Summary of Meeting with DDOT: BikeShare

Commissioner Robert A Jordan (ANC 7B06) and I met with Chris and Josh from DDOT regarding a BikeShare station near the Fairfax Village section of Hillcrest. We appreciate they took time out of their day to meet us on-site in Fairfax Village. Robert and I communicated the residents of Fairfax Village in Hillcrest and our neighbors across the street in Fort Davis have been begging for a BikeShare station.

The location that looks promising is the sidewalk on 38th Street at the triangle park between 38th St, Pennsylvania Ave and Alabama Ave. DDOT has to check to see if the City owns the sidewalk or National Park Service. Another possible location is the Fort Davis Shopping Center. DDOT is going to touch base with City Interest to see if it's feasible.

DDOT did state the Penn-Branch station was going to be reinstalled "soon". However, the bad news is it will be located west of Branch Ave. The reason is DDOT tries to keep the stations within 0.5 mile of each other, which makes it easier for the operator to rebalance the system (i.e. making sure their adequate empty docks and bike available).

Here is the follow-up email sent to DDOT.

Chris/Josh,

Thank you for meeting with us in Fairfax Village/Hillcrest today. The residents of Fairfax Village/Hillcrest and Fort Davis communities strongly believe that our community should be first on the list for any new stations East of the River. We have all the elements for success:

• Bike lanes on Alabama Ave SE
• Majority of the existing membership in 20020 zip code, which includes Historic Anacostia. Anacostia has 2 stations and we have 0.
• Residents who want to be members contingent upon getting a location close to our community
• Dedicated members of the community willing to go door-to-door in a grassroots campaign to register new members if we get a station
• Residents willing to conduct "lessons" at the station on how to use the program

We have our fingers crossed that the location at 38th and Alabama Ave SE or Fort Davis Shopping Center fits within the criteria for a BikeShare station. We understand the challenges that DDOT faces as the program continues to expand. The residents of Fairfax Village and Fort Davis communities, not only want to see the program succeed East of the River, we want to be part of that success.

Please let Robert and I know how we be of any assistance in this process.


Cheerfully,
Veronica

Photos from WABA Bike Repair Clinic

On Monday, the Washington Area Bicycle Association held a bike repair clinic in Anacostia Park. Here are some photos I took with my blackberry.

Capital BikeShare Meeting Tonight

The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) is preparing to expand Capital Bikeshare throughout the District and is hosting a public meeting on Wednesday, May 25 to solicit input.

Capital Bikeshare Expansion (206x155)
Media Contacts

John Lisle, (202) 671-2004

(Washington, DC) The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) is preparing to expand Capital Bikeshare throughout the District and is hosting a public meeting on Wednesday, May 25 to solicit input from the community on the proposed locations for new stations.
Starting this summer, DDOT is planning to expand the current system with 25 new stations and 250 new bikes. The expansion is set to be completed by Fall 2011.
At the meeting, DDOT officials will provide an update on the expansion plan, explain the process for evaluating new stations, share the feedback that has been received from the community about the potential locations for new stations, and solicit additional feedback from the participants.

A listing of the proposed station locations and a printable map is available online at ddot.dc.gov/capitalbikeshare. Comments may be submitted via email to ddot.bikeshare@dc.gov.
Capital Bikeshare is a bikesharing program developed through a partnership between DDOT and Arlington County and operated by Alta Bicycle Share, Inc. Capital Bikeshare offers four different membership options: Annual ($75), Monthly ($25), 5-Day ($15) and 24-hour ($5) for access to a fleet of 1,100 bicycles located at over 110 stations across the District and Arlington. Additional information about Capital Bikeshare is available at www.CapitalBikeshare.com A page will open in a new web browser window..

What Public Meeting for the Expansion of Capitol Bikeshare

When Wednesday, May 25, 2011
6 – 8 pm
Where 441 4th Street, NW, Room 1107
Washington, DC

The meeting location is in close proximity to the Judiciary Square Metrorail Station on the Red Line and accessible via several bus lines.
__._,_.___

Segment of Alabama Ave Closed May 21-26th

GOVERNMENT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Luan Tran 202.671.4649

May 13, 2011



PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE GREAT STREETS PROJECT
Segment of Alabama Avenue SE to Close for Construction of New Roadway

DC Department of Transportation (DDOT) in conjunction with the Pennsylvania Avenue Great Streets Project will close a small portion of Alabama Avenue at the intersection of Pennsylvania Avenue SE to rebuild the roadway starting on Saturday, May 21st at 7:00 a.m.; weather permitting.

This closure will begin Saturday, May 21st at 7:00 a.m. and will continue through Thursday, May 26th at 7:00 p.m.. The roadway will then be re-opened.

Project Closure Limits (see map below):

Approximately 100 feet of the northbound and southbound lanes of Alabama Avenue SE (next to Papa John’s) will be closed beginning on the south side of Pennsylvania Avenue SE. The remainder of Alabama Avenue SE, from the 100 feet south of Pennsylvania Avenue towards Maryland, will remain open and accessible for all traffic. No construction will occur in this area.

The Alabama Avenue SE entrance to Fairfax Village Shopping Center will be closed throughout the closure. All shopping center traffic will enter and exit from the Pennsylvania Avenue SE entrance.

Detour (see map below):

A detour will be set up to direct motorists north on Alabama Avenue SE and then bearing left on 38th Street SE. All turns onto Pennsylvania Avenue from 38th Street SE will be permitted.

Motorist travelling northbound on Alabama Avenue SE, heading towards Pennsylvania Avenue, will make a right on Pennsylvania Avenue, a left onto 38th Street SE and a right back onto Alabama Avenue SE.

Variable Message Boards (VMS) will be set to alert motorists of the upcoming closure. Sidewalks will remain open, since they have already been reconstructed

We are sorry for any inconveniences this may cause and thank you for your patience. We ask that all motorists and pedestrians proceed with caution when approaching the construction work areas. If you have any questions please contact DDOT Project Engineer Luan Tran at 202.671.4649.

closure

WMATA Hearing

Neighbors.... WMATA is having a public hearings on proposed changes. While these do not affect Hillcrest directly, we wanted to be sure you have the information.

OPEN HOUSE | TOWN HALL MEETING | PUBLIC HEARING

We are tuning in to you to help us make important decisions about Metro's future.

For the first time ever, Metro will host combined Open Houses and Town Hall Meetings prior to its official Public Hearings. Metro staff members will be available at Open Houses for one-on-one conversations about Metro service and programs. Town Hall Meetings will give you an opportunity to talk about the future of the system with Metro leaders, including members of the Metro Board of Directors. During the Public Hearings, Metro will take formal testimony on the following options under consideration for the FY12 budget:

o Increasing the Metrorail train wait times on weekends
o Eliminating the Metrobus E6, K1 and N8 lines
o Restructuring the Metrobus M4, V7, V8, 70 and 71 lines
o Eliminating the 50¢ discount on certain Anacostia bus routes, resulting in MetroAccess fare increase, and modification of the Anacostia station bus transfer discount program

The Open Houses will be from 5:30-6:00 p.m. followed by the Town Hall Meetings/Q&A from 6:00-6:45 p.m. The Public Hearings will start at 6:45 p.m.


THURSDAY, MAY 19
District of Columbia – SE
Matthews Memorial Baptist Church
2616 Martin Luther King Jr Ave, SE
Washington, DC
Metrorail stop: Anacostia