On another (kind of) related note, has anyone else had problems getting a cab to take you home (if you live around H Street)? I'm up on K, and have gotten the occasional "I don't go there" from the cabbie.
I argue it out with them if I'm up for it - "Oh yes, legally you do go there." (I've lived in other areas where this happened like Barracks Row back in the mid 90s and have had to deal with this before.) But I've also backed down when I'm just too tired for the battle.
What's the best solution? Any suggestions? Call the cops? The 311 number? Is there a cab commission number you can threaten to call from your cell?
Just wondering how everyone else deals with this discriminatory and illegal cabbie practice.
Limousine Liberals? While that is cute, it's not really fair. Public transit in DC doesn't work in all situations. H Street NE is a prime example. It's unrealistic to think people are going to schlep to the Atlas, for instance, on a bus that may take them an extra 30 minutes each way, and it may not run late enough to pick them up.
As for cabbies refusing runs, I don't allow them the chance. I always get in first, then announce my destination. If they refuse, I let them know that I plan on sitting right there in the cab until I arrive either at my destination or the nearest police station. Their choice.
re cabs: it is my understanding that once you are IN the cab the driver has to take you to your house/destination. I always get in first and then tell the cab driver where we're going. I've gotten some snarky looks, but have never been refused service. Now, getting cabs to GET me from my house when I call is an entirely different story.....
I've been kicked out of cabs that don't want to go to Trinidad, but only pushed the issue once. That guy ended up scaring the hell out of me, and as a single woman, I did NOT want him having any clue where I lived. I got out at the gas station at the corner of Staples and Florida and hung with the guys drinking out of paper bags until the driver was long gone. I won't do that again. I'd rather just give my business to someone else.
I've complained to the cab comission about drivers who kick me out. That's a total joke.
I've also had drivers threaten to report me to the police because I would only pay for two zones, which is all I'm supposed to. At least there, I stick firm and say go ahead. But at that point, i just pay the fare with no tip.
And that doesn't even start with the drivers who think because I'm white they can say the most vile racist things about my neighbors. I don't tip them either.
And lest you think I'm cheap, I tip the drivers who don't say racist things and take me home without argument about 5 dollars on top of the fare. I just hardly ever have to do it.
I don't know what the solution is, but I wish i did.
I know exactly what the solution is. A medallion system. NYC uses a system where there are only a certain number of cab licenses given out. You literally get a medallion that is placed on the outside of your cab. You have to earn it.
They are highly prized commodities. And complaints against cabbies there are taken VERY seriously, as they view the cab system as an integral part of the public transit system. DC, unfortunately, views it as a 'make work' program for those that may not have any other marketable skills.
If a cabbie knew he would lose his medallion for crappy behavior he'd either quit the behavior or lose his medallion. Either way, problem solved.
Taxi reform is WAY overdue in DC.
We need the medallion system.
We need real, verifiable taxi driver training (I'm often stunned by how few taxi drivers in DC know anything about the city.... many literally can't get you to the Capitol..... you know, the shiny building in the center of town....).
We need a real complaint system (if I recall right, NYC has a direct dial number, like 911, that you can call immediately when a cabbie is refusing you service, etc. We need the same system.
Until we get serious about cab reform, we're always going to have the pathetic service we have now.
I agree with the guy/girl who made a comment about biking. Too many people are dependent on their cars and cabs and other personal modes of transportation... it's incredibly selfish. The X2 runs frequently and often, also bikes and walking are a great way to get down H Street. I couldn't believe that the guy on 3rd and H wouldn't just walk a mile to the Atlas District. People are really getting lazy, and irresposnibly fat, in this country... and then they complain about the rising costs of healthcare. There are ways to improve your health, improve the environment and build community - GET OUT OF YOUR CARS AND WALK (or bike, or bus, or metro)!
I live on the west end of Hst NE. If it is daytime I walk to the Argonaut. If it is night time, I cab there. It is a safty issue, not a lazy issue. Hst NE will never be a great place if people do not feel comfortable walking the street.
A meter system or a computerized in-cab zone meter is needed in DC.
