How Would You Fix the Intersection of Doom? Updated @voteforvihstadt @alanhowze #bikedc #arlingtonva

When last these two candidates met in an election, we asked them a series of questions about cycling in Arlington.  You can read their responses, linked below.

This election, we have asked them a simple question:  How would you fix the intersection of doom?

Here are their response tweets so far:

Photo by Alyson Hurt (cc Flikr)

Alan Howze || Previous Response

long-term reroute. Short-term implement adopted changes + signal changes (NPS/VDOT) so cars not turning right into bike/ped +

+ enhanced enforcement + detailed data collection on incidents across Arlington tinyurl.com/nv5s86t

+ safe streets across all of Arlington - not just trails - safe routes to school, work, etc - much more we need to do!

as a bike commuter I am very familiar with the intersection and its dangers for cyclists, pedestrians and runners. 

 John Vihstadt || Previous Response

Thanks for writing. @ArlingtonVA staff working to improve @RosslynVA #IntersectionOfDoom. Asked for update. Will report back.

The Intersection of Doom has been a problem for decades.  1000s of cyclists and pedestrians go across this intersection daily.  Because the infrastructure is terrible, they get forced out into the street, they get hit, and then they get ticketed by a callous NPS cop who cant figure out that its not a pedestrians fault when the infrastructure is terrible. In other major urban environments, a dangerous or congested intersection would have a traffic officer assigned to facilitate traffic flow. For as long as I have lived in Arlington, the County has promised that solutions are on the horizon.  Meanwhile, crossing the Intersection of Doom is a form of Russian Roulette.  Arlington County claims to be going for the gold certification for a Bike Friendly Community - they even - almost ironically - constructed a cycling totem pole at the Intersection of Doom spending piles of money on a counter instead of spending piles of money on risk mitigation and safety.

We are Arlington cyclists.  We are frustrated.  We want to know: How will you fix the Intersection of Doom.

Candidates, we will be glad to post any updated responses. 

How Long, Lord, Must We Cry for Help?? Intersection of Doom Edition @Arlingtonva @VaDOTNOVA @NPSGWMP @Jim_Moran #bikedc

Answer: Decades.

This map from the National Park Service 1990 DC Trails Plan was recently posted to the local bike forum. It shows that by 1990, the Intersection of Doom was well established as a dangerous intersection.  I moved into Arlington in 1989 and I remember biking through the Intersection of Doom on the way into town.  The Intersection of Doom has been marked on the local bicycle map as a "dangerous intersection" for as long as I can remember.

I'll admit it.  A LOT of the identified problems on this map have been fixed.  Thank you NPS.  But it also indicates the situation.  Where NPS was the only jurisdiction involved in solving the problem, the problems have been generally addressed.  At the Intersection of Doom, we have five - make that four - jurisdictions (Arlington just bought out the private land owner) involved in solving the problem and nothing has gotten done.

Meanwhile, recently a woman hit by a car at the Intersection of Doom reportedly had insult added to injury when a NPS officer came to her hospital bed - not having witnessed the accident - and issued her a ticket for not being in the crosswalk.

Let's be clear where fault lies.  It doesnt lie with the cyclists.  It doesnt lie with the pedestrians.  It doesnt lie with the car drivers.  

It lies with the local governing authorities including Arlington County, VADOT, DC, and NPS who have identified this as a problem for decades, have been lobbied by cyclists to fix this for decades, and whose idea of a solution is to blame the victims.

Fix the Intersection of Doom! 

Do. It.

Intersection of Doom - Another Near Miss @arlingtonva @arlingtonDES #bikedc

Arlington County said that fixing the Intersection of Doom was not in the Future of Rosslyn Plan because no one had brought it up in a while.  Besides that being baloney with a slice of pickle, it appears prudent to document any known Doom incidents.

Today at ~5:45 pm a woman was standing on the west corner of Lee Hwy and Ft Myer Dr.  The cross walk light turned white, indicating her turn to go.  She stepped into her peddles and proceeded into the intersection not but barely.  A station wagon going south on Ft Myer ran the red light several seconds after it had turned red, swung right, and proceeded west on Lee Hwy.  The station wag missed the cyclists by not but barely.

Every cyclist and every pedestrian standing on the corners yelled at the station wagon which sped (and I mean sped) away.

