.”

From MPD:

Unfortunately we had another incident on the trail this evening. A lone male victim was walking on the trail at R Street NE when he was assaulted by two young black males. We believe that this was in an attempt to rob him. The victim sustained no injuries and no property was stolen. MPD units were in the area and quickly stopped several subject, one of who was identified as a suspect and placed under arrest.

This occurred at just after 7 PM and the description for the suspects is two black males, both 16-19 years of age, one wearing a white tank top and dark shorts with a short afro hairstyle and the other wearing no shirt and dark pants – the later was arrested.

I know my officers are out there constantly checking the trail and though these repeated crimes are frustrating, I am encouraged that we were able to arrest a suspect. I also spoke to the detective investigating the recent robberies tonight and we are working some strong leads in those cases. I can also report that we have recovered a taser during our investigations. We believe it was the one brandished in a recent event. In addition, we are implementing an additional action plan that will utilize some of our district’s tactical units.

Again, I want to thank this community and commend you for your dedication. Be careful and aware out there – please dial 911 if you see anything suspicious, anything matching the lookouts we’ve had in these incidents – we can always just come check it out. In all these cases the lookout has been for two or more black males in their late teens hanging out on the trail between Rhode Island Ave. and New York Ave.

“Dear PoPville,

Last night I was biking along the Metropolitan Branch Trail just south of Rhode Island Ave when two young males tried to force me off my bike with a taser. When I was first approaching them I scolded myself for thinking that two young black males were acting suspicious because they were just sitting on the trail (one on each side) and appeared to be just waiting for someone to come along. It turns out that heightened suspicion may have saved me because I spotted the taser in the assailants hand and swerved enough at the last second to avoid being jolted by it. I heard it and saw the “spark” but he just about completely missed me, I’ve felt a larger shock when I was plugging in a lamp.

As soon as I was out of sight I called 911, and give props to the cops there were two squad cars there on the trail within a few minutes. Of course by then the perps were gone, I wasn’t expecting them to be dumb enough to stick around. After the cops took my report they told me this is not uncommon on this part of the trail, especially between the hours of 2 and 9 pm (after school hours) and it is probably a good idea to avoid that part of the trail between NY Ave and Rhode Island Ave completely.

The cops said this was the first they had heard of a taser being used, and that normally it is 4 or 5 assailants that will just knock bikers off their bike and rob them. I just wanted to try to spread word to bikers/runners about this part of the trail, had I heard this warning before last night I would’ve thought twice about riding there alone. I guess it’s back to the overcrowded VA bike trails for me.”

Photo by PoPville flickr user ekelly80

Do you think this competition/reward is a good (enough) incentive for a “reverse rider”?

“At the end of the contest, the individual with the highest number of points will win a one-year extension of his or her Capital Bikeshare membership, while everyone who makes it into the top ten will receive one-month extensions. Five raffle prize winners will also receive one-month extensions.”

Full press release from DDOT:

Don’t go with the flow this summer—do the opposite and it could pay off. That’s what Capital Bikeshare will be telling its members soon. The regional bikesharing network is launching a Reverse Rider Rewards competition on June 1 to support the system’s rebalancing and redistribution efforts.

The goal is to enlist the help of Capital Bikeshare annual members to help redistribute bicycles throughout the bikesharing system during the peak hours of 8am-10am, Mondays through Fridays, and provide incentives to do so.

“Like any transportation system, Capital Bikeshare has a rush hour when demand spikes,” said Terry Bellamy, Acting Director of the District Department of Transportation. “Rebalancing crews are constantly moving the bikes around to keep up, but any additional help provided by members could help ensure there’s a bike available when you want it.”

Capital Bikeshare membership has increased dramatically in recent months and is currently up to 13,835 annual members and climbing. In response to member suggestions, the Reverse Rider Rewards program was conceived as a way to supplement the efforts of Alta, the company responsible for servicing bike stations and keeping them balanced with enough bicycles and docking spaces. Rebalancing incentive programs have been used in other bikesharing programs with success, including Veìlib in Paris.

Members who elect to participate will earn points for taking bicycles from any of the “typically full” stations to “typically empty” stations. Each trip will earn participants one point, as well as one entry into a raffle. At the end of the contest, the individual with the highest number of points will win a one-year extension of his or her Capital Bikeshare membership, while everyone who makes it into the top ten will receive one-month extensions. Five raffle prize winners will also receive one-month extensions.

Reverse Rider Rewards officially launches on Wednesday, June 1, and will run through Wednesday, August 31. Winners will be posted on the 5th of each month. For complete information about the rules, prizes and eligible stations visit http://www.godcgo.com/reverse-rider-rewards.aspx.

Photo by PoPville flickr user katiecampbell

I think this is an awesome day and there have been reports of huge participation today. Unfortunately a reader sends in a rough experience:

“Dear PoP,

This morning I had my first assault from a car. I was at the front of a line of traffic at the red light at the end of Rhode Island where it hits Connecticut. When the light turned green, I went straight onto M St with the rest of the traffic in the middle of the right lane. A white van pulled up behind me, almost clipped my back tire, and laid on the horn. The van then pulled along side of me and tried to swerve into my lane. Then the van slowed up, continued honking, and a woman in the passenger seat threw a can of something at me and hit me in my leg. The van then swerved around me, tried to cut me off again, and then turned up 20th street. I saw a cop on the next block and reported the incident with the license plates. The officer wrote it up as assault. Just thought you might want to remind PoPville to always be wary of cars on the road.”

I think it’s great the officer wrote it up as an assault but I hope everyone else who rode to work today had a more pleasant experience.

Anyone ride in with a caravan or check out a pit stop? I’d love to hear about some good experiences as well.