Mayor Vincent Gray has issued an emergency ruling to prohibit drivers from making U-turns across center bike lanes, following a series of accidents.
Bicycle lanes running between the east- and westbound lanes of Pennsylvania Avenue NW opened two years ago. In 2010 and 2011, 11 out of 14 bicycle crashes on the street involved vehicles making U-turns across the bike lanes, according to a press release from the city.
Gray's new ruling clarifies that the prohibition on U-turns across bike lanes is enforceable even when cyclists are not present.
"This is an effort to ensure the safety of our increasing numbers of cyclists in the District by closing a regulatory gap," Gray said in a press release from the city.
Violators will be ticketed $100. The new regulation goes into effect Dec. 1.
Pennsylvania Avenue NW is the currently the only street in the District with center bike lanes.