Arlington: Fix the Intersection of Doom

It's Your Fault: You Havent Brought Up the Subject of "the Intersection of Doom" Recently! @arlingtonva #bikedc #arlingtonva

At this past Tuesday's Arlington County Board meeting, Arlington cyclists suggested that the Realize Rosslyn plan lacked a solution to the Intersection of Doom, and this was a problem.  Arlington Cyclists called on leadership from the Arlington County Board in addressing this problem.

Arlington County apparently responded that the reason solving the Intersection of Doom was not part of the Realize Rosslyn plan is that no one had brought it up recently.

Really?!?  REALLY?!?

Let's go to the video tape.

The Intersection of Doom is on the County Bike Map as a known dangerous intersection.

Arlington County Board Candidates get asked how they would solve the problem of the Intersection of Doom.  Here is the statement of Alan Howze and John Vihstadt.

Last summer, the Document Arlington project at AIM produced a video on cycling in Arlington.  Libby Garvey was interviewed. Jay Fissette was interviewed.  Chris Eatough was interviewed.  The Police Chief Douglas Scott was interviewed.  Charlie Denney was interviewed.  One of the questions they all received was about the Intersection of Doom.  Chris Eatough discusses the Intersection of Doom. Min. 4:12.  The Police Chief blamed the Intersection of Doom on the cyclists speeding. Min. 4:52. His advice is to "slow down through that area." Chris Eatough says that Arlington Police are aware of problems in that area. 5:22.

Other cyclists have posted  youtube videos about it.

Bloggers have posted about it. And another. And another. And another.

The Arlington BAC has listed it as a priority concern.

The Bike Arlington Forum has "Fix Intersection of Doom" as its largest tag (until the tags were reset).

This is a map of bicycle accidents in Arlington, from 2010 to 2012.  It clearly shows a problem at the Intersection of Doom.

There was a Greater Greater Washington article about it.

Arlington, can you please tell me how we have NOT BROUGHT THIS UP RECENTLY?

FIX THE INTERSECTION OF DOOM! #bikedc #arlingtonva #RealizeRosslyn @RosslynVA

I move in Arlington in 1989, 25 years ago.  I moved into a group house of ultimate frisbee players in the Ballston area.  One of the big features of moving into a house in Arlington... I could bike to the Ultimate Frisbee games on the Mall.

A lot has changed in 25 years.  You would not recognize Ballston and Clarendon.  One thing hasnt changed.  One of the worst cycling intersections in Arlington has always been The Intersection of Doom.  For at least 25 years (that is, as long as I can remember), cyclists have proclaimed "Fix the Intersection of Doom!"  And for 25 years, nothing has happened. Every now and again, someone gets our hopes up with false claims of solutions.  But nothing gets done.  Arlington paints more bike lanes, paints more sharrows, puts up more bike signs - in its quest to be certified as a Gold Bike Friendly Community - but it doesnt fix one of the greatest problems facing Arlington bike commuters.

Photo by Tim Kelly

So what is The Intersection of Doom?  Chances are, if you are reading this, you know.  Last summer my son worked for Arlington Independent Media making a documentary about cycling in Arlington (a documentary AIM never posted to YouTube). The AIM kids working on the documentary asked a leader of the Arlington Police if he knew what The Intersection of Doom was.  He did not.  Yup, there lies the problem.

The Intersection of Doom is the intersection of N Lynn Street and Lee Hwy, with four lanes going north over Key Bridge, and three lanes going west off of I-66 onto Lee Hwy.  Two of these west bound lanes can turn right onto Lynn St towards Key Bridge.  They can do this "Right Turn on Red" even though there are lots of pedestrians present and even though this is a known dangerous intersection.  The area of this intersection is controlled by Arlington County, VDOT (the Commonwealth of Virginia), the National Park Service, the District of Columbia (due to the old boundaries of Arlington), and a private land owner.  These FIVE jurisdictions have created a quagmire where no solution is viable.

There is a tremendous concentration of car traffic and cycling traffic in one spot.  The design of the intersection is poor, forcing conflicts between cars and cyclists (and between pedestrian and cyclists, cars and pedestrians, and cars and cars).  Accidents at this intersection are common. For as long as I can remember, this intersection has been marked as a dangerous intersection on the Arlington Bicycling Map (which Whole Foods used to decorate its store ~ so you can look up at the wall at Whole Foods, see the maps, and be reminded of the intersection that Arlington will not fix).  The problem of the intersection is not the cyclists and its not the cars and its not the pedestrians.  The problem of the intersection is the design, that it does not safely accommodate the traffic that traverses it.

