DCist: Bike Lane, Pedestrian Safety Fines Approved

CistayD

Thu, 18 Sep 2008 19:19:26 -0500

Cooldorky- Just to clarify, the street is in fact very wide, with plenty of room for 2 lanes of parking, 2 cars to pass, with plenty of room to spare (I measured), with very light traffic on a shortish block with 4 -way stops on both ends and I was parked at about the 6th rowhouse in. The reason he left the door open was we were about to leave and he was getting in the car. The frightening thing is about 10 seconds before impact, I said something like "Hey sweetie, can u help me with the whatzit in the trunk?" I truly believe that the driver was careless and there was the potential for way more harm than the door. Thank you for empathizing with me on the behavior of the MPD - truly unbelievable.

SikBug

Thu, 18 Sep 2008 13:45:22 -0500

That's awesome I wish they'd do the same in NYC. I really don't remember any bike lanes when I used to ride in DC. Are they all over now?

dino

Thu, 18 Sep 2008 13:00:37 -0500

This is for all of the retard drivers who think the bike lane on R st. is like a normal driving lane-only narrower.

ledroitist

Thu, 18 Sep 2008 12:33:33 -0500

Golly, some people have no sense of humor and have their hyperbole detectors turned way down. DistrictDon19, you may want to check out "ROSA." Look it up. As far the all-too-common complaint that cyclists are selfish asshats, let's see. Cyclists that move at 15-20 mph and take up about 5% of the footprint of your average urban assault vehicle, and that makes them road hogs, rolling roadblocks and generally a nuisance? Thanks for that clarification.

outsideliquid

Thu, 18 Sep 2008 11:37:05 -0500

as a daily bike commuter, parking in a bike lane is no big issue. the problem, is cars that drive in teh bike lane or cars that turn right in a bike lane without using a blinker. btw, i do agree, if you're scared to bike in the city, you're a pus*y. get off the sidewalks, be alert and make sure cars can see you at all times. wear a helmet and have lights on when it's dark. If burn redlights, no big deal, just make sure you can make it across and stay with the flow of traffic.

monkeyrotica

Thu, 18 Sep 2008 10:59:41 -0500

Jeezis, that van is still parked in front of the Mcdonalds at 14th and U? It's been there for months! WTF are they buying? A really, really, REALLY Happy Meal? Something with a naked women inside with a pile of cocaine holding a steak-and-cheese sammitch?

districtdon19

Thu, 18 Sep 2008 10:53:51 -0500

@ DrLRonHoover: Haha! As a DC renter with MD plates, I also roll my eyes when someone else makes another "Ban MD drivers! Waaah!!" The whining and crying is similar to when they whine about voting rights. Best chance of DC getting a vote is if MD absorbs it. Oh DCist and its massive pro-bike following. You might as well be short for District Cyclist. Everyone has something to say about a cyclist article, but the comments are few and far between (and even less substantive) regarding arts pieces.

DrLRonHoover

Thu, 18 Sep 2008 08:51:45 -0500

Hey boomhauer and ledroitist - it's fucking rich for you to complain about MD drivers. Every goddamn day I am nearly run down by some krak-boyeeee, thug-4-life, Pimpy-P in his Hummscalade or some 900 year old woman in her Caddy - and invariably they have...you guessed it... DC plates. Guess they must be looking for unexpired milk or a hardware store...

IMGoph

Thu, 18 Sep 2008 07:21:18 -0500

downtown rez: i think you're thinking about 9th street....in front of MLK library, right?

cooldorky

Thu, 18 Sep 2008 06:37:16 -0500

CistayD - Why would you (or your bf) leave a car door wide open into the street? I mean, I'm with you that the cop was crazy to say you should have exited on the passenger side. But seriously I can't understand why the driver side door was open so that you could get something out of the trunk. DC streets aren't personal driveways, and are often absurdly narrow and cramped to begin with. This is exactly why "dooring" laws exist. Just close the door next time.

downtown rez

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 22:16:49 -0500

There's also the stretch of 11th in NW where the bike and bus lane is combined, and then the bike lane shifts to the center, between the inner (auto) and outer (bus) lane. Not that anyone pays attention to either the bus or bike lanes, because there's next to no enforcement for auto infractions in this city. If laws were nickels, everyone in DC would be a millionaire.

CistayD

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 21:58:24 -0500

Word of warning as to Title 18 of the DCMR. My boyfriend received a ticket for "permitting door to be open" after a van from La Plata, MD plowed into MY car parked onstreet legally, ripping the drivers door almost sheer off the hinges (shattering glass, mirror breaking, not able to close, etc) on a quiet Cap Hill sidestreet. Neither of us was in the car, we were getting something out of the trunk, inches from the impact zone. I screamed; and van driver stopped. Shaken, I called the police because I figured it was necessary for my insurance and because this was an accident, after all. After the arrival of the MPD, and disbelief that she-cop actually said that it was necessary at all times to CRAWL over and get out on the passenger side, this soon turned into a shouting match, the ticket was given; not to the van driver who hit a PARKED car, but to my boyfriend, as the future driver or the one responsible for "permitting door to be open". Van driver not at fault; my insurance company said that this could only happen in DC. Lesson learned - get a bike.

volite

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 21:43:43 -0500

Laws and complaining will only go so far. If you change your bike to something like this, no one's gonna fuck with you.

