Photo by M.V. Jantzen

After a few years of aggressive striping of new bike lanes across the District, work on new lanes seemed to stall a bit in 2011. But with a few new big bike lane projects set to roll in the next few weeks and months, we may start seeing a little forward momentum on establishing broader cycling infrastructure—and just in time for good weather.

One of the most prominent projects will be a bike lane stretching from Connecticut Avenue to 16th Street NW along Columbia Road. The bike lane, which has been under discussion for almost a year, moved forward suddenly in recent weeks, with spray-painted lines appearing where the lanes will go on the road’s surface. According to the D.C. Department of Transportation, though, work was put off for a few weeks when a contractor discovered that removing existing lanes would produce a lot of dust; the contractor is purchasing a large vacuum to deal with it.

To accommodate the new bike lanes, middle lanes along stretches of Columbia Road are being removed. Due to concerns of business owners that take deliveries from trucks that tend to use the lanes to parking, new loading zone restrictions will appear along two segments of the road—between Mintwood Place and 18th Street and in front of the Safeway. Where a full bike lane cannot fit, bike markings will be painted on to the roadway indicated that cyclists can use the full lane of traffic.

According to TBD, cycletracks along L and M Streets NW are also moving along, with work set to begin this summer. The following bike lanes are also expected for 2012, for a total of 5.5 miles this year:

4th St, SW – Virginia Ave to I St

New York Ave, NW – 9th St to 15th St

Upshur St – 8th St to Rock Creek Church Rd

I St SW/SE – 7th St to New Jersey Ave

Tilden St, NW – Reno Rd Connecticut Ave

R St, NW – Florida Ave to Met Branch Trail

The last lane on that list has been the topic of some heated discussion in the Northeast neighborhood of Eckington. A DDOT proposal to add a contraflow lane on R Street between Harry Thomas Way and 3rd Street NE on the inside side of cars (a la 15th Street NW) provoked some opposition from residents who said it would put them in danger when they opened their cars doors into traffic, but at a recent meeting DDOT officials said they would move forward with the lane.

Columbia Rd From _2011-11!09!100% SET REVISED.pdf – Adobe Acrobat Professional