WABA fights for safer streets and better laws to protect you when you ride. Despite our best efforts, crashes happen. WABA’s Supporting Attorneys are a network of regional attorneys who support WABA’s mission and have a personal connection to bicycling. WABA’s Supporting Attorneys have expertise and experience supporting and representing crash victims and WABA members […]

Throughout the Washington area, bicycles are generally treated as vehicles and bicyclists as operators of vehicles. There are, however, some notable exceptions. The District Department of Transportation’s summary of D.C. bike laws is available here.For the Virginia Department of Transportation’s official summary of Virginia bike laws, see this page.For the Maryland State Highway Administration’s guide […]

Until 2016, only four states and the District of Columbia in the United States retain the antiquated and unfair contributory negligence standard.

In the 2013 Maryland General Assembly, our efforts to promote and defend the interests of bicyclists were reasonably successful this year—especially compared to how things might have turned out.

First, we would like to share the winners of our special WABA Awards, and scroll down for photos from the event: The Advocate of the Year for 2014 Winner: Jim Durham, Chair of the Alexandria Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee The Vision Zero Award Winners: Bruce Deming and Cory Bilton, local attorneys who provided pro-bono […]

The Nominees for the 2015 Bicyclists’ Choice Awards have been revealed! The Nominees are:

Contact the Virginia Senate Judiciary Committee TODAY and urge them to pass Senate Bill 659.

Media Contact Got a question about a specific program? See our Staff Page for direct contact info. If you’re not sure who you want to talk to, email press@waba.org or call (202) 518-0524 x201. Recent Press Mentions Some Scenes From Crystal City’s Bike to Work Day Washingtonian – May, 2017 3 Things to check before you […]

WABA has a long history of successful advocacy campaigns to make the Washington region a better place to ride a bike. Based on our advocacy priorities, here are the current campaigns we are organizing. Bike Friendly Ballston Create the Silver Spring Circle Finish the Trolley Trail in Hyattsville People First on Arlington Road in Bethesda A Safer […]

Quick updates on major projects.

Here’s the latest version of “what we’ve been up to lately.”

Here’s the latest version of “what we’ve been up to lately.” Read straight through or skip ahead to updates from Maryland, Virginia, or DC. If there’s a specific project that you don’t see here, check our March and April roundups. Greater Washington Region Metro SafeTrack — Try it by bike! Brief Explanation: WABA has been working closely […]

Welcome to our monthly edition of “Hey, what’s going with _____?”

Fairness for Crash Victims Access to Justice for Bicyclists Act of 2012 MoveDC by Bicycle Recent WABA Advocacy Victories Installation of bike lanes on King Street in Alexandria (2014) Passage of the Bicycle Safety Amendment in DC (2013) Installation of bike lane on New Mexico Ave NW (2013) Passage of the Three Foot Passing law in Virginia (2014) Construction of […]

This past Sunday, WABA hosted the 2017 Vasa Ride. Although it was a little cold, a little breezy, and a bit rainy for the first part of the day, the ride was still AWESOME and over 300 riders joined us for blueberry soup at the House of Sweden! Like all WABA Signature Rides, 100% of your […]

What a great celebration of biking!

Don’t forget that just 45 years ago we had zero miles of bike trails. 20 years ago we had zero miles of bike lanes. Ten years ago most of us had never heard of bikeshare. Five years ago we had only one protected bike lane. And three years ago, WABA didn’t have a full-time staff person dedicated to advocacy. Our progress is real.

Bike Laws and Policies Mayor Bowser Signed the Contributory Negligence Bill On October 13, Mayor Bowser, Councilmembers Mary Cheh, David Grosso, and Elissa Silverman, DDOT Director Leif Dormsjo, and some of our favorite WABA members joined us for a very special member Happy Hour—to witness and celebrate the public signing of the Motor Vehicle Collision Recovery Act. Read […]

We just got back from the Wilson Building and we’ll have a more thorough update soon, but I wanted to make sure you knew that the Motor Vehicle Collision Recovery Act to address contributory negligence passed a markup hearing in the Judiciary Committee just a few hours ago.

Our testimony in support of the Bicycle and Motor Vehicle Collision Recovery Amendment Act of 2014 is here. For more information on WABA’s efforts to address this issue, and to get involved in the push for a solution visit our Campaign Page.

A more in depth explanation of the problems contributory negligence poses for bicyclists.

All Walks DC has included a question about Contributory Negligence on their survey of candidates for DC mayor and attorney general

Yesterday, the Judiciary Committee voted 3-0 to move the Motor Vehicle Collision Recovery Act out of committee and recommended it for consideration by the full D.C. Council.

A bill to fix a glaring injustice in our legal system goes before the DC council on Tuesday. Here are the facts.

Today the DC Council voted unanimously to approve the Motor Vehicle Collision Recovery Act of 2015.

Great news!! After nearly three years of persistent organizing and advocacy by the WABA community, the DC Council just voted unanimously for the second time to pass the Motor Vehicle Collision Recovery Act to fix contributory negligence!

Better bike lanes, friendlier roads, safer trails—we need your help to make the D.C. region the best place in the world to ride a bike. Join WABA today!

Join or renew with WABA between October 17th – 23rd and Vote for the Tote for a limited-edition tote bag!

We’ve had a monumental year for advocacy wins. Check out our overview and consider donating this fall to make WABA stronger.

  Low-Stress Bike Network Prince George’s County Trails Master Plan Brief Explanation: The county’s Trails Master Plan (still in draft form), identifies how Prince George’s County intends to build and manage nearly 400 miles of new trails. The plan takes the mileage of primary trails (trails that are mostly paved, with high-quality design features, a park-like experience, and […]