D.C. Bicycle Advisory Council

Highlights of BAC accomplishments in June: The three BAC committees held meetings. At the Legislative Committee’s June 4 meeting, Councilmember Charles Allen, at right with file folder, discussed his Vision Zero omnibus bill.   The Facilities Committee surveyed Alabama Avenue SE and adjacent parts of Ward 8 during its June 11 field meeting. The Safety, Education and Enforcement Committee met on June 13. Ward 6 member David Cranor delivered BAC testimony in support of the Vulnerable User Collision Recovery Amendment Act of 2019. Cranor, left, testified on June 24 before the Council Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety. BAC members joined with their Arlington and Alexandria counterparts to host the Inaugural Regional Bike Summit on June 9. Here’s the @DCBAC delegation at the summit! pic.twitter.com/CFiY0tppAB — HandlebarsDC 🚴 (@HandlebarsDC) June 9, 2019 Two BAC members attended a June 20 public meeting about Florida Avenue NE safety redes...

Highlights of BAC accomplishments in May: The BAC held its bimonthly meeting on May 2. Chair David Cranor ’ s personal blog post reports on some of the project updates DDOT gave at the meeting. BAC members celebrated Bike to Work Day on May 18. Several members spoke to elected and appointed officials at the Freedom Plaza pit stop. BAC member Rachel Maisler with DDOT Director Jeff Marootian Maisler with her appointing authority, Councilmember Brandon Todd Maisler with Councilmember Elissa Silverman BAC member David Alexander with DDOT Director Jeff Marootian and Department of General Services Director Greer Gillis Alexander with his appointing authority, Councilmember Jack Evans Elected officials and other dignitaries This month: June activities BAC committees are meeting as follows: Legislative Committee Meeting Wed., June 13 6 p.m. The Potter’s House 1658 Columbia Rd NW Facilities Committee Rolling Meeting Sat., June 23 1 p.m. Meet at 22...

Highlights of BAC accomplishments in July: At its July 12 meeting, the BAC hosted a discussion with DDOT Deputy Director Jeff Marootian, who will assume the role of interim DDOT director in mid August. The productive discussion fulfills DDOT's mandate to meet every six months with the BAC, per the Transportation Reorganization Amendment Act of 2015. BAC meeting with DDOT leaders, at center right. At its September meeting and thereafter, the BAC will follow up on the issues discussed. BAC members also attended meetings about the Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue SE revitalization project in Congress Heights and the Downtown West Transportation Planning Study in Ward 2, among other meetings. Members David Cranor and Jeff Johnson joined Councilmember Charles Allen on a July 28 ride through Ward 6. Councilmember Charles Allen, left, leads constituents on a ride through parts of Ward 6. BAC member Jeff Johnson is pictured at right in purple Bike to Work Day t-shirt. To his...

Bicycle Advisory Council chair David Cranor today issued the following statement in response to the D.C. Council vote in support of contributory negligence reform. The legislation, the Motor Vehicle Collision Recovery Act of 2016, will be enacted pending a second affirmative Council vote, anticipated in the fall. The act would permit bicyclists and pedestrians to receive compensation from a driver's insurance as long as the non-motorized party is less than 50 percent at fault. Under current law, a bicyclist or pedestrian deemed 1 percent at fault is ineligible for any compensation. This contributory negligence policy would be replaced by a form of comparative negligence. Said BAC chair Cranor: "The Bicycle Advisory Council supports this measure. The consequences of a crash between a cyclist and driver are often unevenly distributed, with the cyclist generally bearing the greater burden. Under current law, cyclists also generally bear the greater financial burden even w...

On Tuesday, December 8, 2015 , the Committee on Transportation and the Environment will hold a Public Hearing on several bills related to bicycling. The hearing will begin at 11:00 a.m., Room 500 (fifth floor) of the John A. Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW. Based on feedback from our general and committee meetings, BAC members will offer testimony. They will discuss two of four bills under consideration at this hearing, listed below: B21-0335  -  Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Act of 2015 - This bill makes changes to District law regarding motor vehicles, bicycles, and pedestrians. It requires the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) to publish certain statistical and geographical data on its website, establishes a safety program called the Bicycle and Pedestrian Priority Area Program, orders DDOT to adopt an inclusive policy for accommodating all users of the District's roadways, and amends existing public safety laws by creating new motor veh...

On Friday, December 4, 2015 , the Committee on Transportation and the Environment will hold a Public hearing on the proposed Transportation Reorganization Amendment Act of 2015 ( B21-313 ). The hearing will begin at 11:00 a.m., Room 412 (4th floor) of the John A. Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW. According to the legislative summary, the bill reorganizes and establishes several offices and divisions within the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) and sets operational, reporting and other requirements on the agency and other District agencies. While the bill is comprehensive, it does contain several components related to bicycling in the District. A copy of the legislation with bicycle-related items highlighted is listed at the bottom of this page. The public may testify or to submit written testimony, which will be made a part of the official hearing record. Anyone wishing to testify should contact Ms. Aukima Benjamin, staff assistant to the Committee on Tr...

The Fiscal Year (FY) 2015 Mayor’s Proposed budget was released April 3, 2014. It sets the Mayor’s priorities for the coming year and is the first step in the budget process. The next step in the process is the review of the budget by the Council of the District of Columbia. Council has begun its process by asking District agencies to provide details on their budgets and may recommend changes.  As port of its information gathering efforts, the Council Committee on Transportation and the Environment will hold its hearing on the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) Tuesday, April 29, 2014 beginning at 11am in the Council Chamber of the John A. Wilson Building (Room 500), 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW. The Committee encorages the public and organizations to provide testimony on the proposed DDOT budget and its plans for the upcoming year. BAC encourages the public to voice praise, concerns or suggestions with regard to the proposed spending for complete streets that...