2026 DPW Performance Oversight Hearing Testimony

The Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA), on behalf of its 5,000 members and nearly 23,000 regional supporters, appreciates the opportunity to testify on this occasion. 

We will also presume to speak for the 18,000 DC residents who bike to work on a daily basis according to goDCgo, the District Department of Transportation (DDOT)’s sustainable transportation initiative – that figure represents 5% of commuters, according to goDCgo – and for the many, many thousands of shared mobility users who logged 6,369,376 Capital Bikeshare (CaBi) rides in 2025, breaking the annual ridership record for the third consecutive year. According to Ride Report, the combined ridership of all permitted micromobility providers (excluding Capital Bikeshare) totaled 12,440,900 trips in 2025. 

The District’s bicyclists and micromobility users rely on and value the city’s bike-lane and trail network. We deserve safe, well maintained infrastructure, which – related to Department of Public Works responsibilities – means bike lanes clear of leaves, debris, illegally stopped or parked vehicles, and snow and ice. Bike-lane obstructions are hazardous and often dangerously force riders into motor-vehicle traffic lanes and onto the sidewalk. 

DC 311 reporting and response improvements

We’re pleased that the District’s current, FY26 budget included funding for the OUC, working with the Dept. of Public Works, to create a reporting option for obstructions, debris, snow and ice, and leaves in bike lanes. We appreciate that OUC updated other request types this last fall, early in FY26. They included dockless-vehicle parking complaints, TSIs, and roadway markings and pylons. However OUC has not rolled out bike-lane obstruction and debris reporting, which has been in the works for going on a year.  We ask DPW to work with OUC to prioritize delivering this new reporting category. 

We and others have had a long-standing request that DC 311 allow reporting without a street address, using geolocating. The lack of a geolocating feature means reports may be filed with an inaccurate location. This update will facilitate reporting issues in DC parks and in locations next to parks where there are no buildings and hence no street address. This feature is technically feasible. We are puzzled by the lack of response from OUC to the request for this commonsense improvement, and we ask DPW to work with OUC to prioritize delivering this capability. 

Finally, we are concerned about DC 311 tickets closed without action or explanation. We suggest the council task DPW, working with OUC as needed, to report on tickets closed without action or explanation and to propose system revisions to compel, or at least strongly encourage, departments to report actions or provide explanations when closing tickets.

Reliably Clearing Snow and Ice from Bike Lanes

Chair Nadeau and committee members, please pursue improved snow and ice clearing performance with the Department of Public Works in collaboration with the District Department of Transportation.

During our recent, long-lasting wintry weather, DPW and DDOT failed to adequately ensure that relied-on networks for active transportation – especially bike lanes and intersection crossings – were safe enough for most users. For many community members, it wasn’t clear which agency was responsible and there weren’t direct ways to report maintenance needs in bike lanes. Even when DDOT or DPW had cleared part of a route, there was a lack of collaboration between snow-clearing teams which resulted in mounds of remaining snow and ice obstructing intersection crossings, making routes uncomfortable, or even unpassable for people walking and biking.

Stepped up Seasonal and As-Needed Leaf Clearing from Bike Lanes

We know that DPW has stepped up bike-lane leaf and debris clearing. DPW has stated that the department responds to bike-lane cleaning requests, however residents have reported instances where this is not the case, for example on Columbia Road NW adjacent to Kalorama Park. A resident reports having made DC 311 request ID 25-00188715, followed up with four phone calls, but the request was never completed. My own request ID 25-00584678 was marked “COMPLETED BY A. MCIVER CREW ON 10/2/25 CLOSED BY SG,” however the work was not done – the bike lanes were not cleared – even though I specified the location as part of my request. 

Inability to file a DC 311 for a location without a street address may have contributed to these response failures.

This year, we again ask that DPW take a proactive approach during leaf season and winter weather and plan for multiple passes. Leaves can make bike lanes hazardous by hiding large debris and creating traction issues when wet. DPW leaf crews do a thorough job, but a more timely response is needed to clear bike lanes and avoid unsafe conditions.

Enforcement Targeting Dangerous Traffic Offenders and High-Dollar Parking Scofflaws

We know who the dangerous drivers are. Our cameras catch them. 

The STEER Act authorizes DPW to impound vehicles that belong to dangerous drivers, drivers who received 10 or more points in six months, for egregious speeding and other serious infractions. It is highly regrettable that DPW has not exercised that authority at scale nor evidently taken enabling steps such as increasing impound lot capacity. We call on DPW to do that now, and we additionally ask the council to require DPW to publish a weekly report showing how many vehicles exceed the STEER Act threshold, how many were confiscated, and how many known dangerous vehicles remain on our streets. This reporting will enable the council and the public to see the gap between what DPW could do and what they are doing.

As of this writing, DPW had not yet provided a 2026 Performance Oversight Hearing Report. We look forward to DPW’s report on progress targeting high-dollar scofflaws, whose parking behavior is likely correlated with risky driving.

Enforcement Addressing Vehicles Stopped or Parked in Bike Lanes and Illegally in Loading Zones

According to last year’s Performance Oversight Hearing Report, the number of annual “STOP/STAND BIKE LANE” citations issued by DPW had diminished by a quarter since FY22, even while the number of bike-lanes miles had increased. Lacking the current report, we ask that DPW redouble enforcing the District’s prohibition on stopping, standing, and parking in a bike lane and also the prohibition on non-commercial vehicles’ parking in loading zones during the zones’ active hours. When loading zones are abused, they’re not available for commercial deliveries and pickup, leading to commercial vehicles parking in bike lanes. 

In Conclusion

We have identified issues clearing snow and ice from bike lanes, the need for stepped-up seasonal leaf clearing from bike lanes as well as DC 311 service-request system improvement, and concerns about insufficient enforcement addressing vehicles stopped, standing, and parked in a bike lane or abusing a loading zone. We ask the committee, the Council, and the Department of Public Works, in cooperation with other city agencies, to promptly address these concerns.