2011 October » CycleMoco

Bumpouts (curb extensionsons) on Calverton Boulevard

Oct 182011

[cross-posted on the MoBike forum] The county installed bike lanes as well as traffic calming devices called bumpouts (aka bulb-outs, curb extensions, neck downs, etc.) on Calverton Boulevard sometime in the last few years. Bump-outs are locations where extra space to the right of the travel lane (usually a parking lane or shoulder) is eliminated momentarily by having the curb shift in toward the travel lane for a short stretch of road. The effect is to visually narrow the road, even if it doeesn’t narrow the travel lanes, which tends to slow drivers down. They may be mixed with traffic islands which have the same effect and aid pedestrians. Calverton Blvd. has the following features: Bike lanes with a door […]

MoBike testimony on Kensington Sector Plan

Oct 142011

Here is MoBike’s testimony submitted to the Montgomery County Council on the Kensington Sector Plan. The plan is part of the county master plan and it will govern development and transportation in Kensington for years to come. The plan provides almost exclusively on-road bikeways, either shoulders or wide outside lanes or calm streets. The only proposed bike lanes are not feasible. The only shared use path – on Connecticut Ave. – is a path in name only (i.e. it’s a sidewalk). Highlights of the testimony: Add a path along Kensington Parkway as a path route to the Rock Creek Trail. The road is already safe for bicycling in the roadway. Support a crossing of the railroad tracks at the MARC […]

Maryland survey of cyclists – check it out

Oct 142011

Maryland is conducting a bicycle user survey to learn more about bicyclists in Maryland. Go to http://surveymonkey.com/s/CycleMaryland. It asks where cyclists go, what conditions they prefer and what routing tools they use. It’s a fun and useful survey. And there’s a prize drawing! The survey is sponsored by CycleMaryland, a Maryland program promoting bike tourism. The state sees trails and touring as economically beneficial. P.S. Cool logo (below). P.P.S. CycleMaryland sounds suspiciously like CycleMoco.

Bikepath-crazy in Clarksburg

Oct 112011

The 1994 county master plan for Clarksburg called for many bikeways in rapidly growing Clarksburg. Check out the plan map . But almost all of the bike routes called for by the plan for east of Rt. 355 in Clarksburg were shared use paths next to roads. None of the roads, including brand new roads, were to have wide lanes or bike lanes. That makes Clarksburg pretty unaccommodating to cyclists wanting to go more than 10 mph, avoid collisions with turning cars, or avoid dogs and small children (or children and small dogs?) for their sake if not for yours. I guess planners had different views then. There were comments like this: Emphasize bike paths which are separated from streets […]

Trail issue in Little Bennett Regional Park

Oct 102011

This is a follow-on story to Way Cleared for Path in Little Bennett Regional Park. At the October 6th Planning Board hearing on the Little Bennett Regional Park Day Use Area, I testified on behalf of MoBike that the planned trail along Rt. 355 past the park must be built on the EAST side of 355. The Planning Board agreed, sort of. The trail should be on the east side of 355 because that’s the side where the park is and where several other paths connect to 355 (south of the park). It’s also the side with fewer driveways along 355 that the path would have to cross. The previous plan (Little Bennett Regional Park Plan of 2007) had the […]

Bikeshare coming to Rockville and hopefully Bethesda

Oct 072011

Rockville Rockville and the county just secured a grant from the Federal Transit Administration to set up a pilot bike sharing program in Rockville and the Shady Grove area, as described in the Washington Post. The program will have 200 bicycles at 20 bike stations. The grant is provided under the FTA’s Job Access and Reverse Commute Program to improve mobility for low income residents. According to the city press release: Proposed station locations include the Rockville and Shady Grove Metro stations, Rockville Town Center, employment centers along Route 355/Rockville Pike, Montgomery College-Rockville Campus, Universities at Shady Grove and Johns Hopkins-Montgomery County Campus, and the City of Rockville. …the JARC grant will provide $1.288 million, and the matching portion is […]

Meeting on changes to the Countywide Park Trails Plan

Oct 032011

The county Parks Department is updating the Countywide Park Trails Plan. This very important plan determines which trails the Parks Department will ultimately build (or cancel) within the county park system. It governs both paved trails and natural surface ones. The update may be significant, possibly resulting in the cancelation or relocation of bike trails in the parks. I’m on the citizens committee that will help planners determine the updates. I invite anyone concerned about park trails to attend the Planning Board worksession on Oct. 6. A worksession is where the Board discusses a topic amongst themselves and with their staff. The public may attend. The discussion is listed in the agenda here. See agenda item #7. The staff comment […]

Way cleared for path to Little Bennett Regional Park in Clarksburg

Oct 022011

From the Montgomery Gazette: Way cleared for path to Little Bennett Regional Park in Clarksburg. Sidewalk will serve walkers, bikers until a separate bike path is built. The Montgomery County Planning Board will be asked to approve a facility plan for a day use area in Little Bennett Regional Park next week. Planners presented a detailed plan Monday to the Clarksburg Civic Association, which had approved a concept plan for the park at its May meeting. The plan aims to disturb the land as little as possible and give visitors an appreciation of the natural beauty within the county’s largest park, said project manager Ching-Fang Chen of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission. A 2007 park master plan laid […]