Friday, August 10, 2018
Metro Single-Tracking Solution
The good news is that FCDOT has prepared cue sheets and maps for commuters who want to use biking as an alternative. Find the information you need here.
One significant advantage of traveling by bike is knowing how long it takes to get to your destination. It may take longer to ride than some other options but at least you can plan accordingly. Most Fairfax commuters travel long distances so it may not be feasible to complete your full commute by bike. However, bikes are a great way to connect non-Metro travel options. You could ride to the bus stop, put your bike on the rack on the front of the bus, then reverse the process at the other end of your bus ride.
Labels: Metro, single-track
Wednesday, March 16, 2016
Metro closed; No problem for bike commuters
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| W&OD Trail in Vienna on Bike to Work Day |
As I watched the morning news to see the effects of the Metro closure it occurred to me that local news programs should regularly show traffic on the Custis, W&OD, and Mt Vernon Trails in Virginia to let people know what conditions are like and show non-bike commuters that there really is another way to get around this area. Try not to be too smug as you pass all those frustrated drivers today.
Labels: bike commuting, Metro
Wednesday, November 25, 2015
Safety First, Expansion Later - Double Standard?
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| AP Photo/Andrew Harnik |
Replace "Metro" with "regional DOT" in the following statements by Sec. Foxx and imagine what an impact this would have on traffic safety, a much more serious problem in the DC Metro area:
"the Department of Transportation will continue to restrict federal funding to Metro’s [regional DOT's] ongoing safety and state-of-good repair projects, not expansion.
“When we are comfortable they’ve achieved levels of safety that are commensurate with what the traveling public should expect, and until that time they are going to be focusing on safety,” Foxx said.
Foxx said expanding capacity eventually may be necessary, but federal funding will not start paying for new stuff until Metro [regional DOTs] fixes what it already has.
“Over the long, long, long haul, this is a growing area and obviously there will be pressures on the system to grow in the future, but that future right now is far off because the focus needs to be on safety,” he said.
Hat tip to GGW where I first heard this idea mentioned.“When we are comfortable they’ve achieved levels of safety that are commensurate with what the traveling public should expect, and until that time they are going to be focusing on safety,” Foxx said.
Foxx said expanding capacity eventually may be necessary, but federal funding will not start paying for new stuff until Metro [regional DOTs] fixes what it already has.
“Over the long, long, long haul, this is a growing area and obviously there will be pressures on the system to grow in the future, but that future right now is far off because the focus needs to be on safety,” he said.
Labels: Metro, traffic safety, wmata
Friday, June 12, 2015
Map your bike routes to transit
Fairfax County is still seeking comments on biking to Metro and VRE stations. They want to know your current routes and what improvements are needed to make biking to transit safer and more convenient. The Bike Fairfax wikimapping project will end on June 30. From the county:
The interactive map is open to the public to post their routes and provide feedback until June 30, 2015.
Labels: Metro, vre, wikimapping project
Saturday, December 22, 2012
Converting trips to Metro stations from car to bike/walk trips
In recent years WMATA has improved bike parking at many of their stations. However, bike/ped access to the stations from surrounding areas has not often been a high priority. That is changing. From the PlanIt Metro blog:
In our effort to improve safety, access and sustainability, Metro is expanding our understanding of bike and pedestrian barriers faced in commuting to our Metrorail stations. Over the past several years, we have focused our bike and pedestrian project planning and implementation efforts on improvements we can make to our station areas such as, installing bike racks or constructing pedestrian improvements. Now, we’d like to expand the envelope and develop a list of access needs beyond our own boundaries and work with our jurisdictional partners to make needed improvements.
One way we are doing this is by gaining a better understanding of where auto commuters come from when they drive to our stations, and zeroing in on areas where we see a good deal of auto access to determine if there are barriers to walking or biking to the station.
The map at right (full version) shows auto-to-station “hot spots” around the Forest Glen station, to pick one example, locations from which clusters of customers drive and park at Metro. According to the 2007 Metrorail Passenger Survey data, many customers drive from within a 1-3 mile radius; some are even closer. So why are so many people from this area driving? In our 2010 Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan, we teased out some of the more broad-based reasons why people drive rather than walk or bike – now we’d like to explore each station’s local conditions and see what can be done to improve walk and bike access.
