We’ve gotten several reports of D.C. police issuing tickets to bicyclists going the wrong way down one-way portions of New Hampshire Avenue NW near the intersection of 16th and U Streets yesterday and this morning.

A bystander took a picture of about 10 cyclists being ticketed north of the intersection at about 9 a.m. this morning:

We’ve heard the tickets came with a $25 fine. A police spokesperson said he hadn’t heard of any enforcement effort, but is currently checking into it. The ticketing effort comes about two weeks after the tragic death of cyclist Alice Swanson in Dupont Circle; it can’t be said enough that Swanson appears to have broken no laws when she was struck by a private trash truck, but the incident focused attention on issues of bike safety and road-sharing.

If you saw the ticketing or, gasp, got a ticket, tell us in the comments.

Flickr photo by p373

UPDATE, 1:05 P.M.: Pete Welsch, who lives near the intersection, is the fellow who took the photo. He calls in to report that police were waving down cyclists as they approached the 16th-and-U intersection from the north. “People were whipping out camera phones and things like that,” he says.

I’m probably the last person to see this, but I still think it’s worth posting. This video provides enough reason for people to use better bike locks (and use them correctly).

It boggles my mind how all you District dwellers don’t appreciate the scenery around here. Yes, I’m a recent transplant to D.C., and to the East Coast in general, so my sense of newness really helps the amazement of seeing the beautiful architecture and famous buildings and monuments. But let me tell you, on my drives up and down Interstate 5 in Seattle, not once in two years did I glance at the skyline, see the Space Needle, and not feel amazed. Every single time I saw that World’s Fair monstrosity hovering over the Seattle Center area, I felt a tinge of excitement. “I LIVE in Seattle,” I’d say to myself with a bit of a smile. “I live in Seattle!”

Almost every day since I moved, I’ve caught myself in a moment of equal amazement. I watched the fireworks from the Iwo Jima memorial and said to a date, “I live in D.C. I’m watching fireworks in the capital!” While on another date Thursday night, a guy and I took a stroll by the White House, the Mall and over to the Jefferson Memorial. I felt the little-kid giddiness start to swell up in my chest, and I asked him if we could pause to look at everything and take it in. He humored me, and I think I perplexed him with the huge grin plastered on my face. I went to a Nationals game Saturday night and saw the Washington Monument in the distance. “Holy crap!” I said to my group. “We’re in Washington, D.C.! Do you see that?!”

Each person I was with had the same sort of reaction: “Huh. I guess I’m jaded.” To which I’d say something like, “Really, how cool is this?! We’re in Washington, D.C.!”

Don’t give me that “I guess I’m jaded” nonsense. That, to me, translates as “Gee, I’m so caught up in my everyday life that I can’t take 10 seconds out of my busy day to appreciate my surroundings.” I’m sure you get that rush when you travel, right? It’s not that hard to feel the same way about a familiar place—and it might lower your blood pressure a bit, too.

Thankfully, on a bike ride to Virginia (Virginia!) yesterday, my housemate picked up on my excitement and pedaled with it (though he’s lived in the DMV area his entire life).

Try to enjoy here while you’re here, because there’s no here anywhere else.

Photograph by Darrow Montgomery

The “ghost bike” memorial for 22-year-old Alice Swanson was installed anonymously where she died yesterday at 20th and R streets in Dupont Circle.

The tragedy is one that hits home for many: for Alice’s coworkers and former coworkers, for her housemates in Mount Pleasant, for her friends in D.C. and from college at Amherst, and from home in Northborough, Mass. It hits the many cyclists in this town and anyone who witnessed the accident or its aftermath. It’s probably her father, though, who expresses the loss best (from the Boston Globe):

She is so energetic and enthusiastic. She always wants to explore or travel. She’s got a room full of maps here, world maps and things like that. She wanted to travel.

I just feel that she had so many things that she wanted to do—to help people. Now it’s not going to happen.

Condolences to all who knew and loved Alice.

UPDATE: WABA (Washington Area Bicyclist Association) to hold a memorial service and press conference tonight at 6:30 near the intersection. Cyclists and others who attend are encouraged to bring bike lights and flowers.