Sure, we've been all a-flutter about Twitter this year, but it's nice to see a District agency actually put it to good use when it's needed most. more ›

If you need to drive somewhere in the District today, getting there won't be too much of a problem. Parking, though, might be. more ›

Adams Morgan residents on the streets surrounding the new Harris Teeter received official notice at the end of last week that the District Department of Transportation is changing the flow of traffic to accommodate the anticipated increase in cars on the surrounding residential streets. As it stands right now, all three streets that bound the block containing the store are two-way thoroughfares. As of January 21, they'll all become one-way. As detailed in the letter: more ›

If you don't want to pay a toll, just don't leave the city. Information is sketchy at best, but the federal government may soon propose a toll on cars entering the city via the 14th Street bridge, reports The Examiner. According to the story, the proposal seems to be nothing more than another one of those fabulous pipe dreams feds float from time to time for improving our city. Like Sen. Sam Brownback's "flat tax"... more ›

Download the original attachment Chicagoist is gearing up for this weekend's annual Air & Water Show along the lakefront. In what's becoming an annual tradition around there, staff member Todd McClamroch even got to fly with one of the participants. Chicagoist's decidedly opinionated readership was also appalled that one of their staffers found a popular local brewpub to be a great place to bring a kid. They also think that an unlikely activist for immigration... more ›

Good Monday morning to you, Washington. We can officially declare that the dog days of August have arrived today, now that the House has finally, finally adjourned for their summer break. News junkies will want to note that before heading home they passed a modified version of the defense budget, which will increase spending for defense health care and military housing, among a list of other expenditures. Of course what Washingtonians really care about is... more ›

Good morning, Washington. Just one day after officials did their best to reassure metro area drivers that our bridges are safe to travel on, the Washington Post has pored over U.S. Department of Transportation statistics that show that a dozen bridges in the District, hundreds more in Maryland, and nearly 1,200 in Virginia are listed as "structurally deficient," -- the same rating as the bridge that collapsed in Minneapolis Wednesday. Still, DDOT says that... more ›

Tomorrow morning marks the annual running of the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. The race, which takes place on the National Mall, begins at 8 a.m., with several pre-race events as well. To accommodate the 50,000 people expected to participate, Metro will begin operating two hours early, at 5 a.m., with trains running every 12 minutes from the end of each line. Metro has not scheduled any track maintenance during the day on... more ›

Beware, there's a vigilante pothole filler on the loose, and he’s strewing gravel all over D.C. streets. If you bicycle, skateboard, or rollerblade, keep your eyes open and your first aid kit handy. I was on my bike yesterday, coming up P Street to its intersection with 14th Street NW. There was no cross traffic on 14th Street, but the light was red. No matter, I thought, until I saw a cop parked ahead of... more ›

After reporting last week on a slew of misaligned walk signs plaguing the city, we couldn't stop spotting them everywhere. At Florida Ave. and R St., NW, and Pennsylvania Ave. and 8th St., SE, all eight pedestrian signals were pointing away from oncoming foot traffic -- surely a dangerous state of affairs. While we originally speculated strong winds were responsible, several readers tipped us off on the most likely culprits: construction and delivery trucks. After... more ›

By DCist contributor Matt Pelkey "Out of the way, you slow f#@%!" Everyone’s probably yelled something to that effect from behind the wheel of a car. Following tomorrow’s launch of D.C.'s new traffic calming program, you may find yourself cursing dawdlers on the road more often. The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) and the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) are launching the D.C. Neighborhood Pace Car Program, in which drivers voluntarily sign a pledge to... more ›

This weekend DCist began noticing a handful of the city's "walk" signs knocked completely off-kilter. The storms and fierce winds appear to have moved several crossing lights out of alignment with crosswalks, in some cases leaving pedestrians clueless as to who has the right of way. We saw tourists, as well as long-time residents, hesitatingly searching for the proper signal at the intersection of Florida Ave./22nd St. and Q St. in Northwest. The walk signal is currently pointed 90 degrees in the wrong direction, substantially out of their line of sight. Eventually, several jaywalked diagonally across the intersection or just waited for a lull in traffic. more ›

Fans had plenty of great things to say about the Nationals season opener at RFK last week: the hats, the weather, the midday beer-drinking. They also had some gripes. In addition to the unfortunate loss, one key complaint was, naturally, traffic. The Post noted that, "In the stands, Nationals fans complained. About parking-lot traffic, snack booths and long lines for just about everything, including hot dogs and ATMs." When the Nats move into their new,... more ›

People have been asking us: What's that big film crew doing downtown today? Why must my commute be ruined by greedy Hollywood movie producers? The answer: Why it's National Treasure: Book of Secrets, the sequel to the polarizing Nicholas Cage swashbuckler, of course. Here's the details on the filming for today, though circuses of production vehicles will likely be popping up elsewhere around the city for a while longer. The D.C. Department of Transportation (DDOT),... more ›

UPDATE: DDOT has also postponed the previously scheduled closures of the inbound lanes on the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge this weekend to accommodate the marathon. DDOT has rescheduled the bridge work for next weekend, weather permitting. Nearly 5,000 runners will take to District roads tomorrow to compete in the Wirefly National Marathon. The race is set to start at 6:30 AM at RFK Stadium. As it takes runners through every quadrant of the city,... more ›

Last June we reported that the Georgetown waterfront, which has never been much of a gem, was finally starting to take shape. Specifically, the Georgetown Waterfront Park, three decades in the making, had finally jumped through the last of its bureaucratic hoops and would soon see a parking lot coverted to green space. But for what was left of 2006, nothing much happened. The parking lot remained. Late last week we saw that the parking... more ›

