There’s been a lot of construction on Constitution Avenue in
downtown DC this fall. Constitution is a
6-8 lane thoroughfare through the heart of DC that runs along the north side of
the National Mall. It always has lots of
traffic. A lovely section of
Constitution is part of my ride home every day.
These days there are at least 2 lane closures and slow moving traffic
through most of the day.
When construction started I looked for other routes to avoid
this really busy street with all the construction, but finally decided that it
made sense to just do like I normally do and blend in with traffic. I was pleasantly surprised to find that riding
through the construction zone was unusually pleasant. Basically I’m moving the same speed as
traffic. I could move a lot faster, but
I tend not to do that. I know it pisses
people off. Nowhere I’m going is that
important, so just blending with traffic and enjoying the day seemed to be the
best way to be me.
I get great reactions.
People roll down the window to ask about the cargo bike. They ask where I’m going and what I’m
hauling. I get asked why I’m not riding
on the sidewalk or weaving through traffic.
Plenty of folks just roll by without reacting. I get a few people who playfully honk at the “Honk
if You’re Horny” sign on the back of the bike.
The odd thing is that I’ve had no-one be particularly
obnoxious. Certainly people always run
the red light for turning left onto 15th. People will always do stupid things like that…
I just relax and adjust.
After traveling about ½ mile on Constitution I turn onto
Virginia Ave and all bets are off. Once
people are out of the construction zone and are able to go back to their usual
speed, they go back to their somewhat less pleasant and cautious driving. Most people speed and run lights. There’s lots of non-playful honking and
generally an attitude that being at the front of the line is the most important
thing. Basically things go back to the rat
race. I just roll through and do my own
thing… dodging cars, taxis and buses.
I now find that I enjoy the Constitution Avenue part of my
commute. Hopefully they keep the
construction going for a few more months.
I like what it does to people… myself included. :D
Rock on!
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