The Talk of D.C.: Rumors Flying that Trump Admin Wants to Undo Bike Lanes in Capital - Streetsblog USA

"According to documents obtained by Streetsblog and interviews with several government employees, the Federal Highway Administration has been analyzing congestion patterns along several critical Washington D.C. corridors outfitted with bike lanes, with an eye towards an unspecified "reallocation" of lane space - which sources say likely means giving it back to drivers. (The FHWA acknowledged an inquiry from Streetsblog but did not provide a comment for this story.)"

"The analysis appears to rest on a series of dubious calculations that claim D.C. drivers are losing hundreds of thousands of hours per year in traffic along those corridors, with the implication that the bike lanes themselves are responsible for the gridlock. Even roadways that did not lose a full lane for car drivers when bike lanes were installed were listed as costing drivers hundreds of thousands of hours lost to additional traffic."

"The Federal Highway Administration's own website, though, notes that "studies have found that roadways did not experience an increase in crashes or congestion when travel lane widths were decreased to add a bicycle lane" (emphasis ours) - and experts say that even outright removing driving lanes to make space for other modes typically has a negligible impact on traffic for motorists, or even reduces congestion in some cases."

The Federal Highway Administration has analyzed congestion patterns along several Washington D.C. corridors outfitted with bike lanes and is considering reallocating lane space, likely returning it to drivers. The analysis uses calculations claiming D.C. drivers lose hundreds of thousands of hours per year in traffic along those corridors and attributes the delays to bike lanes. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy stated that adding bike lanes and removing vehicle lanes increases congestion. The FHWA's own website cites studies finding no increase in crashes or congestion when lane widths were decreased to add bicycle lanes. Experts say removing driving lanes often has negligible or reduced motorist congestion, and advocates warn that analysis ignores the broad benefits of bike lanes.

Read at Streetsblog