It's time for another episode of Snowpocalypse! And this time, Mayor Fenty has declared a Snow Emergency. From DC.gov's release: In response to recent and ongoing predicted snow fall amounts, Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, along with the District of Columbia Department of Transportation (DDOT) and the Department of Public Works (DPW) have scheduled a Snow Emergency starting at 3 pm Sunday afternoon. Forecasters are now calling for of 3-4 inches of snow possibly mixing... more ›

D.C. has one, Chris Rock joked about them and there are entire books about them: streets named for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Yesterday CNN posted an article about streets named for the civil rights leader, saying there are at least 777 in the country. The article says that Rock's joke and the stereotype about King streets, that they're poor and dangerous, may not be true. It quotes Matthew Mitchelson, a University of Georgia... more ›

If there was one mystery few District residents and visitors ever managed to solve, it was the city's infamous taxicab zone map. Geographically confusing and lacking in detail, the map was supposed to give passengers a hint as to where one zone ended and the next began, though it usually resulted in a headache and a feeling of dread that the $10.30 in change you had scrounged up wouldn't be enough to get home. more ›

As we reported yesterday, the District has released a brand-spankin-new city map including Metro stations, taxicab zones, snow and emergency routes and bicycle trails. And as the District Department of Transportation tells us, our fair city's bicycle lane offerings have increased from a mere 3 miles in 1999 to the 25 miles we enjoy today. But the more that bicycles become a primary mode of transport, the more that drivers and cyclists alike will have... more ›

Like free maps? Or for that matter, like to have a city, taxi-zone, or bicycle trail map of the District that's accurate and up to date? Well wish no more, the D.C. government is here to meet your every cartographical desire. Via WTOP: The city is offering free, new maps that are easier to read. To get one call 202-727-1000. "It's very friendly on the eyes," Erik Linden, spokesman for the D.C. Department of Transportation,... more ›

Think you've got a better slogan than "Celebrate and Discover" to describe our fair city? Chances are you do and the D.C. Convention & Tourism Corporation wants to hear it. They've launched a new campaign to find out what we Washingtonians think makes the city great. Over at Share Your DC you can take a quick survey asking what you think are the city's greatest people, places and events along with advice you'd give to... more ›

While D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty officially pays tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. today at the University of the District of Columbia, one question comes to mind -- how well has the District actually guarded and promoted King's legacy? Given the state of a library and an avenue named after the famed civil rights fighter, not too well. The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library stands as a contradiction at the corner of Ninth... more ›

Damn alarms. We're a little late on flipping through our newspaper this morning, so stay tuned as we live-blog the news. 9:29 a.m.: Since Adrian Fenty doesn't already have enough to do, he'll be fielding questions in an online chat over at the Post at 11 a.m. We'd like to know how he can spend the time keeping his head so nicely shorn when we're still trying to balance sleep, work, and shaving once... more ›

If you've been walking past the intersection of 14th and S streets NW recently (or checked out the small photo we ran in today's Morning Roundup and wondered what it was) you've probably noticed the new, patterned crosswalk in the road that dots the streets with white swirls and colorful stars. We got curious as to what exactly it was (Borf making a dramatic comeback, maybe?), how exactly it got there, and if it... more ›

Last weekend I was riding my bike down 2nd Street NE towards East Capitol Street when a particularly aggressive driver decided that I had no right to be on the road. A shout, a flicked finger, and a week later, the District Department of Transportation has announced that it's going to start reminding drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians to relax a little -- the road belongs to us all. According to a press release, DDOT... more ›

Yesterday, the Post declared support for 1960s-style urbanism dead. No longer, they say, are we to be held hostage by soaring freeways, concrete office blocks, and the utter deadness of the streets and neighborhoods ushered in by the age of the car. Finally, we've learned how vital it is to encourage pedestrian traffic and to take advantage of our waterfront resources; We understand that you cannot design cities around automobile use. Except where the Whitehurst... more ›

When we found out earlier this year that Richard White, WMATA's troubled general manager, would be replaced by District Department of Transportation Director Dan Tangherlini, we were happy. Tangherlini had long been known for being approachable and affable, a young and ambitious civil servant dedicated to improving service and quality in his day-to-day functions. Those qualities translated quickly into his work at Metro, where he visited with the rank and file, encouraged riders to offer... more ›

Being a pedestrian city, DC has its share of pedestrian accidents, with about 3,000 hit a year. The city has been trying to make sure it's safe to walk, in part by installing 1,300 pedestrian countdown signals and starting a pedestrian safety program. However, some of those countdown signals seem to be malfunctioning. A few months ago, I was walking at 16th and U when the countdown signal seemed to skip from about 15 to... more ›

D.C. Police Chief Declares Crime Emergency: You heard right. Police Chief Ramsey has officially declared a Crime Emergency for the District, which in practical terms means he now has greater authority to change police officer's schedules in order to increase manpower on the street without the 14-day notice typically required by the union. With 13 murders since the first of this month, many residents are upset and demanding action. The Post notes that the number of murders in the city so far this year, 94, is the exact same number we had this time last year — though robberies are up 14%. DCist definitely noticed a lot more patrol cars last night in N.W., which is we guess is never a bad thing — though the Post also quotes Officer Kristopher Baumann's concerns that officers will only be further demoralized by not receiving overtime pay — so maybe it's sometimes a bad thing. Our Crime Emergency status will continue for at least the next 30 days, when Ramsey will reevaluate. more ›