NEIGHBORHOOD
Shaw Streets by Pleasant Mann Roadside Development tops off Intersect at O residences. Photo : Courtesy of Roadside Development
Coalition on DC Bike Plans Holds Town Hall with DDOT Director Lott
A virtual town hall on the installation of protected bicycle lanes was held the night of Jan. 25 by the Coalition on DC Bike Plans with the participation of Everett Lott, director of the DC Department of Transportation (DDOT). The forum convened to discuss community concerns about the direction of DDOT’s program of installing protected bike lanes. The town hall’s moderator, civic activist Jamal Mohamed, also known as DJ One Love, managed the presentations and asked questions at the end. Director Lott started with a presentation about the current program of installing protected bike lanes. He stated that DDOT has a goal from the Mayor to install 10 miles of bike lanes every year for three years. At a meeting of ANC 8C07 last
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October, he made a commitment to meet with residents with concerns about the program. Lott also noted that he had gotten complaints from people who said he should not participate in the town hall. Presentations from the coalition began with Dr. Allison Agwu, who outlined the frustrations caused by the installation of protected bike lanes on West Virginia Avenue NE, where she is a property owner. Next, Ed Hanlon, a Dupont Circle lawyer, questioned whether current plans met the legal requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act for accessible parking and recounted the experiences of two disabled residents with installed bike lanes. Rev. Dexter Nutall, pastor of New Bethel Baptist Church, brought the discussion to the cycletrack planned for Ninth Street in Shaw. Nutall outlined his concerns that the track would disrupt the activities of his and other churches in the neighborhood.
Discussion of the Ninth Street cycletrack continued when Alexander Padro, executive director of Shaw Main Streets, outlined how he thought DDOT’s current plans would adversely affect the businesses along the Ninth Street commercial corridor. He noted the problem of trucks having to make daily deliveries to restaurants, bars and the Washington Convention Center with a double cycletrack on the east side of the street. The cycletrack would also take out restaurant streateries that have been an important revenue source to Shaw businesses during the pandemic. Padro also pointed to an article from San Diego, California, documenting the loss of small businesses after installation of a cycletrack there. Padro offered three modifications of the plans for the Ninth Street cycletrack that might make it more acceptable.
