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This entry is part of our Women & Bicycles Bi-Weekly Tips series. Women & Bicycles is WABA’s outreach and encouragement initiative to build a stronger women’s bike community and get more women on bikes. Click here to learn more and get involved.     This Wednesday, I’m presenting on overview on how you can incorporate other forms […]

This entry will appear in the fall edition of RideOn, WABA’s quarterly print newsletter for members. Women & Bicycles is WABA’s outreach and encouragement initiative to build a stronger women’s bike community and get more women on bikes. Click here to learn more and get involved.   We have countless stories and updates to share with […]

This entry is part of our Women & Bicycles Bi-Weekly Tips series. Women & Bicycles is WABA’s outreach and encouragement initiative to build a stronger women’s bike community and get more women on bikes. Click here to learn more and get involved.   The Box Turn is an essential tool for every urban bicyclist to execute worry-free […]

This entry is part of our Women & Bicycles Bi-Weekly Tips series. Women & Bicycles is WABA’s outreach and encouragement initiative to build a stronger women’s bike community and get more women on bikes.  Click here to learn more and get involved. When writing the Women & Bicycles workbook, I compiled a list of top 12 must-knows […]

Yesterday, the D.C. chapter of the Urban Land Institute hosted a panel, “Next Generation of Bicycle-Friendly Building Design,” to encourage developers, architects, and financiers to pursue the very easy addition of bike-friendly designs to their buildings. The panel was hosted by the U.S. Green Building Council’s Sophie Lambert and panelists included WABA’s Shane Farthing, Toole […]

This entry is part of our Women & Bicycles Bi-Weekly Tips series. Women & Bicycles is WABA’s outreach and encouragement initiative to build a stronger women’s bike community and get more women on bikes.  Click here to learn more and get involved. Bicyclists in the big city don’t have a lot of control over our sound environment. […]

This entry is part of our Women & Bicycles Bi-Weekly Tips series. Women & Bicycles is WABA’s outreach and encouragement initiative to build a stronger women’s bike community and get more women on bikes. With the help of Roll Models, the program’s volunteer mentors, we’re providing a space to learn about and experience the joys of bicycling […]

We announced earlier in the month that, with a grant from the District Department of Transportation, we’d be launching a trail ranger program. The program, which soft-launched this week, will combine outreach, communication, and data collection on all of D.C.’s DDOT-managed trails: the Met Branch, Suitland Parkway, Anacostia Riverwalk, and Marvin Gaye. Read DCist’s post on the […]

District Department of Transportation (DDOT) project managers are hard at work on a lot of roadway projects, but they’re not in charge of repaving the 15th Street cycle track, or finishing the Metropolitan Branch Trail, or one of many other bicycle projects waiting for action. The agency segregates its bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure into the […]

The federal government is withdrawing its long-standing claim that bicycle helmets prevent 85% of head injuries, in response to a petition filed by WABA under the federal Data Quality Act.

In January, we reported that construction had stalled on the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail bridge over the CSX tracks on the east side of the river. It appears construction activity has restarted at the bridge site with DDOT posting photos on their Facebook page of a large crane posting the bridge’s main span. We took a […]

Following a successful match-grant fundraiser and a generous grant from the League of American Bicyclists, WABA’s Women & Bicycles program officially launched on Sun., March 3 at Busboys & Poets. The party followed a group ride hosted by Black Women Bike and preceded the League’s Women’s Cycling Forum, a kickoff to its yearly National Bike […]

See Black Women Bike co-founder Veronica Davis speak during the yesterday’s Ignite sessions at the National Bike Summit about the founding of her advocacy organization. Black Women Bike, which started in 2011 and now boasts a Facebook group of over 750 members, recently joined up with WABA.