I live off of Benning Road and I feel perfectly comfortable walking H Street at all hours of day or night. If I ever feel unsafe, I might hop onto the X2, but I generally feel that many people are unjustifiably "scared", which of course is a self-perpetuating cycle of fear. I still believe that personal transport (cabs or cars) are unnecessary in many cases, particularly when going the same route as a public transportation option.
Sure, walking is a good alternative IF the streets are safe. But they are not. Are they safer than they used to be? Yes. But most people still feel hesitant about walking H Street at night. And I think that's a justifiable hesitation.
And biking.... where are we supposed to put our bikes when we get to our destination? Is there even one secure bike lock facility anywhere on H?
And some of us aren't as young as we used to be, and others amongst us have various health conditions. Walking a mile isn't an option for a lot of people. Neither is biking, especially in inclement weather.
if people feel "unjustifiably scared", it's not because they're paranoid freaks.
it's because of incidents that actually happen.
subscribe to crimereports to see.
personally, i think some of the folks on this group are feeling "unjustifiably comfy" with the situation on H street. and until you look reality in the face, it's a long battle uphill to get things where they oughta be: SAFE.
i think it's mostly the younger, hippie-do's that chirp about bikes and rollerblading up and down h street at midnight without a care in the world.....
Anonymous (one of several, I assume, unless Anonymous has a split personality):
I agree with your post in several respects. I think a good many people newly enthralled with H Street have an unrealistic idea about safety issues. There is still very real crime in this area, both on and off of H Street.
I used to be fairly cavalier about DC street crime when I first moved here. But a gun held to my genitals (ironically, by neighbors whose housing I was paying for in a nearby public housing complex) soon gave me a new awareness that it's not all light and goodness out there.
While walking and bus service are admirable goals, I too am a bit sick of people demanding that these are options EVERYONE must use in all circumstances.
A lot of us live a fair distance from H, or at least from the East end of H. I'm simply not going to walk 15 blocks to go to dinner or a club, whilst literally risking life and limb. If that makes me elitist or an environment-hater, so be it.
But I will cop to hating parts of the environment. Specifically, cumulus clouds. All puffy and fluffy. I've always hated them more than any other cloud type....
I've lived 2 blocks off of H, near 14th St, for three years. People who walk around H St NE "at all hours of the day and night" unafraid are just asking for trouble. I won't walk two blocks home from the Argo after 10 p.m. H St is a high-crime area of a high-crime city. Ignoring that doesn't make it untrue.
I like the community a lot pretending that it's safe for solo midnightt is foolish. And kind of suicidal.
I don't think it's 'hippie-do' to suggest biking down H Street. H is pretty well traveled, esp. on the weekends. The side streets may be more dangerous for walking, since there are less people on them. But biking? Are muggers really going to chase you down H Street? Get real.
Bikes can be locked to meters with a U-lock or to the fence around Argonaut. They could be taken, sure, but so can your car. And which is more of a pain to replace?
One last thing. I've been to lots of the new bars on H and I've seen maybe 2 or 3 people that couldn't walk a mile. Almost everyone can walk a mile. Come on. Or at least bike a mile. The best thing about living near H is that it is accessable without a car. It's the greatest thing about city life. Try it and you'll see why we all left the suburbs.
I'm 40 and far from a hippie-do (if I understand the term correctly) and have ridden my bike up and down H Street day and night for the past 8 years. Bikes are a very safe way to go, in terms of crime (road safety is a completely different matter). It's kind of hard for someone to sneak up on you when you are on a bike and it's pretty easy to outrun anyone who tries.
Hey everyone, I would just like to say that the gate around our patio at the ARGONAUT is a perfect place to lock up your bikes. On Friday and Saturdays the Hst entrance to the Argonaut is locked for a few reasons. 1. locking one entrance gives us a chance to see who is entering the establishment and check id's. 2. It gives us the opertunity to have a door staff outside over seeing the patio and preventing the unwanted pan handler, and watching bikes that might be locked up. 3. It pushes all the smokers to the patio side, where there is alot more space. 4. It gives everyone who hasn't been to Argo a chance to see the patio on the walk in!!
We are still looking for old board games.