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| Heat map showing short-distance parking access at Forest Glen station, which indicates good opportunities for pedestrian and bicycle access (click for full map) |
The map at right (full version) shows auto-to-station “hot spots” around the Forest Glen station, to pick one example, locations from which clusters of customers drive and park at Metro. According to the 2007 Metrorail Passenger Survey data, many customers drive from within a 1-3 mile radius; some are even closer. So why are so many people from this area driving? In our 2010 Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan, we teased out some of the more broad-based reasons why people drive rather than walk or bike – now we’d like to explore each station’s local conditions and see what can be done to improve walk and bike access.
Labels: Metro, planit metro, wmata
Friday, August 31, 2012
WMATA releases 2012 bike parking survey data
WMATA has been doing a good job recently of adding bike parking capacity.
These counts show that we are moving in the right direction, but more work remains. We generally have enough bike parking capacity at nearly all stations, but not all stations see equal usage. One missing piece could be bike-friendly infrastructure around the stations to allow bike-to-rail customers to comfortably and safely access stations. So, we’ll work with our jurisdictions to improve paths, crossings, and other infrastructure outside Metro’s immediate property. But you tell us – what do you see as obstacles to biking to your Metrorail station?
Here is a summary of the overall findings:- Bike parking usage in 2012 is up 3% from last year
- Bike parking capacity is up significantly, thanks to newly-installed bike racks near Metrorail station, including racks with capacity for over 300 installed by Metro staff.
- Now, 85 of 86 stations (all but Arlington Cemetery) have bike racks available.
- We now count over 4,000 bike parking spaces near Metrorail stations.
- Many stations where we recently added new racks saw some uptick in usage (e.g., Braddock Road 19% increase in usage, Takoma 24%, West Hyattsville 13%) over last year, but some did not.Generally, there may be enough year-to-year variability with these "snapshot" data that it can be difficult to identify detailed trends.
- Parking near downtown stations may have declined somewhat versus last year.This might be one impact of Capital Bikeshare.
- We found six stations where total bikes parked exceeded 100% of rack capacity.Metro staff will take action at these stations where we can, but in other situations where we do not own the land or the racks, we will work actively with our station-area partners.
- Twenty-five stations had at least 3 bikes secured/locked to things other than racks.Securing a bike to a railing can obstruct those who need the railing — or can block an accessible path — and is strongly discouraged or even illegal in some jurisdictions. Securing a bike to a tree can damage or kill it. At station areas where cyclists are securing bikes to objects other than racks because of inadequate bike parking capacity, Metro staff will take action to increase capacity where it can.
Labels: bike parking, Metro, wmata
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Petition to repeal Metro's ban on bikes during rush hour
A petition is now available on Change.org to "Repeal the ban on bikes/ bicycles on the Metro during rush hour." Other transit systems have figured out how to accommodate bikes on their train systems during rush hour.
The operators of the Los Angeles system have developed a set of rules that apply to bicyclists to accommodate them during rush hour and all other times. The main rule covers the major objection to bikes on Metro during rush hour: "If an arriving train is full, please wait for the next train. Never force your bike into a crowded train." The LA Bike Metro site provides lots of great info for cyclists. It's an example for others.
As an aside, I learned about being able to take bikes on the LA Metro systems while reading the excellent interview with actor Ed Begley Jr. in Bicycle Times. Ed uses his bike for most trips around the city. He extends his range using Metro buses and trains. Unfortunately I couldn't find the interview online. See our blog post about riding with Ed when he was in town a few years ago.
Labels: ed begley jr., Metro, wmata
Saturday, December 24, 2011
WMATA's planned bike and ped projects
WMATA has been very proactive recently in addressing the need for better bike access and parking at Metro stations. They added several new racks at the Vienna Metro station in November, installed a Bike & Ride facility at College Park and are planning a Bike & Ride facility at Franconia-Springfield. 
From the report:
In 2008, Congress passed legislation authorizing up to $1.5 billion in federal funds for Metro’s Capital Improvement Program (CIP) over ten years. These funds are equally matched by Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia for a total of $3 billion over 10 years, or $300 million per year. One key provision is that 1% of these capital dollars must go to transit enhancements, which include pedestrian and bicycle improvements as well as bus shelters, landscaping/ beautification, public art, signage and improved access for persons with disabilities. This requirement provides a vehicle for funding bicycle and pedestrian access to Metro.
