Yep! The specter of parking and traffic will get me to bike pretty much anywhere, in nearly any condition. My car is used exclusively for shopping trips where I’m buying more than I can carry & trips far outside of the city.

I think grocery stores near middle/high schools just become like thunder road for bored kids when school lets out. When I was in college on the west coast, there was a middle school right near the grocery store I went to & every time I made the mistake of going around the time school let out, it was terrible. Groups of kids that age just make me feel insanely insecure, like they’re looking for someone to laugh at. It comforted me to know that when I was that age, I acted similarly out of sheer insecurity & trying to cling to any social power I had. I think everyone that age is just kind of a shit head for at least a few years.

My very specific transit fantasy is closing the Georgetown part of M st to all car traffic, putting a streetcar down the middle, and expanding the sidewalks

I was going to say reach out to Dept of For-Hire Vehicles as well. I believe you can file complaints with them.