Transportation

July 31 is a very important hearing. The Zoning Commission will be hearing public comment about DC’s proposed off-street parking reforms. As I’ve written before, these are vital changes to modernize our 1958 zoning code which required each new development to build large amounts of parking, pushing a suburban pattern of development over the existing historic urban…  Keep reading…

Leave your comments here for the Zoning Commission. I will forward everything posted in this thread to them. Please sign these with your real name and use a real email address (I will include both when I send it, but your email won’t be shown here or posted anywhere online.)  Keep reading…

Walk Score just launched walkability maps and rankings for the 40 largest U.S. cities. Washington, DC ranks 7th (between Seattle and… Long Beach?!?!) Baltimore is #12.  Keep reading…

S is for slow: At last night’s public meeting for the S1/S2/S4 buses, participants suggested limited-stop service, removing parking for bus-only lanes, and fewer stops (in Columbia Heights, there’s a stop almost every single block) were among the suggestions. (Post)  Keep reading…

Any DC driver has seen them: handwritten Emergency No Parking signs posted on the side of the street. They signify Pepco work, moving zones, and much more.   Keep reading…

At yesterday’s legislative session, the DC Council debated the bill to raise fines for drivers who fail to yield to pedestrians. Councilmembers Tommy Wells (ward 6) and Mary Cheh (ward 3) introduced an amendment to also prescribe a $75 fine for drivers who block bicycle lanes. Currently, it’s illegal to block a bike lane, but there is no fine except for the general…  Keep reading…

Money has one of those silly rankings of the best places to live in America. Columbia, Maryland is #8; Hunter Mill, Sully, and Burke, Virginia #19, 25, and 31 respectively; Gaithersburg #29, Reston #37, and Rockville #66.   Keep reading…

If wishes were offices: At yesterday’s streetcar hearing, David Catania argued that a line to Bolling will create economic development in Anacostia, and that a future extension to National Harbor is in DC’s best interest. Richard Layman delves into this issue more deeply and concludes: maybe, but probably not, and we should have some economic analysis before blindly…  Keep reading…

It was Councilmember Marion Barry (ward 8) who had the day’s most relevant quote. “Streetcars are about connecting communities,” he said, as he urged his colleagues to support the proposed 1.3-mile, $43-million Anacostia demonstration streetcar in his ward. There’s only one problem: the proposed line doesn’t connect communities at all. There’s no community on South Capitol…  Keep reading…

I’m testifying at the Council hearing on the Anacostia streetcar at 11 am. I’m scheduled to go first. If you’re interested, you can watch it on cable channel 13 or online here. I’ll put up a post about it as soon as I can find some time. Meanwhile, yesterday’s Post article has good background on the topic, and And Now, Anacostia comes closest to my thinking…  Keep reading…

This morning, the National Capital Planning Commission (the federal government’s planning body for the DC area) released a great proposal for the future of the Federal area of the city. It calls for decking over not only the E Street Expressway but almost all of the “ramp spaghetti”, creating space for new buildings east and northeast or the Kennedy Center and…  Keep reading…

Last night, the Dupont Circle ANC passed a thoughtfully crafted resolution on the Hilton proposed development. The ANC opposes the landmarking, and also opposes the project as presented. They objected to the inadequate loading docks, insufficient parking, the mass of the development, and the swimming pool. But as Commissioner Mike Silverstein emphasized, the primary concern…  Keep reading…

Donna Edwards was recently sworn in as the newest Member of Congress, representing large parts of PG County and a little bit of eastern and northern Montgomery County (around Olney)  Keep reading…

Rapid buses coming rapidly: WMATA has a priority list of 24 corridors to get the rapid bus treatment including limited-stop express service and “signal priority” technology to hold yellow lights for buses, reports BeyondDC. Last night, Jim Hamre of WMATA presented details to Maryland’s Action Committee for Transit. Tops on the list for DC are the 16th Street…  Keep reading…

If you’ve missed the comment threads here and here about yesterday’s bicycle fatality, here’s a quick guide to some important points.  Keep reading…

I’ve been researching the Hilton hotel’s expansion plans and thinking hard about its landmarking. I endorsed landmarking the HUD building, but in contrast, the Hilton’s qualification under the landmark critera is questionable at best. Still, I pondered that perhaps the parking exemption might be a worthwhile tradeoff. After finding out more about the…  Keep reading…

As I reported last week, Walgreens is proposing a new store with a drive-thru and 27 parking spaces on the former site of a gas station at Veazey and Connecticut, right by the Van Ness Metro.   Keep reading…

Moran, Oberstar defend transit: Virginia’s Burke Connection covered Monday’s town hall meeting in Tysons. Oberstar, the chair of the House Transportation Committee, got most of the quotes in the article, defending light rail and criticizing the federal funding formula which ignores many factors. And, like all pro-transit officials, he expressed a clear hope that…  Keep reading…

MPD has released some information on this morning’s bicycle fatality. As many commenters surmised, the cyclist (Alice Swanson of Mount Pleasant) was headed west on R when she was struck by the truck turning right from R onto 20th. The complete MPD release is after the jump. This “right hook” is a leading cause of bicycle deaths. This news video says that both…  Keep reading…

Graham isn’t against streetcars: Despite reports in the press, Jim Graham assured BeyondDC that he isn’t opposed to the Anacostia streetcar line. He just wants to ask questions. It’s a good opportunity to educate the Council on the need for streetcars there, on H Street, and elsewhere. Monday, July 14, 10:00…  Keep reading…