The face of bicycling is changing in cities across the country, and nowhere is that more evident than in the nation’s capital. Since 2004, Washington, D.C., has seen a 175 percent increase in cycling and a 300 percent increase in its bike lane network. Despite these incredible gains, the number of women on bikes has […]

As promised, D.C. bike ambassadors blanketed L Street NW last night to reach out to drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians with information on how to properly use the cycletrack. About eight ambassadors and several MPD officers distributed literature, talked to cyclists and drivers, and worked to alleviate any tension in the cycletracks. Read an additional recap […]

There are three cycletracks in place in D.C. More are being planned. And despite cycletracks being some of the city’s most visible infrastructure for cyclists, there’s plenty of “confusion”—or ignorance—on the part of drivers who try to park or drive in them. This legitimately baffles pedestrians and makes it harder for bicyclists to use the […]

Saturday’s Idea Exchange was the beginning of DDOT’s MoveDC project, a long-term planning process that will determine the future of transportation in D.C. for at least the next 25 years. The event combined public input, appearances by D.C. politicians, and a panel of local urbanist thinkers. Mayor Vince Gray was vocal in his desires for […]

DDOT’s long-range transportation plan for the city, MoveDC, will formally begin this Saturday with an all-day meeting at the Martin Luther King Jr. library. The “idea exchange” will include a welcome address by Mayor Vincent Gray, Councilmember Mary Cheh, and DDOT Director Terry Bellamy; discussions on the future of transportation; and an all-day transportation fair. […]

WABA is looking for an East of the River Program Associate. See our jobs page for more information, or read below the jump.

Last night, we asked you to take action to oppose a mandatory helmet law introduced in the Maryland House of Delegates’ Committee on Environmental Matters. In response, some of you asked for additional information on the “debatable” effects on bicyclists’ safety and the negative impacts on cycling that a mandatory helmet law would have. We […]

The following press release comes from the District Department of Transportation. Representatives from DDOT, the Metropolitan Police Department, and the D.C. Taxicab Commission will be present to inform and cite motorists who illegally turn across the lanes. D.C. bike ambassadors will also make an appearance. — MPD, DDOT and DCTC to Conduct Pennsylvania Avenue U-Turn […]

The Women & Bicycles program will officially launch at the beginning of March. If you haven’t already, be sure to check out our website to sign up for the Women & Bicycles email list–that way, you’ll receive bi-weekly updates on the program’s status and launch. We have lots of news on the way, so look […]

After more than a year of working with our friends and partners at Black Women Bike DC to grow and diversify bicycling in the District, we are pleased to announce that WABA and BWBDC have formally joined forces. BWBDC is now formally a sponsored project of WABA. This move, unanimously approved by the leadership of […]

In April 2012, Mayor Gray cut the ribbon for the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail bridge on the river’s west side. This was the first of two riverwalk trail bridges planned to pass over the CSX tracks. The second bridge, on the east side of the river, should have been completed this past July. But in January 2013, […]

Last month, we wrote here about DDOT’s failure to provide, via the new 11th Street Bridge, a direct connection for the east and west sides of the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail. Councilmember Tommy Wells’ staff followed up with DDOT to ensure that trail access would be included in the construction of the new bridge. DDOT responded […]

Our fundraising for the Women & Bicycles program is progressing steadily. Many thanks to those of you who have donated. We passed the $2,000 mark last night. As of this morning, we’ve raised $2,050, all of which will be matched. American University student Terence Johnson shot and produced a few clips for WABA that show […]

Many thanks to those of you who have donated to WABA’s Women & Bicycles program since we announced a $4,000 match grant on Wednesday. As of this morning, we’ve raised $1,450 to be matched. We’ve told you why getting women on bikes matters, especially for, well, women. But there’s also the fact that once women […]

In a few months, DDOT’s largest project to date will be finished without promised bicycle and pedestrian connections built in. The 11th Street Bridges is the largest element in the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative and is a critical way to connect bicyclists and pedestrians from both sides of the Anacostia River. It is also necessary for use […]

UPDATE (Dec. 12, 2012): The mayor’s office tells WABA that MPD “is out there is force right now” and “plans on having an enhanced presence every morning and afternoon this week.” MPD was waiting on the bike lanes to be completely finished, which included the rider marks in the center of the lanes being painted. […]

Yesterday, I wrote about some of the changes coming to the Pennsylvania Avenue bike lanes.  Unfortunately, nothing I wrote about there is likely to fix the issue of illegal U-turns by motorists through the bike lanes. But I also spent much of the day yesterday trying to get to the bottom of the enforcement issues and why […]