Breakfast links: The right parking

LinksBy Thaddeus Bell (Guest Contributor) August 8, 2012

Photo by thisisbossi on Flickr.

DC plans Chinatown performance parking

Following in SF’s footsteps, DC will set up performance parking, initially just for commercial trucks, with in-street sensors, smart meters and variable pricing in Chinatown and Penn Quarter. (Post)

Medical Center elevators get funded

Montgomery County got money to build new elevators in and out of the Medical Center Metro station, and a pedestrian and bicycle underpass across Rockville Pike. (Patch)

Escalator snag trips 5

Five Metro riders fell on an escalator at L’Enfant Plaza, after a loose panel caught a bag or piece of clothing (though reports conflict), tripping one woman who then tripped up 4 others. Nobody had serious injuries but 3 went to the hospital for checks. (DCist)

Street width creates parking

The United States has more than enough parking spaces to accommodate all the world’s cars. Many of the excess parking spots are in residential neighborhoods where street width minimums create parking spots. (Old Urbanist)

Rockville pushes back

Rockville is moving quickly to annex land along Shady Grove Road in response to Gaithersburg’s recent annexation of land Rockville now claims. Rockville’s Planning Commission meets tomorrow and may create a plan. (Gazette)

Commercial properties get lower assessments

DC is settling a lot of appeals of commercial property taxes. Some think OTR is being too lenient, while others say the initial assessments are wildly inaccurate. (Post)

Driver lawbreaking behind most crashes

A study of all fatal traffic crashes in New York, over 14 years, shows that 60% of the crashes were caused by a driver breaking a traffic law. However, the NYPD rarely took any action. (Streetsblog)

And…

Kickstarter funds a handle for carrying a bicycle up stairs. (Atlantic Cities) … Glen Echo wants the first stop sign traffic camera in Maryland. (Examiner) … Residents of a Russian city paint the faces of local bureaucrats onto potholes to get repairs more quickly. (thisbigcity) … The Bike League profiles planner Fionnuala Quinn.