This document summarizes the bicycle and pedestrian element of Metro’s 2012-2017 CIP, detailing funding availability and project descriptions. Currently, $6.6 million is available in funding for bike and pedestrian access over the next five years of the CIP. This allocation is based on current available funding and priorities.
This document summarizes the bicycle and pedestrian element of Metro’s 2012-2017 CIP, detailing funding availability and project descriptions. Currently, $6.6 million is available in funding for bike and pedestrian access over the next five years of the CIP. This allocation is based on current available funding and priorities.
Labels: bike and ride, Metro, wmata
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
New bike racks at Vienna Metro station
Last week, Metro installed 32 new “U-Rack” bicycle racks at Vienna station, providing parking space for 64 additional bicyclists, nearly doubling bike parking capacity. The new racks are located on the south side of the station, in the direction of the parking garage. The installation is the latest in Metro’s overall Bicycle and Pedestrian Capital Improvement Program.
Vienna’s bike racks were often full, even overflowing, causing cyclists to lock their bikes on railings, trees, and lamp posts. In our last bike parking census, Vienna was the single most capacity-constrained station for bicycle parking. Last spring, we counted 96 total bikes at the station, with 30 bikes tied to objects other than racks.
With new space for 64 bicycles, we have almost doubled our bike rack capacity at the station, and will hopefully encourage even more bike-to-rail access here.
Vienna’s bike racks were often full, even overflowing, causing cyclists to lock their bikes on railings, trees, and lamp posts. In our last bike parking census, Vienna was the single most capacity-constrained station for bicycle parking. Last spring, we counted 96 total bikes at the station, with 30 bikes tied to objects other than racks.
With new space for 64 bicycles, we have almost doubled our bike rack capacity at the station, and will hopefully encourage even more bike-to-rail access here.
Labels: bike parking, Metro, vienna
Friday, October 21, 2011
Public hearing on cycletrack on Herndon Parkway
The meeting is on Tuesday, October 25th at 7:00 p.m., Ingram Council Chambers, 765 Lynn Street. Cyclists are encouraged to support the cycletrack plan. You can also submit comments online.
Labels: cycle track, herndon, herndon-monroe, Metro
Friday, August 12, 2011
WMATA counts bikes and racks at Metro stations
According to WMATA, they "counted bikes and racks at rail stations over a six-week window of peak usage from May 1 to June 15 for a “bike parking census.” Each station was counted on a sunny, warm day typically between 9:30am and 3:00pm. We wanted to learn about the general availability of and demand for bike parking in station areas. For these counts, we specifically excluded bike lockers and the Union Station Bikestation, and focused just on racks. We wanted to know how easy it would be for a new bike-to-rail customer to easily find bike parking near a station. We counted each U-Rack as space for 2 bikes, and used our best judgment for wave, grid, post-and-ring, and other racks.
Overall Findings
- 84 of our 86 stations have bicycle racks (all but Arlington Cemetery and Stadium-Armory)
- Bike-to-rail access seems to be up significantly over the last 5 years
- There is space to park 3,540 bicycles near Metrorail stations, and we saw 2,196 parked bicycles total
- Supply is not always matched to demand at a station-by-station level. Some stations are at or above capacity today, and additional bike-to-rail customers would be unable to find legitimate bicycle parking. Other stations have plenty of underused space. Racks at some stations are not aligned with demand – they have unused capacity on one side of the station, but overflowing racks on the other side.
- Stations where total bikes parked exceeded 100% of rack capacity: 12
- Even though a station may show some “empty spaces,” the racks may still be crowded enough that an average bicyclist would call the rack “full” in all practicality.
- Stations where we observed at least 3 bikes tied to things other than racks: 26
Labels: bike parking, bike racks, Metro, wmata
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Making Reston Metro station areas less pedestrian and bike friendly
The planned improvements call for several "free turn lanes" where motorists can turn right without stopping. An example is the southbound lane on Wiehle Ave at the the Sunrise Valley Dr intersection. Motorists rarely stop for pedestrians at this location, which is a adjacent to the future rail station entrance. A second free turn lane for westbound Sunrise Valley Dr traffic is being recommended at this intersection. If implemented it would be nearly impossible for pedestrians and cyclists who are on the adjacent sidepath to cross Wiehle Ave. These are definitely not improvements for pedestrians and cyclists.
