Breakfast links: The feds have spoken
Cert denied
Same-sex couples started getting married in Virginia yesterday after the Supreme Court rejected seven appeals from lower courts. The decision also affects Indiana, Oklahoma, Utah, and Wisconsin, and soon six more states. (Post)
Obama for Bowser
As the DC mayoral race tightens, President Obama endorsed Muriel Bowser for mayor. Clinton Yates laments that Obama is stepping in now since he hasn’t been very helpful on DC autonomy. (Post)
New escalators coming up
Metro began replacing the Bethesda escalators. The second-longest escalators in the Western Hemisphere will take 2½ years to replace. The station may temporarily close if the in-service escalators break down. (WAMU)
No tunnel for the trail
Since the building atop the Capital Crescent Trail in Bethesda won’t get torn down, the trail will not be able to stay in the tunnel. It will now be extra important to build a “gold standard” surface route. (WABA)
Cycletracks for MoCo
A new cycletrack will go on Woodmont Avenue in downtown Bethesda, and another on Woodglen Drive in White Flint. But the county DOT said bike lanes on Arlington Road would interfere with traffic too much. (BethesdaNow)
Ticketing peds and drivers
Montgomery police used to give 97% of crosswalk tickets to pedestrians and only 3% of drivers; now, it’s closer to 50-50. Their safety efforts did not reduce the number of pedestrian crashes but did cut down on the number that led to injury or death. (Bethesda Magazine)
Don’t call it a “trolley”
Arlington County Board member John Vihstadt doesn’t support the Columbia Pike streetcar, but he wants people to stop using the word “trolley” because he believes it is a derogatory term. (ArlNow)
Springfield out of the running?
A site near Springfield Metro is one of three finalists for the future FBI headquarters, but 25 acres of private land won’t be available after all, making the site smaller and less viable. (Post)
Six is plenty?
Is an urban fabric averaging two to six stories, like Bethesda Row, better for walkability and happiness than one with consistently taller buildings? Kaid Benfield smart growth advocates are misguided when they push for more. (Switchboard)
Twelve is too much
Nobody should ever build a traffic lane wider than 10 feet, says Jeff Speck, and often the lanes should be even narrower. Engineers made lanes wider thinking they’re safer, but they’re “dead wrong.” (CityLab)