standrightwalkleft

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 18:10:20 -0500

Speaking of asshat drivers driving in bike lanes... I was coming home through Thomas Circle (you know, the one with the clearly delineated bike lane) this afternoon, and someone drove into the bike lane and cut me off to make a right turn. Whatever, I've come to expect this and was able to anticipate it. However, the VA redneck couple behind that guy came up next to me and the driver screamed "if you weren't in the road, that wouldn't happen, you dumb bitch!" While I was in. a. bike. lane. Downtown. Moron. It's not the physical part of biking that's difficult for me... it's the psychological toll of having people intimidate me, scream at me, or even deliberately try to hit me on a weekly basis. And it's always when I'm not even doing anything wrong!! So, let's review, dear drivers: It is illegal for cyclists to ride on the sidewalk downtown, south of Massachusetts Ave. Even when it IS legal, it is often dangerous to pedestrians, so please understand why a lot of cyclists are reluctant to do it. DC traffic law treats cars and bikes equally. It is therefore LEGAL for cyclists to ride in the street, even if it is not in a bike lane. So, please do not intimidate or hurt cyclists who obey the law. It's hateful and incredibly scary. And don't park in the bike lanes.

monkeyrotica

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 17:57:59 -0500

Seriously, MPD should put an officer on a bicycle and go up and down 14th in the morning handing out fines. See, there's a thought: make bike cops actually have to put up with the bulls**t bikers have to every goddamned day. But it's a slippery slope. Soon, you'd have beat cops walking around neighborhoods in Shaw and stepping in human feces; Park Police actually patrolling parks and stepping in dog feces; health inspectors going through Saint Ex's bathrooms stepping in baby feces. So much poo in DC. I'm moving back to Orem, UT where right thinking Mormons don't defecate. They just explode when they turn 30 like in Logan's Run.

monkeyrotica

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 17:54:13 -0500

how many bike lanes exist in the city that are not adjacent to parking lanes? There's a stretch of 11th Street between M and Water Street in SE that's got a bike lane with no parking, so there's two blocks for you. Can't say as I've ever seen anyone ride a bike that way, but that length of Water Street has some sweet-ass granite curbs. Right next to the Anacostia Rowing Club shacks and a couple of dirt parking lots. Drug dealers used to execute informants back there in the 1980s. You've come a long way, baby.

Mojotron

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 17:36:11 -0500

And apropos of Ronald Reagan's open mike "joke" perhaps we should do one better and simply "outlaw Maryland forever." the bombing begins in 5 minutes.

nowisthetime

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 17:32:07 -0500

I always like it when drivers look really confused when I give them a dirty look for parking in my lane forcing me out into traffic when traffic is not expecting it. Seriously, MPD should put an officer on a bicycle and go up and down 14th in the morning handing out fines. It'd pay for itself and then some.

ledroitist

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 17:27:33 -0500

Boomhauer, Don't make me pull out Title 18 of the DCMR...oops too late. :) 18 DCMR 2214: "No person shall open the door of a vehicle on the side where traffic is approaching unless it can be done without interfering with moving traffic or pedestrians and with safety to himself or herself and passengers."

Boomhauer

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 17:16:50 -0500

Boomhauer, "dooring" or intentionally blocking a lane with a car door is already an infraction under the traffic code. I'm talking about the actual striking of a cyclist with a door, say when you're getting out of a car and you fail to look to see if there's anyone coming up from the bike lane.

ledroitist

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 17:12:33 -0500

Boomhauer, "dooring" or intentionally blocking a lane with a car door is already an infraction under the traffic code. Agree on Maryland drivers. And apropos of Ronald Reagan's open mike "joke" perhaps we should do one better and simply "outlaw Maryland forever."

IMGoph

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 17:06:29 -0500

how many bike lanes exist in the city that are not adjacent to parking lanes? i can only think of two: —1st street ne through noma (from union station north to new york ave) —5th street along the western side of mcmillan reservoir, across from the football stadium at howard anyone know of any others?

Boomhauer

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 17:04:06 -0500

This is step in the right direction. Now we need enforcement, and some things from the DDOT or the council. My wishlist includes: - Requiring drivers to make right-hand turns from the bike lane and not just from their own lane. I can't count the number of times I've almost been t-boned by drivers who haven't signaled and then decide to make a right turn through the bike lane - Fines for "dooring" people if there aren't already. - Bike boxes -Eliminating bike lanes from traffic circles. They're extremely dangerous because people in DC can't handle traffic circles and exit without warning. -Banning Maryland drivers from the streets

Lau

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 16:59:43 -0500

If there is police enforcement, these changes could really help. But since it seems like police do little about traffic failing to yield to pedestrians right now, I'm not sure the fine change will do much.

fixedgearrider

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 16:56:15 -0500

Only pussies are scared to ride in the city. I don't need bike lanes.

Kev29

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 16:55:08 -0500

The penalty for cab drivers steaming through populated crosswalks should be death by public stoning.

lilybelle

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 16:43:56 -0500

whooo! i'm generally scared sh*tless to ride my bike on roads of any kind, because of stuff like this. i hope this will make the world a little safer for bikers. are buses still allowed to stop in bike lanes and spew nasty ass exhaust all over the bikers behind them?

turkeyrotica

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 16:34:10 -0500

Count me as a motorist who is generally annoyed at the moronic behavior of many bikers, but would the police please start ticketing the idiots who drive their cars in the bike lanes? A good many dipshits out there seem to think it's there for their righthand wheels.