Gridlock

With Trump gone, Capital Bikeshare returns to the White House

The Biden administration reversed a Trump decision that had kept bike-sharing off the White House grounds since 2017

By Luz Lazo
September 30, 2021 at 6:00 a.m. EDT

The Biden administration has revoked a Trump-era decision to keep bike-sharing off the White House grounds. The Capital Bikeshare station that was removed from the White House campus by the former administration because it was deemed a “security concern” is back in business.

The station was reinstalled last week at the E Street and South Executive Avenue NW entrance of the campus after negotiations with the Biden administration, Capital Bikeshare officials said Wednesday. The bike rack also has 11 bikes — four more than when it was removed four years ago.

In summer 2017, the Executive Office of the President requested that the D.C. Department of Transportation get rid of the rack because the “United States Secret Service has deemed the bike rack a security concern.” It was removed that August.

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The station, which was originally requested by the Obama administration in 2010, can be used only by riders with access to the White House grounds. It is not visible in the Capital Bikeshare or Lyft mobile applications. Before it was removed, it got about 70 trips a month, according to DDOT data.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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By Luz Lazo
Luz Lazo is a transportation reporter at The Washington Post covering passenger and freight transportation, buses, taxis and ride-sharing services. She also writes about traffic, road infrastructure and air travel in the Washington region and beyond. She joined The Post in 2011. Twitter https://twitter.com/luzcita