Breakfast links: Don't take this sitting down

by Stephen Miller • August 18, 2010 9:23 am

Photo by laffy4k on Flickr.

Comment on VDOT's proposed bike policy: The Virginia Department of Transportation has released a draft copy of Virginia's State Bicycle Policy Plan for public comment and input. Comments can be submitted via e-mail until September 17. (Virginia Bicycling Federation, Gavin)

Seatless subways: Following the lead of Boston's MBTA, the New York City subway and Houston's METRO have experimented with removing seats from train cars to maximize capacity. New York's experimental rail cars also include split stanchions, as suggested on this blog for Metro earlier this week. (Boston.com, Gothamist, neoHouston via Streetsblog.net, Matt')

Performance parking in the park: Yantai Park in China's Shangdong province has instituted a pay-to-sit scheme on some popular park benches. If a park patron does not pay up for their posterior, sharp spikes will poke them from the bench seat. Park officials were inspired by an installation by a German artist who was protesting the commercialization and indignities of modern life. (Orange News, Vimeo, AJ)

SmartBenefits in the bike lane: Responding to an inquiry on Twitter, Capital Bikeshare says that they are working to create a way for customers to use SmartBenefits to pay the service's annual membership fee. (Twitter, Gavin)

Empty seat on the board: In a letter to the Post, Metro board member Michael A. Brown explains his 52 absences from WMATA board meetings since being appointed as an alternate last year by citing his busy schedule as an elected official. Somehow the other elected officials on the board have figured out how to attend the meetings.

A founding father of Metro passes away: Cleatus E. Barnett, a Montgomery County Republican who was on the Metro board for 32 years and is credited with pushing extensions of the system into the county, has died. According to his obituary, when he used the system, he would write observations on trash, rude Metro workers and late trains in a small notebook. (Post)

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10 comments

Tags: bicycling, bike sharing, Boston, china, DC, Houston, links, Michael A Brown, Montgomery, New York, parks, performance parking, stanchions, vdot, virginia, WMATA, WMATA board

Stephen Miller lived in the District from 2008 to 2011 and is now a student at Pratt Institute's city and regional planning masters program.

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Michael Brown is an embarassment. He exemplifies what's wrong with the current WMATA Board: The political hacks love to promote the news that they're on the Board; they just don't like to actually show up and do any work.

Fire them all.

by Fritz on Aug 18, 2010 9:55 am

The transit benefits programs are in place to benefit public transit. The use of public money to subsidize bicycle programs of limited application is a waste of limited public resources.

by Interested on Aug 18, 2010 10:00 am

@Interested: IRS regulations allow employees to get up to something like $20 per month for expenses related to cycling to work. If an employer wishes, they can provide a tax-free subsidy. Or they could allow employees to take that out of their paychecks tax-free.

Oh, and if a cyclist uses that benefit, s/he cannot use a tax-free parking or transit benefit, under IRS regulations.

by Tim on Aug 18, 2010 10:17 am

Per @Tim's last point, this is an incredibly important (and unfair) rule.

The bicycle benefit is mutually exclusive, while the transit/parking can be combined. So your choice is $20 a month in bike benefits, or a combined $450 in transit/parking (up to $225 for each). Rep. Earl Blumenauer has been working to fix this for some time, but if you want to see how it all works at present, read USC 26 s132(f) (http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode26/usc_sec_26_00000132----000-.html)

Although, with Capital Bikeshare, DDOT/Arlington are introducing it as a mass transit system, so under one interpretation of the law, a company could provide memberships to employees under the existing "Mass Transit" provisions. I think it's unlikely to happen since no one likes to argue with the IRS if they can help it, but is there one brave company that will try it?

by wil on Aug 18, 2010 11:20 am

Mike Brown uses the hollow phrase that he takes full responsibility for his absence. What does that mean? It there any action related to taking that respnsibility? Cuz if not, then his words aren't worth the paper they were printed on.

by Jasper on Aug 18, 2010 11:47 am

Can WMATA please incorporate the bench spikes into the new Metro cars? That way the people who always whine about having seats on railcars getting a seat can put their money where their mouths (or behinds) are.

by dcd on Aug 18, 2010 11:57 am

It's truly amazing that while other busy transit systems are taking (seemingly obvious) measures to increase capacity, we have just decided to order a bunch of new cars with the seating configuration that offers the least possible capacity.

by Jamie on Aug 18, 2010 12:17 pm

Bending over backwards to give Michael Brown every benefit of the doubt, in light of his statement explaining(and taking responsibility for) missing so many Board meetings, I agree that clearly he has too much on his plate. I am sure he wants to serve the citizens of the District in his elected position to his best ability, so why doesn't he resign from the Metro Board and focus on his Council duties?

Let's thank him for his service as he makes way for the appointment of a Metro board member who can give it the attention it deserves?

by ZZinDC on Aug 18, 2010 4:37 pm

Anyone who has seen Bixi in Montreal -- the same system Capital Bikeshare will be using -- would not call bike sharing a "program of limited application." Until my recent visit to Montreal I had major doubts about bike sharing, but now I'm a convert. Bixi bikes are everywhere in Montreal and it's no hyperbole to call them a revolution in mobility. I hope the program will expand into Alexandria and more sites in Arlington and DC so I'll be able to make regular use of it.

by jimble on Aug 18, 2010 6:48 pm

Vince Gray recently held an event at the Wilson Building celebrating Michael Brown's legacy or something like that.

It is obvious Michael Brown's legacy is twofold: an empty suit...and an empty seat.

by Not fooled on Aug 19, 2010 8:31 am