Also The Argonaut will not be opening until 6pm on Sunday. We would like to wish everyone a happy holiday.
do i live in bizarro world or do you guys only take the x2 at rush hour? particularly at late hours, the x2 is TERRIBLY unreliable. i have experienced it being between 20-30 minutes late on at least half a dozen occasions in the past 3 years. as for safety, in 3 years of riding the x2 at ALL HOURS (from early morning rush hour to early morning drunk hour), i have NEVER seen anyone assaulted. i have seen verbal altercations where people are yelled/cursed at, but never any physical contact/robberies. I'm sure it happens, but I've never seen it. The main problems I see are occasionally sitting next to smelly people, noise, and weird things dripping from the ceiling (could be water, could be some weird unknown toxic fluid...lol). The floors are almost always dirty or littered, at all hours seemingly (less so during the day than at night though)
I may be wrong, but isn't locking bikes to meters technically illegal?
As for the Argo fence, that's nice but it's hardly a solution for the entire strip.
And, no, I don't feel comfortable leaving my bike locked to the Argos fence while I go to the Atlas or somewhere else, possibly blocks away. I'm assuming Argo assumes no legal liability for your bike left locked on their fence.
Also, I hate to be this way, but all it takes is one neighbor's complaint about bikes locked on a fence in public space and that's no longer an option. This being Capitol Hill, such a complaint is only a matter of time.
As for safety, I'm not concerned about my safety on the bike, from muggers. I'm concerned that my bike will be stolen.
And I'm not sure you'd really want to rely on a random sampling of Argo customers to determine that everyone interested in H Street is in prime biking or walking condition.
For instance, the Atlas is going to draw a much older crowd for a lot of their more cerebral events.
Yes, I'm of an age where I could walk a mile. But I'm not going to. And I can hardly see dressing up for the Atlas or dinner out and then hopping on a bike. That may be fine for a boozy bar night out, but for anything else it doesn't really work well.
And, of course, you're forgetting inclement weather, the fact that you can't carry groceries on a bike, etc.
Couple of things: 1. We should make sure we get some bike racks on H Street when they do the streetscape stuff. 2.Stuff can, and does happen at night (and sometimes during the day). You best bet if walking is to walk in groups. Also, please don't be like the girl I recently saw walking down H Street (she was dressed up for a night out) and talking very loudly into her cell phone about how the cabby had dropped her off on the wrong block and she had absolutely no idea in which direction the bar might be located (don't worry, the story ends not with her getting mugged, but with us stopping her and walking her to the Hotel since we were already headed to the Argonaut). Exercise some common sense. It won't save you everytime, but it can't hurt.
Off topic, sortof, but the Washington Business Journal's last issue ran a story about two new H St businesses that I haven't heard anything else about. 1015 Napa, a sit down restaurant.... I'm assuming at 1015 H but I don't know that for sure, and Liquid, in the same vicinity.
Anybody know more about this? The 1015 Napa sounds promising.
A couple of things: --bikeracks are supposed to be installed in a uniform fashion as part of the streetscape project. --there are way too many "dead" spots (bad lighting, little activity) along the Western end of H Street to safely walk at night to/from the Atlas district. Being able to walk a mile has nothing to do with it. --1015 Napa is indeed at 1015 H Street, and Liquid is near 9th & H Street (as I recall). Both are sitdown restaurants and were supported by both ANC 6A & 6C.
Anybody know exactly how many hack inspectors there are in DC. I vaguely recall Mayor Williams making a big to-do about doubling the number of inspectors. Then people found out he doubled them from 3 to 6, all to handle however many hundreds of taxis that ply the streets
My neighbor and I biked down Sat night for some beers at the Pug. Bike racks were great. And with the new smoking laws, there are always people out front, discouraging theft. Bikes were still there when we left many hours later. And no hassle of hunting for a cab, waiting on a bus, or attempting (stupidly) to drive after downing a few beers.
30 comments:
i live near 3rd and H, and have only walked down to the atlas district once in two years.
normally i drive.
why anyone else would take a cab or a bus is beyone me.
How about not wanting to drink alcohol and drive? Is that concept beyond you?
Bike is the way to go. Biking drunk will only kill you.
i don't have to worry about driving drunk.
my girlfriend doesn't drink. it's a sweet deal. everyone should have one! ;op
It says something alright: It says that DC is full of Limousine Liberals who consider public transportation below them.
