Media Alert: Monday, Oct. 26, 2021
Contact: Nick DelleDonne, delledonne.n@comcast.net , 703 929 6656
DDOT Director Faces Questions on Transparency, Bike Safety, More
Council Confirmation Hearing, Today, Oct. 26
The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) has faced an avalanche of criticism as Acting Director Everett Lott comes to the DC Council for his confirmation hearing on Tuesday, October 26 at noon before Councilmember Mary Cheh's Committee on Transportation and the Environment.
Tune in to the Hearing at noon, here:
http://dc.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?publish_id=87
Criticism ranges from DDOT's kneecapping of community engagement across the city (in the name of more bicycle lanes and safety), to Vision Zero's apparent failure, noted in a Washington Post editorial as “the number of people killed in traffic incidents increased year over year in five of the six years since the program’s start,” ( https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/10/07/vision-zero-traffic-deaths-washington-dc-get-serious/) 64 witnesses have signed up for testimony.
Among them are representatives of the newly formed city-wide Coalition on DDOT Bike Plans, which is a direct result of DDOT's aggressive push to force protected bike lanes (PBLs) into communities around the city and the problems they cause, including confusion and a hardship for businesses dependent on timely deliveries. On 17th St., in East Dupont Circle, 24 merchants signed a letter asking for a public presentation of the confusing and reckless DDOT plan. A petition with 750 signers calls for a comprehensive review of the Plan..
Mayor Muriel Bowser has double downed in her support of DDOT's policies. Two weeks ago, she appeared with Director Lott at a press event in northeast to announce a program to expedite and streamline implementation of DDOT safety programs, including PBLs. Both said that community engagement would be cut back as too time-consuming.
ANC 3E (Friendship Heights, Tenleytown, AU Park) passed a detailed resolution critical of DDOT's actions ( https://bit.ly/3kTsz31 ). The explanation that Councilmember Cheh asked Director Lott for will presumably come at the hearing.
The citizen Coalition, which includes Dupont Circle, Glover Park, Burlieth, Columbia Heights, Shaw, Capitol Hill East, K & First Streets, NW, and Ivy City, is finally convincing Acting Director Lott to defend DDOT. Last week he told a Coalition partner that he is willing to hold a town hall on DDOT's bike plans within a month.
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10/26/21, 08:49:34 AM |
