In June 2021 the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC) launched the Southern Avenue Metro Station Area Pedestrian Accessibility Study. The overall goal of the project is to improve neighborhood connections, promote health equity, and stimulate economic growth. Their focus is recommending improvements to local streets and station connections to make it safer and more enjoyable for people to walk. Register here.
online
Let’s Get Rolling! Internet Coffee Hour
Brew yourself a cup of coffee or tea and come hang out on the internet with us for a bit.
Conversation is open—we often chat about weekend plans to be outside but also take questions about getting into biking, what trails are being expanded, and topics not connected to bicyclists (donuts are good!).
We’ll use Zoom for the meet up. You can RSVP here.
For 2021, we are moving back to a monthly model – join us every second Friday of the month!
Hosted by a WABA staffer, this is a great chance to ask any bicycling questions! Join us anytime between 8am and 9am. And you are totally welcome to join voice or text chat only without video.
Fall Riding Webinar
Join the Bike Ambassadors as they share tips for cycling in autumn to keep you enjoying your ride through the cooling season. The Bike Ambassadors will discuss how to ride safely in autumn weather. We will talk about fall riding gear, bicycle accessories and what to look out for on the road or trail. Bike Ambassadors seek to provide helpful information and resources to ensure everyone is riding safely, so join us to learn and share ways that can help everyone continue to bike during the fall.
DC Low Stress Network Campaign Meetup
Warder, Park & Kenyon PBLs Update at ANC 1A Transportation Committee
Mexico to Canada: Bikepacking, gravel roads, and grit
2,600+ miles of off-pavement biking through the continental divide and unceded traditional territory of the First Nations and Indigenous people of present day Antelope Wells, New Mexico to Alberta, Canada. Talk about an adventure! Join us for a conversation with Shauna and John Dickson who recently completed the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route. They’ll spend the first half of this zoom webinar talking about the length, views, and what did and didn’t work. The second half will be dedicated to the nitty-gritty details like gear, accommodations, and average miles per day. Shauna and John will leave time for Q&A after each section. We welcome you to join for all or part of the talk depending on your level of interest. The webinar will have live captions and participants are encouraged to participate by chat or voice.
Cheltenham Dr Bikeway Virtual Meeting
2021 Fall Membership Drive
As a WABA member, you are at the forefront of our fight for a transportation system that works for everyone in the region. Your membership allows us to achieve our mission of empowering people to ride bikes, build connections and transform places.
Join or renew your membership during our 2021 Fall Membership Drive, September 24th – October 4th, and take advantage of some additional membership perks and discounts that are only available during the drive! This includes:
- a FREE sticker and entry into a Vintage WABA merch giveaway for EVERY new member or renewal,
- Discounted Classic membership (was $60/year or $6/month, now is $50/year or $5/month),
- First access to the new 2022 WABA merchandise!
For more information on which membership perks and discounts are always included with a WABA membership, visit our Membership FAQ.
Because of the strong support from our members, WABA celebrated a variety of major victories this year, moving towards our vision of a region where biking, walking, and transit are the best ways to get around. Here are a few of those victories:
- Numerous transformative DC budget victories including: a legislative act that will create a dedicated funding source for the Vision Zero Bill and future bike and pedestrian projects, and dedicated funding for the Connecticut Avenue NW Protected Bike Lane, the 9th Street NW Protected Bike Lane, for expanding and developing our Trails Network, and for expanding the DC Trail Ranger Program – which means year-round staff for trail outreach and maintenance.
- Held the 5th annual Washington Region Vision Zero Summit with the theme Transportation Equity in Practice which highlighted topics like law enforcement out of equity, automated traffic enforcement and more.
- Major progress on infrastructure projects in DC, such as the K St. NW, 17th Street NW, and 20th St NW protected bike lanes projects.
- WABA has taken a role in the Transportation Equity Network which has brought underrepresented voices to the table on transportation issues at the intersection of climate change.
- For the first time ever, the Maryland State Highway Administration installed pilot protected bike lanes on a State Highway. The MD-193, University Boulevard temporary protected lanes run from Arcola Avenue (near Northwood HS) to Amherst Avenue and the Wheaton downtown business district and could be made permanent.
- WABA has worked to help draft the ActiveFairfax Transportation Plan, which introduces a framework for advancing active transportation.
- The Capital Trails Coalition, in partnership with a team of experts, has developed a report that quantifies the economic, health, and environmental benefits of completing the region’s 881-mile multi-use trail network.
- The Capital Trails Coalition developed a resolution in support of the goal to complete the remaining top 40 priority projects identified by the Capital Trails Coalition (CTC) by 2025. On June 22nd, the Prince George’s County Council adopted the CTC Resolution and on July 13th, Montgomery County passed it unanimously!
- Successfully advocated for money for an engineering study of the Arlington Boulevard Trail in Arlington County’s FY22 Capital Improvement Plan.
- And much more! Read more about WABA’s advocacy initiatives and wins so far this year in our Summer Advocacy Round-Up blog post.
We have a lot more that we would like to accomplish before the end of the year, like car free zones on Upper Beach Drive, garnering more support for the Capital Trails Network, building a Low Stress Network in DC, furthering our work with the DC Transportation Equity Network, and much, much more! Join or renew your membership today to get us there!
Supporting WABA’s work has never been this easy! Our Pay-What-You-Can Membership model, gets you a YEAR-LONG membership for ANY personally meaningful contribution you make. You read that right, ANY donation you make to WABA at any amount will get you a year-long membership!
If you’re already a WABA member, thank you! When you renew during this drive, you will get all of the perks and we’ll extend your membership for one year. Or drop us a line at membership@waba.org and you can gift a membership to a friend or a new rider.
For more information or to get your questions answered about WABA membership, visit our Membership FAQ page, or send an email to membership@waba.org. Check out our NEW WABA Store! For your member discount for the WABA store, email membership@waba.org.
Come see WABA staff at the following in-person locations during the Membership Drive!
- Ballston Farmers Market, 901 N Taylor St, Arlington, VA 22203 Thursday, September 23rd 3-7pm
- Dupont Farmers Market, 1624 20th St NW, Washington, DC 20009 Sunday, September 26th 9am-1pm
- Riverdale Park Farmers Market, 6220 Rhode Island Ave, Riverdale, MD 20737 Thursday, September 30th 3-7pm
- Open Streets DC 2021, Georgia Ave NW, Washington DC Saturday, October 2nd 10am-3pm
9th St. NW Protected Bike Lane Action Prep
The long awaited 9th St. NW protected bike lane and pedestrian safety project is finally moving again towards construction in late 2022. The project will add 1.5 miles of protected bike lane from Pennsylvania Ave to Florida Ave, shorten pedestrian crossings, and remove extra driving lanes that encourage dangerous speeding and enable aggressive driving — all without significant impacts to street parking or driving times.
While it’s great that the Bowser administration is committed to this project, we have seen it get delayed before, and some persistent opponents are not giving up. Fortunately, we know that bringing people together to demand safe streets works.
Join us on Wednesday, September 22nd at 6:30 PM for a quick recap of what improvements this project will bring, a brief history, and then get directly involved in actions and tactics coming up this month. Let’s push this critical safety project over the finish line.
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