The Intersection of Doom is inexcusable.  Is it hard to negotiate with five jurisdictions?  Yes.  But that's what political leadership is called.  We dont elect our leaders to do easy jobs ~ we elect them to resolve difficult and challenging jobs.  The fact that this is a hard problem is just no excuse.

Now comes along "Realize Rosslyn," a major planning effort currently underway to guide Rosslyn's development for the next 20 or so years.Rosslyn has been studying, discussing and planning with a great deal of effort and has produced a draft Plan Framework. It's a pretty great plan.

  What it doesn't have is any policy about fixing the Intersection of Doom.
 
That is insane.

That needs to change.

A fundamental need for Rosslyn, and for Arlington, is to Fix the Intersection of Doom. How bad is the problem?  Check out the tag cloud from the Bike Arlington cycling forum.  Arlington cyclists want this fixed. Until Arlington gets the political muster to fix one of its most dangerous cycling (and pedestrian) intersections, it should not apply for or receive the Gold Bike Friendly Community certification.

PS:  This is an excellent article on the Intersection of Doom by Chris Slatt in GGW

So I'm Confused @ArlingtonVA, is Cycling "Transportation" or Not #bikedc

Photo by alykat (cc)

Now I love Arlington.  And Arlington DES is one of my favorites (not joking... DES has been highly responsive to inquiries and concerns).  But DES did something recently that caused a kerfuffle.  DES thought that it would be a good idea to talk to Arlington Citizens about snow removal.  Why would that cause a kerfuffle?  Well it resulted in this exchange:

Q by CS: Arlington often talks about how bicycling is an important part of our transportation network, and yet our bicycling infrastructure rarely if ever gets plowed, even major cycling thoroughfares like the Custis trail that continue to see hundreds of riders a day despite the weather. Minneapolis manages to keep their bike infrastructure plowed. When will Arlington?

A: Currently there are no immediate plans to plow or treat primary commuting bike trails, but our planners, Department of Parks and Recreation and DES operations staff continue to strategize how to improve the bike commute. The County will be looking to coordinate with the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority for priority to treat the WO&D Trail, which is not maintained by Arlington.

Q by MB: I have to say that I'm pretty disappointed by DES' inaction on plowing our primary trails. As people within DES can tell you, thousands of Arlingtonians use those trails every day to get to work. By failing to plow the trails, DES puts more people onto the streets in cars. Is that really what you want, during a snow event?

A: As previously asked by Chris, our planners, Department of Parks and Recreation and DES operations staff continue to strategize how to improve the bike commute. There are many significant safety and environmental concerns for bikers and our trails that we have and are attempting to find the best solution.

Okay, once again: consternation.  Arlington talks a good talk.  Arlington talks about how cycling is a great way to commute. Arlington talks about the Car Free diet. Arlington talks about Smart Growth through Smart Transportation. 

The problem is Arlington actually convinces a few of us.  And a few (thousand) of us have come to rely on cycling as our mode of transportation.  It's how we get to work, or to school, or to the store, or to lunch.  We drank the kool-aid, we have become car-free, and we bike the solution.

But having converted us, Arlington goes sideways on us and doesnt follow through.  There are major cycling arteries in Arlington that see 1000s of cyclist get to work every day.  These are the Custis Trail, the W&OD trail, and the Mount Vernon Trail (NPS).  These trails are cyclists freeways that see levels of traffic during rush hour that rival the roads.  During rush hour on the Custis Trail in Rosslyn, the cue at a red light is as deep on the Custis trail as it is on Lee Hwy.  The flow of traffic on the Custis is constant and we saw essentially cyclist traffic jams this year.

Those cycling arteries are not treated as "transportation" arteries by Arlington:

• There are no plans to clear snow from the trails, in the same way other transportation arteries are cleared.
• Arlington police park their cruisers on the Custis Trail in Rosslyn, blocking the trail.
• Arlington Parks and Rec trucks regularly drive on the W&OD during rush hour, creating dangerous situations.
• Arlington Parks and Rec shut down the Custis Trail during rush hour so that they could prune trees - something VDOT would never do to Route 66.
• After decades of complaints from cyclists, the Custis Trail / Lynn St intersection remains as dangerous as ever with almost no action taken.

Let's make this simple:

Arlington: Is cycling actually "transportation," or is that just some cute words you put on paper so that you have dazzling looking transportation strategic plans?  

If you are going to talk the talk, walk the walk.  1000s of cyclists rely on the trails as transportation arteries.  Arlington, please behave like they are transportation arteries.