Arlington & DC are still not very bike friendly

[Len Burman]

Years ago, Arlington county committed to plowing bike lanes and paths. They might be clearing some bike lanes, but the one on Clarendon Boulevard was full of hazards created by piles of snow/ice created by the street plows. The Route 50 bike path between Fort Myer and Rosslyn is covered with ice for long stretches. The path from W&OD to Roosevelt Island was a sheet of ice when I checked it on Tuesday. In DC, the path along the river near the Kennedy Center was covered in ice. Ditto for Rock Creek Parkway.

Streets and the Key Bridge sidewalk were clear so commuting to work was possible, but unpleasant. I’d prefer not to ride on downtown streets during rush hour. DC and Arlington both have been described as bike friendly, but they definitely aren’t after a snow storm. Given the weather forecast, it wouldn’t surprise me if the ice persists until February.

Here’s a photo of the route 50 bike path near Fort Myer this morning. (I can’t remember if photos are allowed in this group.)

[Leslie Tierstein]

I purposely took the streets on the other side of Route 50 to get into town past Ft Myer yesterday. But I made a mistake and tried to come home on the Roosevelt Bridge. Big mistake. It looked clear near Kennedy Center but was iced over on most of its length. I ended up biking in the highway.

> On Jan 16, 2025, at 12:06 PM, Len Burman <len.b...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Years ago, Arlington county committed to plowing bike lanes and paths. They might be clearing some bike lanes, but the one on Clarendon Boulevard was full of hazards created by piles of snow/ice created by the street plows. The Route 50 bike path between Fort Myer and Rosslyn is covered with ice for long stretches. The path from W&OD to Roosevelt Island was a sheet of ice when I checked it on Tuesday. In DC, the path along the river near the Kennedy Center was covered in ice. Ditto for Rock Creek Parkway.

>
> Streets and the Key Bridge sidewalk were clear so commuting to work was possible, but unpleasant. I’d prefer not to ride on downtown streets during rush hour. DC and Arlington both have been described as bike friendly, but they definitely aren’t after a snow storm. Given the weather forecast, it wouldn’t surprise me if the ice persists until February.
>
> Here’s a photo of the route 50 bike path near Fort Myer this morning. (I can’t remember if photos are allowed in this group.)
>

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> Cheers,
>
> Len Burman
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[Allen Robertson]

The Four Mile Run trail in Arlington has been well cleared between the
Mt. Vernon trail and Shirlington, and the W&OD is completely clear from
there out to Banneker Park/Van Buren Street.  These were cleared right
after the storm and were also brined beforehand.  From what I could see
of the Custis and Bluemont junction trails, these have been plowed as
well.  What you refer to as "the path between the W&OD and Roosevelt
Island" is the Mt. Vernon trail, which is on National Park service
federal land and is not under Arlington's jurisdiction.  In fact, a
sizable portion of that stretch (between just south of Roosevelt Island
and the Humpback Bridge) is on Columbia Island, which is part of DC and
isn't even in Virginia, so Arlington cannot be blamed for that. 
Arlington does a better job than anywhere else I have been.

Al

[Len Burman]

Thanks, Al. That’s good to know.
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Warning, iPhone autocorrect applied

> On Jan 16, 2025, at 1:52 PM, 'Allen Robertson' via Pedalers <peda...@googlegroups.com> wrote:
>
> The Four Mile Run trail in Arlington has been well cleared between the Mt. Vernon trail and Shirlington, and the W&OD is completely clear from there out to Banneker Park/Van Buren Street. These were cleared right after the storm and were also brined beforehand. From what I could see of the Custis and Bluemont junction trails, these have been plowed as well. What you refer to as "the path between the W&OD and Roosevelt Island" is the Mt. Vernon trail, which is on National Park service federal land and is not under Arlington's jurisdiction. In fact, a sizable portion of that stretch (between just south of Roosevelt Island and the Humpback Bridge) is on Columbia Island, which is part of DC and isn't even in Virginia, so Arlington cannot be blamed for that. Arlington does a better job than anywhere else I have been.

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[dc.wilson]

Here's the perfect bike for riding during the wintertime.

Fat Bike Tire Traction Studs – GRIP STUDS

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[Joan Oppel]

I actually saw the mini snow plow/cleaner clearing the Clarendon and Wilson bike lanes after the January 6 snow. But as Len describes, the street plows pushed snow into those lanes in many places.That stuff then froze and it was probably beyond the capability of the equipment to clear it. 

Send Bike Arlington an email and ask them about it - in...@bikearlington.com 

Tha seems the best way to get information.

In related DMV bike & snow news, I also saw Capital Bike Share employees clearing bike stations in Arlington with shovels to combat the ice that formed after that storm. It was tedious work, but then that's a commercial enterprise.

Joan Oppel

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