Well, it looks as though the public might receive what it requested—new Capital Bikeshare locations spread across all eight city wards. The District Department of Transportation proposes to install the popular red bikes at 54 locations over a three month period beginning in January. Doing so will increase the number of CaBi stations in D.C. by 40 percent. The regional bikesharing system now has 138 stations in D.C., 45 in Arlington and eight in Alexandria, with Montgomery County joining the system soon.
The DowntownDC BID area will likely get six stations at the following locations:
- 5th Street and Massachusetts Avenue
- 8th and D streets
- 11th and K streets
- 11th and F streets
- 2nd Street and Constitution Avenue
- 6th Street and Indiana Avenue
A location is also planned for G Street at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library (901 G Street) in the next round of new station installations. For now, all additional bikes will be placed in both new and existing bikeshare neighborhoods citywide, with the downtown a favored location to receive more CaBi stations. According to DDOT, for every “expansion” station created, the city also needs additional spaces in downtown to keep up with demand.
Since 2010, the public has suggested 78 locations where the bikes could potentially be placed. DDOT prioritized the locations based on criteria such as population density and proximity to Metro. The 24 locations not selected in this round will be considered for the next one. Click here to view the proposed locations. To share your comments, send an e-mail to ddot.bikshare@dc.gov by January 15.