Transportation

DDOT, Residents at Odds over Bike Lanes

WASHINGTON INFORMER — A meeting scheduled for next month between the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) and those living along a stretch of Alabama Avenue in Southeast could potentially actualize what some residents said they’ve long yearned: a direct say in traffic safety measures in their neighborhood.

Published

4 years ago

June 24, 2019

Sam P. K. Collins

By Sam P. K. Collins

A meeting scheduled for next month between the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) and those living along a stretch of Alabama Avenue in Southeast could potentially actualize what some residents said they’ve long yearned: a direct say in traffic safety measures in their neighborhood.

For some, newly installed bike lanes between the 1800 and 2000 blocks of Alabama Avenue don’t reflect the needs of elderly residents who, despite losing their vehicles in hit-and-runs, have enjoyed the benefits of parking just feet from, and sometimes in front of, their home.

Several people, including an elderly woman with limited mobility who requested anonymity, said adjusting to the change has been a constant struggle.

“I don’t see what kind of safety the bike lane is making. DDOT made things more dangerous,” said the elder, a 32-year resident of the 1900 block of Alabama Avenue. She recalled enduring minor inconveniences to avoid parking on side streets, like carpooling and sharing a parking space with a neighbor who works during the night.

“I go to choir rehearsal and come right back,” she said.

The woman stressed that she and her neighbors never received notification that their portion of Alabama Avenue, near Giant and Turner Elementary School, would eventually change.

“At this point, DDOT needs to remove those bike lanes,” she said. “If we had known about it, maybe we could have fought it.”

A DDOT spokesperson described the newly installed bike lanes as part of a larger safety improvement project intended to slow traffic along a four-mile stretch of Alabama Avenue frequented by schoolchildren. Future additions, said to have been discussed during community meetings, in emails and in flyers over the past two years, include highly visible crosswalk markings, pedestrian refuge islands and enhanced stop and speed limit signs.

ANC Commissioner Cheryl Moore (SMD 8E02) and other residents living between the 1800 and 2000 block of Alabama Avenue have rebuffed DDOT’s assertion that they had widely notified affected parties about the impending changes. Moore, elected in January, recounted recent conversations with her predecessor, and between DDOT officials and residents about the communication lapses. Since mid-May, when they first walked outside to construction signs and workers in neon vests, some residents have racked up hundreds of dollars in parking tickets.

Councilmember Trayon White (D-Ward 8) has been outspoken about the ongoing situation, addressing a June 13 community meeting at Bellevue William O. Lockridge Library and engaging DDOT Director Jeff Marootian on other occasions regarding the issue.

“I’m concerned about our senior citizens not being able to get inside their homes,” White told The Informer. “DDOT has been very disrespectful in ignoring the community. I want action to come out of the meeting because the residents are fed up. I’m trying to figure out how bike lanes equate to safety. We expected to see speed bumps and stop signs.”

Data from the Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program shows that communities located east of the Anacostia River — often with a lower concentration of Metro stations over several miles, more children and people walking longer distances, and wider streets — experienced the highest rate of pedestrian fatalities. Since 2013, five people — four pedestrians and a motorist — have died in crashes along Alabama Avenue. Recent fatalities elsewhere, specifically that of Abdul Seck on 16th and V streets Southeast in April, have shed light on the issue of pedestrian safety in Ward 8.

In response to Seck’s death, and out of frustration with what he considered DDOT’s insufficient safety upgrades to that area, lifelong Southeast resident Ronald Thompson Jr. and a friend painted highly visible crosswalks at the intersection of 16th and V streets in early May.

Thompson, a community safety advocate, recalled attending one of DDOT’s community engagement meetings at THEARC later that month. He said DDOT, just as they had done in endeavoring to improve 16th and V streets, dropped the ball in unveiling a plan for Alabama Avenue that didn’t reflect pressing community needs, including safe modes of public transportation and fewer lanes.

That error, for Thompson, made residents skeptical about embracing opportunities for positive change.

Thompson predicted the upcoming meeting would further determine how residents of Ward 8 see their relationship with the local power structure, in an era where bike lanes signify displacement.

“For a variety of reasons, DDOT has been forced to reengage stakeholders who have the ability to put pressure on folks and shake some things up,” he said. “I’m not always a fan of DDOT, but I want to see safe streets in my community. If DDOT doesn’t reengage, it makes it hard for me to defend them to my neighbors. The same way that we went out and painted a crosswalk, someone could scrub a bike lane.”

