Newsletter: Consult Your Dentist Before Reading
Ready for a real tooth-grinder of a document? Yesterday the DC Auditor’s Office released the first of two reports on the District’s Vision Zero program. Our team is still digging through it and will have an analysis and next steps soon. In the meantime, you can read about it at DCist or the Washington Post. The key takeaway will, uh, not be a surprise if you’ve been following along: “The Bowser Administration failed to follow the ambitious [Vision Zero Program] announcement in 2015 with appropriate resources in both funding and manpower.”
You don’t say.
The report goes on to detail how the decision-making process for safe streets infrastructure projects is opaque, inconsistently documented, and subject to politically motivated delay and tinkering.
I’m sure we are all shocked to hear this.
Irony and grumbling aside, the reality is that changes to public space and the status quo are always political. Even when data and science are crystal clear, motornormativity is a powerful thumb on the scale at every stage of the decision-making process, and even the most obvious, life-saving changes don’t happen unless people speak up. So thank you for being a WABA member, thank you for being part of this movement, and thank you for speaking up.
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Last week, this happened:
The DC Council heard testimony on the E-bike Rebate proposal. You can read ours here.
The comment deadline for the Suitland Parkway Trail has been extended through the end of the month. Please share!
The Northern Virginia Regional Commission released these cool new maps of the Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail. More hiking than biking, but lots of useful info and potential ride destinations.
Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton hosted a town hall with representatives from the National Zoo last week. The key Trail takeaway is that the hours for the Zoo Loop Trail are unlikely to change without intervention from Congress.
Things to do:
Join the Low Stress Network advocate meetup on Monday.
Vote on a name for the 295 Trail!
There’s still time to tell Montgomery County you support a park at Little Falls Parkway.
Sign up for the Bike How You Like Ride!
Route of idea for the weekend:
Grab your beefiest tires, take the W&OD Trail out to Lake Fairfax Park, and try a loop through the woods on some of the mountain bike trails. For a bigger adventure, coworker Jeff also reports that the Lake Fairfax campground is a great, accessible overnight destination if you want to introduce kids or friends to bike camping.
Have a great weekend!