WTOP’s Adam Tuss reports on DDOT’s plans for U Street in the wake of last week’s public meeting to gather community input, and residents of the corridor may have reason for concern. Among DDOT’s various proposals, they have announced they’re considering adding angled parking, similar to what you see on 18th Street in Adams Morgan, to U Street.

Ever since the U Street corridor began its impressive revitalization, residents have been worried that the street could soon enough become one long extension of Adams Morgan on weekend nights, filled to the brim with drunken revelers who drove in to the city from Maryland or Virginia for a night out on the town. Already it is difficult if impossible to find parking close to U Street on the weekends, especially if there is a big concert at 9:30 Club or the Black Cat. But would angled parking actually improve the situation, or rather encourage more people to attempt to park on the busy street, effectively ruining the flow of traffic as people back in to angled spaces?

Other DDOT proposals for U Street include replacing meters with multi-space “pay and display” machines like those in Georgetown, which would allow people to use a credit card to pay, and adding Circulator service to the neighborhood. We like the idea of more convenient bus options, but considering the neighborhood has a centrally located Metro stop, it’s unfortunate that DDOT is focusing on making it easier to park along U Street rather than encouraging the use of mass transit to reach the strip’s vibrant nightlife offerings. Virtually no one wants U Street to become another Adams Morgan, and though the addition of angled parking doesn’t necessarily mean that would be its fate, it hardly seems wise to pursue making additional parking spots the priority.

Photo by one more dreamer