This article originally appeared in the Washington Informer.

Up Next

Injectable Birth Control Raises HIV Risk for African Women

Don't Miss

D.C. Council Members Participate in Rally for ‘Justice for Janitors’ Day

Sam P. K. Collins

Click to comment

Bay Area

Former BART Director Margaret Pryor, 89

Published

2 months ago

July 25, 2023

Oakland Post

Margaret Pryor

Margaret Katherine Riley Pryor, 89, passed away peacefully at home in Moreno Valley, California during the early morning hours of July 8, 2023. She was born on Nov. 10, 1933, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, to parents Katie Jasper Drake and Luther L. Thompson. After her family relocated to Phoenix, Arizona, she graduated from Phoenix Technical High School and later attended Arizona State University.

She married the late O.D.V. Owens in 1953 and from that union Malcolm D. Owens and Cheryl Y. Owens were born. She married the late Roy A. Pryor in 1964.

Margaret was first elected to the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Board of Directors in 1980. She served as the BART board president for three terms.

A tireless advocate of access to public transportation in underserved communities, she made sure Bay Area communities’ interests were represented on all vital transportation industry issues, particularly advocating for increased funding for public transportation and passenger rail in the community she served.

Margaret was also influential in the founding of Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA). She was a member of Bay Area Christian Connection in Oakland, California.

She was preceded in her death by husband Roy A. Pryor, her mother Katie Jasper Drake and father Luther L. Thompson, half-brother Luther James Thompson and half-sisters Wanda Dorsey and Patsy Atkins.

Margaret is survived by her children: Malcolm D. Owens and Cheryl Y. Owens; grandchildren Tente S. Owens (Naykeya), Malcolm C. Owens, Jr. (Christie), and L. Alexander ‘Alex’ Williams III; great-grandchildren: Spring M. Owens, Malcolm Brayden Owens, Mckenzie R. Owens, Maverick C. Owens, Logan A. Williams, Justin A. Williams; step-great-grandchildren Jazmin M. Guidry, Taylor M. Miller, and Seoul M. Worrell; half-sisters: Althea Banner, Angela Bailey (James) and Tarvis Parks.

Margaret leaves many other loved ones and friends to mourn her loss.

She will be remembered as a strong and intelligent woman who impacted many lives throughout her lifespan. Her remains will be interred with her husband, Roy A. Pryor, at Rolling Hills Memorial Park in Richmond, California. Services will be private.

Bay Area

$10 Million Award for Affordable Housing, Transit Access in West Oakland

The City of Oakland has received a Regional Early Action Planning (REAP) 2.0 grant of $10 million to support housing, infrastructure, streetscape, and transit access for Mandela Station in West Oakland. This grant will support the construction of affordable housing adjacent to the West Oakland BART station and improve mobility for new and existing West Oakland residents.

Published

2 months ago

July 19, 2023

Oakland Post

Mayor Sheng Thao

Grant supports housing development, infrastructure, streetscape improvements; follows $2.39 million Prohousing Grant earlier in 2023

[Courtesy City of Oakland Public Information Office]

“We are committed to creating housing families can afford,” said Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao. “This grant will help us make significant progress in bringing 240 units of affordable housing to West Oakland and I appreciate the hard work of our City team in securing this funding. I’m proud that our recently passed budget also includes a historic investment of over $200 million in affordable housing which we can leverage for future grants as well. Oakland agrees — we need affordable housing now and we’re going to work hard to make that happen.”

Award components include:

– $4.0 million for the Bay Area’s largest planned 100% affordable housing project (240 units) that will focus on the pre-development efforts necessary to complete the construction document planning and building permitting process. This will accelerate the project team’s ability to complete the remaining financing efforts and begin construction.

– $4.0 million in Transit Oriented Development (TOD) infrastructure (sewer main extension) that is required to begin the 100% affordable project as well as an additional 2,705 units of very high-density infill housing (178 additional affordable units), 300,000 square feet of commercial space, and 111,661 square feet of retail space, all adjacent to a BART Station in the heart of the transit system.

– $1.55 million for the City’s Seventh Street Corridor project. This includes connecting the existing and new TOD community with direct access to a high-quality protected bicycle connection between the West Oakland BART Station with the jobs and amenities available in Downtown Oakland.

Furthermore, this project improves pedestrian connection across and along Seventh Street for people walking to their destination or to a transit stop on Seventh Street. Finally, this project will provide transit improvements, including bus boarding islands, upgraded bus shelters, and queue jump lanes.