I'm at the West end of H too, and the X2 is fine with me. Even going downtown, it's much quicker and [marginally] cheaper than metro.
On the other hand, taking one of the 90 series to Adams Morgan takes for-eh-vah...
On another (kind of) related note, has anyone else had problems getting a cab to take you home (if you live around H Street)? I'm up on K, and have gotten the occasional "I don't go there" from the cabbie.
I argue it out with them if I'm up for it - "Oh yes, legally you do go there." (I've lived in other areas where this happened like Barracks Row back in the mid 90s and have had to deal with this before.) But I've also backed down when I'm just too tired for the battle.
What's the best solution? Any suggestions? Call the cops? The 311 number? Is there a cab commission number you can threaten to call from your cell?
Just wondering how everyone else deals with this discriminatory and illegal cabbie practice.
Limousine Liberals? While that is cute, it's not really fair. Public transit in DC doesn't work in all situations. H Street NE is a prime example. It's unrealistic to think people are going to schlep to the Atlas, for instance, on a bus that may take them an extra 30 minutes each way, and it may not run late enough to pick them up.
As for cabbies refusing runs, I don't allow them the chance. I always get in first, then announce my destination. If they refuse, I let them know that I plan on sitting right there in the cab until I arrive either at my destination or the nearest police station. Their choice.
re cabs: it is my understanding that once you are IN the cab the driver has to take you to your house/destination. I always get in first and then tell the cab driver where we're going. I've gotten some snarky looks, but have never been refused service. Now, getting cabs to GET me from my house when I call is an entirely different story.....
I've been kicked out of cabs that don't want to go to Trinidad, but only pushed the issue once. That guy ended up scaring the hell out of me, and as a single woman, I did NOT want him having any clue where I lived. I got out at the gas station at the corner of Staples and Florida and hung with the guys drinking out of paper bags until the driver was long gone. I won't do that again. I'd rather just give my business to someone else.
I've complained to the cab comission about drivers who kick me out. That's a total joke.
I've also had drivers threaten to report me to the police because I would only pay for two zones, which is all I'm supposed to. At least there, I stick firm and say go ahead. But at that point, i just pay the fare with no tip.
And that doesn't even start with the drivers who think because I'm white they can say the most vile racist things about my neighbors. I don't tip them either.
And lest you think I'm cheap, I tip the drivers who don't say racist things and take me home without argument about 5 dollars on top of the fare. I just hardly ever have to do it.
I don't know what the solution is, but I wish i did.
I know exactly what the solution is. A medallion system. NYC uses a system where there are only a certain number of cab licenses given out. You literally get a medallion that is placed on the outside of your cab. You have to earn it.
They are highly prized commodities. And complaints against cabbies there are taken VERY seriously, as they view the cab system as an integral part of the public transit system. DC, unfortunately, views it as a 'make work' program for those that may not have any other marketable skills.
If a cabbie knew he would lose his medallion for crappy behavior he'd either quit the behavior or lose his medallion. Either way, problem solved.
Taxi reform is WAY overdue in DC.
We need the medallion system.
We need real, verifiable taxi driver training (I'm often stunned by how few taxi drivers in DC know anything about the city.... many literally can't get you to the Capitol..... you know, the shiny building in the center of town....).
We need a real complaint system (if I recall right, NYC has a direct dial number, like 911, that you can call immediately when a cabbie is refusing you service, etc. We need the same system.
Until we get serious about cab reform, we're always going to have the pathetic service we have now.
I agree with the guy/girl who made a comment about biking. Too many people are dependent on their cars and cabs and other personal modes of transportation... it's incredibly selfish. The X2 runs frequently and often, also bikes and walking are a great way to get down H Street. I couldn't believe that the guy on 3rd and H wouldn't just walk a mile to the Atlas District. People are really getting lazy, and irresposnibly fat, in this country... and then they complain about the rising costs of healthcare. There are ways to improve your health, improve the environment and build community - GET OUT OF YOUR CARS AND WALK (or bike, or bus, or metro)!
I live on the west end of Hst NE. If it is daytime I walk to the Argonaut. If it is night time, I cab there. It is a safty issue, not a lazy issue. Hst NE will never be a great place if people do not feel comfortable walking the street.