A similar treatment is proposed for the Wiehle Ave/Sunset Hills intersection which is adjacent to the northern station entrance. At one time this location was the site of the highest number of ped/bike crashes in the county. Cambridge is proposing a free eastbound turn lane for Sunset Hills traffic.
The W&OD Trail is nearby and there's a major paved trail along Wiehle Ave that will be used by many pedestrians and bicyclists when the station opens. Eastbound traffic now barely stops and we've had many, many close calls from motorists looking left and turning right on red, despite signs prohibiting that behavior. A while back we took a 30-second video of vehicle behavior at this light when it was red, showing that almost none of the vehicles actually came to a stop. It's doubtful that this behavior was factored into the analysis.
Instead of making conditions worse for pedestrians and bicyclists, the opposite should be happening. We discussed these intersection changes with FFX DOT staff and they are well aware of the negative consequences of these recommendations on non-motorized travel. At some point the community has to decide whether it's more important to move cars or move people, especially around Metro stations that are planned as mixed use areas.
The Reston Master Plan Special Study Task Force will likely discuss this topic at their next meeting on Tuesday, September 13th, at 7pm at the Lake Anne Community Center.
See the Dulles Corridor Special Study Transportation Analysis Update and Mitigation Strategies Discussion presentation.
Labels: Metro, reston master plan, wiehle ave
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Bike lockers at Metro stations available
Labels: bike locker, Metro
Monday, March 21, 2011
Metro wants more people to bike to their stations
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| Bikes at Dunn Loring Metro Station |
But Metro's long-range planners, desperate to avoid having to build 30,000 to 40,000 expensive parking spaces at stations to meet the projected surge in ridership over the next 20 years, have launched an initiative to quintuple the number of cyclists.
"It's very much strategic for us to put a really big focus on bicycle parking," said Kristin Haldeman, Metro's manager of access planning. Parking spaces cost on average $25,000 each, compared with $1,000 per space for a secured bike cage. "It's an extremely expensive proposition for us" to expand car parking, she said.
We're teaching a bike commuting seminar at noon today and the first topic we discuss is reasons why people go by bike: to save time and money, and to get exercise:"It's very much strategic for us to put a really big focus on bicycle parking," said Kristin Haldeman, Metro's manager of access planning. Parking spaces cost on average $25,000 each, compared with $1,000 per space for a secured bike cage. "It's an extremely expensive proposition for us" to expand car parking, she said.
"I was telling my patients they had to exercise a half-hour a day," said Buchholz, 36, a physician who rides from his home in Falls Church to the East Falls Church Station.
The father of two decided a year ago that biking to Metro was the easiest way to fit a workout into his hectic day.
Harley Frazis, 53, hops on a hybrid mountain/touring bike at his Bethesda condominium each morning to shave five minutes off his commute to the Medical Center Station. Frazis, a research economist at the Bureau of Labor, is a die-hard bike commuter who said the only thing that deters him is ice on the path.
"If there’s intermittent rain, I'll sweat it out," he said.
Strapping on her helmet for a seven-minute ride from the station to her home in Mount Pleasant, Catherine Harrington said she bikes because there is no other convenient mode of transportation to reach the Red Line, which she takes to her job at the Women's Learning Partnership in Bethesda.
"It's a 25-minute walk," she said, so she bikes in order to sleep 15 minutes later in the morning.
I usually add another reason; to have fund. Most people don't want to save the world, they just want to use an efficient form of transportation, and they want better bike facilities to make their trips safer and easier:The father of two decided a year ago that biking to Metro was the easiest way to fit a workout into his hectic day.
Harley Frazis, 53, hops on a hybrid mountain/touring bike at his Bethesda condominium each morning to shave five minutes off his commute to the Medical Center Station. Frazis, a research economist at the Bureau of Labor, is a die-hard bike commuter who said the only thing that deters him is ice on the path.