– $450,000 for equitable transit access by providing funding for prepaid debit cards through Oakland’s Universal Mobility Program for a priority population in the project area.

This program allows recipients to pay for any transit service or shared mobility option, such as bikeshare and e-scooter. By removing financial barriers to transit options, the Universal Mobility Program will provide a positive impact on system-wide ridership across the various transit, micro-mobility, and rail operation services.

This will also serve as a valuable pilot to study ways to boost transit usage.

Together, these investments represent a critical investment in the future of West Oakland as part of a broader strategy to reverse historic disinvestment.

The REAP grant award follows the City’s successful application in early 2023 to secure $2.39 million from the state’s Pro-housing Incentive Pilot Program Grant. This $2.39 million has been committed to support new permanent affordable housing production and leverage additional State resources in summer 2023 funding opportunities. Oakland qualified for this Pro-housing grant when it became the first state designated Pro-housing city in the Bay Area in December 2022.

Bay Area

Renew your residential parking permit before July 1

Use our parking permit portal to renew your residential parking permit or sign up for a new one by June 30, when 2022-2023 permits expire. Starting July 1, you will need a 2023-2024 permit to avoid getting ticketed in Residential Preferential Parking (RPP) areas.

Published

3 months ago

June 25, 2023

Oakland Post

Renew online, in person, or by mail; existing permits expire June 30, 2023.

Use our parking permit portal to renew your residential parking permit or sign up for a new one by June 30, when 2022-2023 permits expire.

Starting July 1, you will need a 2023-2024 permit to avoid getting ticketed in Residential Preferential Parking (RPP) areas.

Residents with a 2023 permit should have received a renewal notice letter by May 1 with instructions. If you did not receive a notice, use the parking permit portal to renew an existing permit or apply for a new one.

If you do not renew your permit before July 1, 2023 you’ll need to submit a new permit application, including your photo ID and current vehicle registration.

Use our parking permit portal to renew your existing permit, apply for a new permit, or get one-day digital visitor permits. One-day digital visitor permits are valid for 24 hours from the time of activation. A hangtag visitor permit for a single day or 14 days can be purchased in person at the Customer Service Center.

RENEW YOUR PERMIT ONLINE

Most residents can use their existing login information to renew parking permits on the portal.

Some residents may need to use a link code from their renewal letter to renew their permits. If you lost the letter, request the code by calling 311 inside Berkeley limits or (510) 981-2489.

If your renewal has incorrect information, such as listing the wrong RPP area, use the portal to apply for a new permit online. Likewise, residents whose permits are labeled “Suspended” in the online portal must re-apply to verify residency.

New online applications will be approved in 5-7 business days, and you will receive a confirmation receipt via email when your application is submitted and again once it is approved. Permits are not valid until an application has been approved and payment is received.

RENEW BY MAIL OR IN-PERSON

To renew by mail, fill out the payment coupon included with your renewal letter, enclose payment by check or money order, and send it to the address listed in the letter, City of Berkeley RPP Permit Renewal, PO Box 29, Berkeley CA 94701.

To renew in person, bring your renewal letter to the Customer Service Center to complete the purchase.

In-person purchases may be completed by cash, check, money order, Visa, or Mastercard.

APPLY FOR A NEW PERMIT

If you need to re-apply for a permit, you may do so via the parking permit portal, in person, or by mail.

If applying by mail, download the application and mail the completed forms with your supporting documents and payment by check or money order to:

City of Berkeley Customer Service Center
1947 Center St, 1st floor
Monday – Thursday: 8:30 am – 4:00 pm

If applying in person, bring your proof of residency documents to the Customer Service Center to fill out an application and purchase a permit by cash, check, money order, Visa, or Mastercard.

Note that permits are not valid until an application has been approved and payment is received. A mailed application will take longer to process.

Online or in-person renewals are the safest ways to avoid a ticket.

ENFORCED THROUGH LICENSE PLATES, NOT STICKERS

Once your application has been approved, your license plate will be your permit. You will not receive a sticker in the mail.

Parking enforcement officers have been using license plate readers since 2016. This database is a closed system, not linked to any other database, such as DMV databases. Violation data is kept for one year. Our privacy policy is that no data is kept for more than 30 days unless we act, such as through a citation or violation found.

Be sure to renew your permit online, by mail, or in person by June 30.