Weekend links: Speed can be scary

Mt. Vernon Trail not friendly to kids

A parent took his son on the Mt. Vernon trail to learn to bicycle, but found it inhospitable because of all the people whizzing by and acting very frustrated when they had to slow down. (Post)

Speed brings skeletons

New York is installing an electronic speed limit sign that, when it detects speeders, shows a skeleton of a pedestrian. Also, a recent poll shows most New Yorkers support the new bike lanes. (NYT)

This week in hipsterdom

DC Council chair Kwame Brown says he’s hip. (Examiner) … Ray LaHood, when asked if defending cyclists makes him a “hipster”, admitted, “I don’t even know what that term means.” (HuffPo, Edward Bigwerth) … Were NYC’s hipsters undercounted in the “uncool” 2010 Census? (City Limits, Lynda)

More TOD for PG

The Prince George’s Planning Board approved a planned retail and office development on the parking lots at the Naylor Road station. (Gazette) … The site won’t get a temporary farmers market, but might it eventually get a grocery store?

More autonomy, more meddling?

Darrell Issa’s suggestion for more budget autonomy for DC also might help Congress meddle even more, but Martin Austermuhle argues that DC should accept it nevertheless. (Post)

Bostonians pinpoint the bus

In Boston, over 1/3 of riders use apps which predict bus arrivals. Over 30 apps now use their open transit data. (Transportation Nation)

Midtown Manhattan adds pop-up cafes

Several curbside parking spaces on East 44th Street in Midtown Manhattan have been converted to a lovely pop-up cafe.  What streets in our area could benefit from these? (Streetsblog)

Philly reduces sewer overflows

Philadelphia is installing a pervious street that lets rainwater seep into the soil below.  Like DC, Philadelphia’s combined sewer cannot handle heavy storm flows without contaminating local waterways. (PlanPhilly via Streetsblog)

And…

Banks are foreclosing on fewer area mortgages these days, but the decline may be temporary. (Post) … DC receives few reports of illegal dumping downtown, west of Rock Creek Park, and in the northern reaches of the city. (City Paper) … Need a new bike? Bike and Roll is selling off their stock of 2010 bikes this weekend.