WASHINGTON — Bicycle advocates are getting pumped up over new language included in a recent budget report released by the DC Council Committee on Transportation and the Environment.
It's the latest saga in a back-and-forth between Mayor Bowser's administration, DDOT, and Councilmembers upset over a recent DDOT decision that removed a bike lane proposal from a Connecticut Avenue improvement project.
From Connecticut Avenue Thursday evening, our WUSA9 crew witnessed more bicyclists riding on the sidewalks instead of on the actual street.
"Well, no one rides on Connecticut Avenue right now, what do you need a bike lane for?" asked Steven Seelig, a D.C. bicycle advocate. "It's because it's terrifying."
Seelig is one of the D.C. voices pushing hard for bike lanes on upper Connecticut Avenue, asking DDOT and Mayor Bowser to shift gears on that recent decision removing bike lanes from the proposal.
"If you live downtown, south of Florida Avenue, there's plenty of bike lanes. We have no way to get there," said Seelig. "I'm optimistic. I hope that the Mayor listens to us."
The proposal calls for just under three miles of Connecticut Avenue to be revamped, between Calvert Street in Woodley Park to Legation Street in Chevy Chase, just a few blocks from the Maryland state line.
The budget report issued by DC Council's Transportation Committee would prevent the mayor from spending any money for Connecticut Avenue updates *unless the bike lane proposal is added BACK into the plan.
Opponents worry about the effects on traffic and parking.
"Terrible idea. One of the worst I've ever heard," said D.C. resident Richard Chorus. "You'd get constant congestion. People would lose a lot of time coming and going."
Despite businesses along the corridor sharing concerns about possible impacts on their customers, one local store owner sees great potential in the bike lane plan.
"It's a great idea I think. It will bring more crowds, more people to see the area and introduce the businesses," said Ibtissam Guasch, owner of Ibtys Salon in Chevy Chase.
Seelig and his fellow advocates have been sharing a petition warning people about the number of accidents that happen on Connecticut Avenue every year. They have close to 5,000 signatures on the petition they've been circulating among DC Council, the Mayor, and DDOT.
DDOT has announced plans to hold a virtual meeting on June 3 to update the public on the proposal.
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