Tag Archives: Cars

January 11, 2011 · 10:00 am

Georgetown By the Numbers: Transportation

A while ago, GM wrote about the car situation in Georgetown and argued that a small amount of residents were having an outsized impact on the supply of cars in the neighborhood. In writing this article, GM relied on the census data from 2000. Now that the American Community Survey five-year estimates are out, GM can circle back and see whether the stats he relied on are still holding up.

So without further ado, here’s how Georgetown gets around:

Car Ownership

When GM first looked into this, GM found a surprising amount of households in Georgetown without any cars. That number has increased.

Here are the numbers from 2000:

  • Total Households without any car: 20%
  • Total Households with just one car: 57%
  • Total Households with two or more cars: 23%

Here are what the ACS was the average from 2005-2009:

  • Total Households without any car: 22%
  • Total Households with just one car: 50%
  • Total Households with two or more cars: 28% Continue reading →

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December 16, 2010 · 10:00 am

Terrible Twos: The Second Most Popular Story

This week in celebration of the Georgetown Metropolitan’s second anniversary, GM is counting down the five most popular articles from last year.

Today: Adorable Car Accident on 30th St.

On a lazy Thursday in the middle of June, GM hopped off the D2 and came across the scene above. It’s a tiny vintage Fiat 500 sitting in a flower bed. From what GM could gather from the witnesses, the empty car, which was parked up the street, had suddenly broken free and started careening down the block, finally jumping the curb and landing in the flower bed. Continue reading →

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September 9, 2009 · 10:00 am

The Great Georgetown Bugaboo Part II: How We Really Get There From Here

Last week GM explored the question of cars and parking in Georgetown by digging into the Census records to determine what the actual car ownership levels are in Georgetown. The somewhat surprising results demonstrated that the parking problem in Georgetown may be caused more by multi-car households than it is caused by a density of residents. This week GM looks into what we do (or don’t do) with those cars every morning.

GM first started thinking about these questions after the last ANC meeting. At one point Commissioner Bill Skelsey argued that when he has to drive around for a half an hour at the end of the day looking for parking, that’s time he can’t spend with his kids (a point made in critique of a proposed curb cut). GM left the meeting wondering: is that the experience of most Georgetowners, or is Skelsey a minority? Should the ANC be worried about Georgetowners spending time away from their loved ones while circling around the block, or do most of us get to work some other way?

The interesting results after the jump: Continue reading →

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September 4, 2009 · 9:00 am

The Great Georgetown Bugaboo: Cars and Parking

At Monday’s ANC meeting there was a near constant theme that weaves itself through just about every ANC2E meeting: cars and parking. It is the received wisdom that parking is a scarce commodity in Georgetown that needs to be defended against all threats of a cut in supply or an increase in demand.

For instance, on Monday night a resident came applying for permission to construct a basement exit to her house. The conversation soon turned to how many square feet the butler’s pantry was in the basement. What does that have to do with a basement exit you ask? A basement with a kitchen and an exit could be turned into a completely separate basement apartment. And in the minds of Commissioners, and many residents, another apartment means another car and another car means one fewer parking spot.

This is how the great Georgetown bugaboo, cars and parking, guides many of the decisions of our elected officials.

But are they basing their decisions on a fair picture of the neighborhood or are they letting their own flawed perceptions and the voices of a loud minority guide them?

GM dug into the numbers and found that the true picture of cars in Georgetown is complicated. The problem is felt by fewer than you’d think and the bulk of the problem may come from the choices of surprisingly few. Find out why after the jump.

Continue reading →

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June 4, 2009 · 9:27 pm

Crosstown Traffic: The Georgetown Transportation Study

Sometime in the dark and misty days of Georgetown pre-the Georgetown Metropolitan (i.e. last July), DDOT issued a report of its study on transportation issues in Georgetown. GM followed the study and report closely and wants to take this opportunity to discuss some of the study’s short term and long term recommendations.

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