Cut out the White House: 15th Street needs a better bicycle connection

The 15th Street bike lane is one of the most important and popular cycling connections in DC, linking neighborhoods from Columbia Heights south to U Street, Logan Circle, and downtown. The forthcoming extension south of Pennsylvania Ave to Constitution and eventually the Tidal Basin will further increase the safe biking network in the city and help connect areas north and south of the National Mall. But the route’s current reliance on a stretch along Lafayette Park that is frequently closed for White House security is putting bicyclists at risk.

The current configuration relies on a two-block stretch along Lafayette Park on Madison Place and Pennsylvania Avenue, which is increasingly closed for long stretches of time and has been totally closed since January 6 as part of the expanded White House security perimeter. In the past, cyclists could ride through these blocks with easy connections to the 15th Street Bike Lane to both the north and the south. Due to the closure, riders must make a series of choices that often put them in conflict with pedestrians and traffic, creating an unsafe scenario for everyone. To make the route work for everyone, DDOT should build a safe passage that does not rely on access to Lafayette Park.

For four years I biked to work from Dupont Circle to Judiciary Square. This commute relied heavily on the 15th Street bike lane both in the morning and the evening. Even then, before the enhanced security, biking through Lafayette Park was always hit or miss. On a good day, biking past the security gate, up and down the bike ramps, and through the park was one of the most charming parts of the ride. The park was always interesting with its mix of protestors, tourists, staffers headed to work, and the perennial street hockey games. No matter what’s going on inside the White House, the building and grounds themselves are beautiful. Some days were quiet; others included a pack of dinosaurs protesting to keep the Peace Corps in operation (see photo).

For years, the Secret Service would close the area for a few hours at a time for various reasons, prompting an on-the-fly, impromptu detour. These short closures alone would justify a safe bicycling alternative. But since the summer of protests in 2020 and the Capitol insurrection on January 6, White House security has closed these blocks for weeks or months at a time, making this an even more urgent problem.

In both directions, there is not a safe alternative connection for people cycling around the White House. Headed south towards downtown, riders can take H Street for a block but then are met with a dilemma: ride with car traffic on busy 15th Street, take the sidewalk (often crowded and technically illegal in this part of town), or continue on H Street until a dangerous intersection with New York Avenue. Going north, riders are met with similar problems where the protected bike lane abruptly ends and must cross 15th Street, ride two blocks in traffic in busy car lanes, and then ride on I Street back to the protected bike lane.

I think many people hoped that eventually, Lafayette Park would reopen to the public, making this issue moot. Given the hardened security stance since January 6, this seems unlikely to happen anytime soon. While I desperately hope the public regains access to these public spaces, we should not wait around for it to fix this bike lane connection. We need a safe connection that does not rely on the whims of the federal security apparatus, which even without this hardened perimeter can close the connection at any moment. The forthcoming bike lane extension south to the Tidal Basin, the H and I Street bus lanes, and the Pennsylvania Avenue West project provide opportunities to rethink this connection.

Whatever DDOT decides, improving this segment of the 15th Street bike lane is crucial to building out a safe bike network. In an era of security theater, we can’t wait for or rely on the federal government to do the right thing.