A meter system or a computerized in-cab zone meter is needed in DC.
I live off of Benning Road and I feel perfectly comfortable walking H Street at all hours of day or night. If I ever feel unsafe, I might hop onto the X2, but I generally feel that many people are unjustifiably "scared", which of course is a self-perpetuating cycle of fear. I still believe that personal transport (cabs or cars) are unnecessary in many cases, particularly when going the same route as a public transportation option.
Sure, walking is a good alternative IF the streets are safe. But they are not. Are they safer than they used to be? Yes. But most people still feel hesitant about walking H Street at night. And I think that's a justifiable hesitation.
And biking.... where are we supposed to put our bikes when we get to our destination? Is there even one secure bike lock facility anywhere on H?
And some of us aren't as young as we used to be, and others amongst us have various health conditions. Walking a mile isn't an option for a lot of people. Neither is biking, especially in inclement weather.
if people feel "unjustifiably scared", it's not because they're paranoid freaks.
it's because of incidents that actually happen.
subscribe to crimereports to see.
personally, i think some of the folks on this group are feeling "unjustifiably comfy" with the situation on H street. and until you look reality in the face, it's a long battle uphill to get things where they oughta be: SAFE.
i think it's mostly the younger, hippie-do's that chirp about bikes and rollerblading up and down h street at midnight without a care in the world.....
Anonymous (one of several, I assume, unless Anonymous has a split personality):
I agree with your post in several respects. I think a good many people newly enthralled with H Street have an unrealistic idea about safety issues. There is still very real crime in this area, both on and off of H Street.
I used to be fairly cavalier about DC street crime when I first moved here. But a gun held to my genitals (ironically, by neighbors whose housing I was paying for in a nearby public housing complex) soon gave me a new awareness that it's not all light and goodness out there.
While walking and bus service are admirable goals, I too am a bit sick of people demanding that these are options EVERYONE must use in all circumstances.
A lot of us live a fair distance from H, or at least from the East end of H. I'm simply not going to walk 15 blocks to go to dinner or a club, whilst literally risking life and limb. If that makes me elitist or an environment-hater, so be it.
But I will cop to hating parts of the environment. Specifically, cumulus clouds. All puffy and fluffy. I've always hated them more than any other cloud type....
I've lived 2 blocks off of H, near 14th St, for three years. People who walk around H St NE "at all hours of the day and night" unafraid are just asking for trouble. I won't walk two blocks home from the Argo after 10 p.m. H St is a high-crime area of a high-crime city. Ignoring that doesn't make it untrue.
I like the community a lot pretending that it's safe for solo midnightt is foolish. And kind of suicidal.
I don't think it's 'hippie-do' to suggest biking down H Street. H is pretty well traveled, esp. on the weekends. The side streets may be more dangerous for walking, since there are less people on them. But biking? Are muggers really going to chase you down H Street? Get real.
Bikes can be locked to meters with a U-lock or to the fence around Argonaut. They could be taken, sure, but so can your car. And which is more of a pain to replace?
One last thing. I've been to lots of the new bars on H and I've seen maybe 2 or 3 people that couldn't walk a mile. Almost everyone can walk a mile. Come on. Or at least bike a mile. The best thing about living near H is that it is accessable without a car. It's the greatest thing about city life. Try it and you'll see why we all left the suburbs.
I'm 40 and far from a hippie-do (if I understand the term correctly) and have ridden my bike up and down H Street day and night for the past 8 years. Bikes are a very safe way to go, in terms of crime (road safety is a completely different matter). It's kind of hard for someone to sneak up on you when you are on a bike and it's pretty easy to outrun anyone who tries.
Just my .02
Hey everyone, I would just like to say that the gate around our patio at the ARGONAUT is a perfect place to lock up your bikes. On Friday and Saturdays the Hst entrance to the Argonaut is locked for a few reasons.
1. locking one entrance gives us a chance to see who is entering the establishment and check id's.
2. It gives us the opertunity to have a door staff outside over seeing the patio and preventing the unwanted pan handler, and watching bikes that might be locked up.
3. It pushes all the smokers to the patio side, where there is alot more space.
4. It gives everyone who hasn't been to Argo a chance to see the patio on the walk in!!
We are still looking for old board games.
