Dupont ANC calls for more safety measures on M Street near cyclist fatality

The recent death of a bicyclist following a collision on M Street NW was top of mind this month for Dupont Circle leaders voting on proposed cycling-safety measures.

On Aug. 8, Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2B called for more safety improvements to the 1900 block of M Street — where cyclist Jeffrey Long sustained fatal injuries last month — while also weighing the possibility of prohibitions on sidewalk cycling throughout Ward 2.

Long, 36, was struck by a car on July 7 while biking in the M Street cycle track at New Hampshire Avenue. He died from his injuries a few days later.

At this month’s ANC 2B meeting, commissioner Mike Silverstein emphasized the perils of that intersection, where Long was reportedly pinned by a maintenance truck making a sharp right turn.

“A vehicle making a right turn does not see a person on the bicycle track, and then tragedy occurs,” said Silverstein, who documented those dangers in a YouTube video.

The video shows Silverstein pointing out how a parked FedEx truck obstructs cyclists’ view of cars making “right hook” turns across the bike lane. At the 3:05 mark in the video, Silverstein even captures a near-collision between a bike and a car.

“One out of every 10 cyclists that passed the FedEx truck almost got hit,” Silverstein said at the meeting. “We were lucky no one did.”

Silverstein noted, however, that the DC Department of Transportation “took quick action … to make the intersection much safer” by removing three parking spaces. He also said the city fined the driver of the FedEx truck his video captured, and placed flexposts in that area so cyclists now have a clearer view.

The intersection where Long was hit is one segment of a popular cycle track on M Street that stretches from 14th Street to 28th Street NW.

ANC 2B unanimously passed a resolution emphasizing the need for “enhanced exposure and promotion of bicycle and pedestrian safety projects to increase public awareness,” among other safety suggestions — including a call for shorter response times (30 minutes or less) to reports of violations, such as illegally parked vehicles.

One resident at the meeting, who personally thanked Silverstein, cited his own experience getting hit by a car that was making a right turn. Another attendee brought up the website Bike Lane Uprising, which allows users to share noted bike-lane obstructions in one central database.

Changes are in the works beyond the measures already implemented by the DC Department of Transportation, which included new pavement markings near the intersection. DCist reported this week that the Golden Triangle Business Improvement District announced plans to widen the narrow sidewalk along M Street. This would realign the bike lane and move it adjacent to the park, making the street safer for both cyclists and those in cars.

What will happen in regard to another matter discussed by the commission at the Aug. 8 meeting is less clear. Members discussed their response to suggestions that the DC Council ought to prohibit the riding of bikes and scooters on sidewalks in Ward 2. Though the practice is already banned within the city’s central business district — an area roughly bounded by Massachusetts Avenue and the National Mall — the idea under discussion would extend the prohibition to all sidewalks within Ward 2, which includes parts of downtown as well as Dupont Circle, Foggy Bottom, the West End, Logan Circle, Sheridan-Kalorama and Georgetown.

“I don’t know if there is a specific proposal, and I’m not sure if anything has been solidified yet,” Silverstein said in a phone interview, when asked for background on the proposal. “These [scooters] are obviously a great convenience for pedestrians, but many are concerned about safety.”

Joe Florio, spokesperson for Ward 2 DC Council member Jack Evans, said that his office has received complaints about people riding bikes and scooters on Ward 2 sidewalks without regard for the safety of pedestrians, but that Evans is not proposing new rules at this point. With the Transportation Department’s pilot project on dockless bikes and scooters scheduled to end soon, Evans wants to review the agency’s findings before taking a stance or proposing any action on the issue, Florio said.

During the commission’s discussion of the issue, the rarity of enforcement of existing restrictions downtown led some to question whether police officers would enforce similar rules throughout Ward 2.

“Even in the [central business district]. it’s really hard to enforce this,” said Alan Rueckgauer, a member of the ANC’s Transportation and Public Infrastructure Committee. “There aren’t enough police officers out there to keep a mindful eye.”

Those who choose to ride on the sidewalks are doing so because it is too dangerous to ride on the roads, he added.

Rueckgauer said the existing law should be left alone, especially if any proposal doesn’t include road improvements to make conditions safer for cyclists who would be riding in the street.

“It wouldn’t be a massive undertaking to add a bike lane or additional posts to accommodate these riders,” said Rueckgauer.

One attendee stood up to argue against the idea of a wardwide ban. “As someone who uses scooters and bikes on sidewalks, this week I was threatened twice by drivers who said they would kill me because I was riding on the street,” he said.

Another citizen got up and argued for the ban, but only if the city added additional safety precautions for bike riders.

“I would only want to support the ban on sidewalks if there was a possible alternative that would be safe for riders, such as improved bike lanes,” he said.

As the crowd grew more emotive, going back and forth on the issue, commissioner Daniel Warwick interrupted to clarify: “This was something we were asked to talk about, not something we are proposing.”

The commission ultimately voted 6-0 to voice opposition to a ban on riding scooters and bicycles on sidewalks in Ward 2 outside the Central Business District. The resolution, however, suggests revisiting the idea “once there is a network of proposed bike lanes in Ward 2.”

Chris Kain contributed to this report.