"If there’s intermittent rain, I'll sweat it out," he said.
Strapping on her helmet for a seven-minute ride from the station to her home in Mount Pleasant, Catherine Harrington said she bikes because there is no other convenient mode of transportation to reach the Red Line, which she takes to her job at the Women's Learning Partnership in Bethesda.
"It's a 25-minute walk," she said, so she bikes in order to sleep 15 minutes later in the morning.
All three voiced a strong interest in seeing more bike lanes and paths to make commuting safer.
Washington is "really lacking with the bike lanes," especially compared with New York, Harrington said.
To address those challenges and lure more cyclists, Metro plans to invest more than $11 million in projects to improve bicycle and pedestrian access to its rail stations through 2017.
Of that, $3 million would go toward replacing rapidly deteriorating bicycle racks and lockers. Metro plans to spend $8 million on expanding bicycle parking and improving connections to stations from communities.
If you do ride to Metro, be sure to have a secure lock. Bike theft is a problem at the stations and having a good U-lock or other good quality lock is essential. Be sure to secure both wheels and the saddle as well, so two locks may be necessary.Washington is "really lacking with the bike lanes," especially compared with New York, Harrington said.
To address those challenges and lure more cyclists, Metro plans to invest more than $11 million in projects to improve bicycle and pedestrian access to its rail stations through 2017.
Of that, $3 million would go toward replacing rapidly deteriorating bicycle racks and lockers. Metro plans to spend $8 million on expanding bicycle parking and improving connections to stations from communities.
Labels: bike commuting, Metro
Friday, December 3, 2010
WMATA bike/ped access study online
As Metro plans for the future, expecting ridership to increase from a current average of about 750,000 trips per day to more than 1 million, the question of how so many new passengers will access our system is a critical one. Our most recent passenger survey estimates that about 39% of our riders arrive by car – either parking or being dropped off; 33% walk to our system; 22% take a bus; 4% by commuter rail and <1% arrive on bike. Accommodating those new riders with the same modal split as we see today could be quite costly for the region. Therefore, Metro decided to take a look at where we could improve our mode share for those modes that require fewer financial resources – namely bicycling and walking. In 2009, we began a study that would provide a framework to help us achieve these higher shares.
Perhaps the most interesting recommendation is for Metro to adopt a bicycle mode share goal through which we can measure our progress as we implement these recommendations. The recommendation is to triple the current bike share from .7% (about 1600 riders per day) to 2.1% by 2020 and quintuple it by 2030 – which equates to about 12,000 riders per day. In January we will discuss these goals with the Metro Board.
Metrorail Bicycle & Pedestrian Access Improvements Study – Final (18 MB, PDF)
Perhaps the most interesting recommendation is for Metro to adopt a bicycle mode share goal through which we can measure our progress as we implement these recommendations. The recommendation is to triple the current bike share from .7% (about 1600 riders per day) to 2.1% by 2020 and quintuple it by 2030 – which equates to about 12,000 riders per day. In January we will discuss these goals with the Metro Board.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Wiehle Ave Metro development not bike-friendly
The Comstock development at Wiehle Ave station, which county staff initially recommended be denied, was recently approved by the Planning Commission. This development is adjacent to the planned Wiehle Ave Metro station, across the street from the W&OD Trail. As required by Metro, the developer will provide 150 Metro bicycle parking spaces inside the garage.In 2008 the Reston Metro Access Group issued their final report which recommended shared bus/bike lanes at the western entrance to the site from the W&OD Trail, a better trail connection on the eastern entrance, and bike lanes on the road through the development.
None of these recommendations were included in the proposal approved by the Planning Commission. While VDOT participated in the 2008 planning process, other VDOT staff had concerns about the proposals and the developer complained about limited right of way. Why conduct a study, spend over a year and lots of money for a consultant, and then ignore the recommendations? This is not a good precedent to set for future development around these new Metro stations.
Without a plan for bicycle access to the site, cyclists will be left to contend for space with pedestrians or motorists. When asked how cyclists would access the site we were told by the developer that cyclists would dismount and walk to the bike parking area in the middle of the development.