Also The Argonaut will not be opening until 6pm on Sunday. We would like to wish everyone a happy holiday.
that last posting was really silly.
obviously someone that hasn't really experienced life as much as some of us 30 somethings.
do i live in bizarro world or do you guys only take the x2 at rush hour? particularly at late hours, the x2 is TERRIBLY unreliable. i have experienced it being between 20-30 minutes late on at least half a dozen occasions in the past 3 years. as for safety, in 3 years of riding the x2 at ALL HOURS (from early morning rush hour to early morning drunk hour), i have NEVER seen anyone assaulted. i have seen verbal altercations where people are yelled/cursed at, but never any physical contact/robberies. I'm sure it happens, but I've never seen it. The main problems I see are occasionally sitting next to smelly people, noise, and weird things dripping from the ceiling (could be water, could be some weird unknown toxic fluid...lol). The floors are almost always dirty or littered, at all hours seemingly (less so during the day than at night though)
I may be wrong, but isn't locking bikes to meters technically illegal?
As for the Argo fence, that's nice but it's hardly a solution for the entire strip.
And, no, I don't feel comfortable leaving my bike locked to the Argos fence while I go to the Atlas or somewhere else, possibly blocks away. I'm assuming Argo assumes no legal liability for your bike left locked on their fence.
Also, I hate to be this way, but all it takes is one neighbor's complaint about bikes locked on a fence in public space and that's no longer an option. This being Capitol Hill, such a complaint is only a matter of time.
As for safety, I'm not concerned about my safety on the bike, from muggers. I'm concerned that my bike will be stolen.
And I'm not sure you'd really want to rely on a random sampling of Argo customers to determine that everyone interested in H Street is in prime biking or walking condition.
For instance, the Atlas is going to draw a much older crowd for a lot of their more cerebral events.
Yes, I'm of an age where I could walk a mile. But I'm not going to. And I can hardly see dressing up for the Atlas or dinner out and then hopping on a bike. That may be fine for a boozy bar night out, but for anything else it doesn't really work well.
And, of course, you're forgetting inclement weather, the fact that you can't carry groceries on a bike, etc.
Couple of things:
1. We should make sure we get some bike racks on H Street when they do the streetscape stuff.
2.Stuff can, and does happen at night (and sometimes during the day). You best bet if walking is to walk in groups. Also, please don't be like the girl I recently saw walking down H Street (she was dressed up for a night out) and talking very loudly into her cell phone about how the cabby had dropped her off on the wrong block and she had absolutely no idea in which direction the bar might be located (don't worry, the story ends not with her getting mugged, but with us stopping her and walking her to the Hotel since we were already headed to the Argonaut). Exercise some common sense. It won't save you everytime, but it can't hurt.
Off topic, sortof, but the Washington Business Journal's last issue ran a story about two new H St businesses that I haven't heard anything else about. 1015 Napa, a sit down restaurant.... I'm assuming at 1015 H but I don't know that for sure, and Liquid, in the same vicinity.
Anybody know more about this? The 1015 Napa sounds promising.
A couple of things:
--bikeracks are supposed to be installed in a uniform fashion as part of the streetscape project.
--there are way too many "dead" spots (bad lighting, little activity) along the Western end of H Street to safely walk at night to/from the Atlas district. Being able to walk a mile has nothing to do with it.
--1015 Napa is indeed at 1015 H Street, and Liquid is near 9th & H Street (as I recall). Both are sitdown restaurants and were supported by both ANC 6A & 6C.
Best,
Alan Kimber
ANC Commissioner, 6C05
Liquid is 914.
Anybody know exactly how many hack inspectors there are in DC. I vaguely recall Mayor Williams making a big to-do about doubling the number of inspectors. Then people found out he doubled them from 3 to 6, all to handle however many hundreds of taxis that ply the streets
There are bike racks in front of Palace/Red and Black, installed several weeks ago.
My neighbor and I biked down Sat night for some beers at the Pug. Bike racks were great. And with the new smoking laws, there are always people out front, discouraging theft. Bikes were still there when we left many hours later. And no hassle of hunting for a cab, waiting on a bus, or attempting (stupidly) to drive after downing a few beers.
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