Since the county does not yet have bicycle parking requirements, the applicant is offering far fewer spaces than needed. Arlington County requires 1 space for every 3 residential units and 1 visitor space for every 50 units. Comstock is providing 1 space for every 20 units and visitor parking numbers aren't specified. Arlington offers specific guidelines for parking. Comstock can stick their bike parking in some unusable space in the parking garage as was done throughout the Reston Town Center.
We had been cautiously optimistic with the bicycle recommendations in the Reston Metro Access Group final report. That cautiousness was well-founded and the optimism has turned to pessimism.
We were hampered in our evaluation of the final staff report since the text in the pdf file is not searchable. Trying searching for bicycle parking by looking page by page in a 226 page document. Is it that difficult to create a searchable pdf file?
Labels: Metro, reston, wiehle ave
Monday, August 3, 2009
Metro bike/ped study documents online
Greater Greater Washington points out that several documents from the Metrorail Station Area Bicycle and Pedestrian Improvements Study, being conducted by Toole Design Group, are now online, including the Existing Bicycle Facilities map.The map of facilities in Fairfax is interesting. The full length of the Cross County Trail is shown as one of the facilities, and yet at least half of the trail, which is mostly unpaved single-track, is not accessible for commuters. None of the on-road "Preferred" routes from the Fairfax Co Bike Map are included, which seems odd since Toole produced the Fairfax map. These would seem to qualify as Shared Roadway routes even though they aren't currently signed. We weren't able to attend the July 22 presentation on the study, but from the slides there is a reference to a 2006 Bike Facilities Inventory. Let's hope the map is updated based on existing info. Nevertheless, it's encouraging that Metro is investigating bike access beyond the immediate station areas.
Labels: bicycle access, Metro
Monday, July 27, 2009
Metro bike/ped access survey
As part of the Metrorail Station Area Bicycle and Pedestrian Improvements Study, Metro is conducting a survey of bicycle and pedestrian users to solicit opinions on how people access stations and suggestions for improving bike/ped access.
This is a good opportunity to let Metro know about the need for more and better bicycle parking at stations, including covered racks. They also need to work with local communities to improve bicycle access beyond the station property limits, something Metro has been reluctant to do in the past. Bike routes between stations and major destinations need to be created. These routes should include wayfinding signs. Bike stations could be located at many stations to allow customers to use bikes for the last part of their journey. Bike access on Metro trains during rush hour would allow many more people to use their bikes for commuting. This would require better bike facilities on trains.
Link to bike/ped access survey.
Labels: bicycle access, Metro
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Bike access to Metro Stations
Tomorrow, Wednesday, July 22, Metro will hold a public workshop on Metro's Bicycle and Pedestrian Facility Planning Study. This is a chance for bicyclists to provide input on how Metro can improve bike access to their stations. One of the main purposes of the study is to "Address growing bike access to stations and identify future needs for bike facilities". In the past Metro showed little concern for how bicyclists arrived since Metro does not own or control property leading to the stations. However, it's in everyone's best interest to provide better bike access and to improve bike parking at the stations. The meeting will be held from 5:30 - 8:30 p.m. with a presentation at 6:30 p.m. Metro Headquarters — Lobby Meeting Room, 600 5th Street, NW — Washington, DC 20001Labels: bicycle access, Metro
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Commuters Using Alternative Means to Reach Metro Stations
According to the article in today's Post Fairfax section, For More Riders, 'the Bus Is Beautiful': Commuters Leaving Cars at Home To Save the Cost of Parking at Metro, people are increasingly walking, biking and taking the bus to Metro stations instead of driving.40% of all trips in the U.S. are 2 miles or less. Most of the people driving to Metro parking garages live within a short distance of the station. When the price of parking reached $5, bus, bike and walking became increasingly more attractive:
Robert Allen, 18, a senior at Oakton High School, walks to the Metro station nearly every day from his home in the Circle Woods neighborhood of Fairfax County, on his way to his part-time, after-school bank teller job in Ballston. It's not so much fun in the winter or the rain, he said. But it beats the daily parking charge.
"The parking's, like, five bucks," he said recently. "And anyway, at this time of day, you're not going to get a spot anyway. It's really rare."
"The parking's, like, five bucks," he said recently. "And anyway, at this time of day, you're not going to get a spot anyway. It's really rare."
Labels: Metro
