FABB Blog

 

Board approves Stringfellow Road plan!

Today the Fairfax Co. Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the VDOT plan for Stringfellow Road which includes wide curb lanes for bicycle traffic. The 14-foot wide outside lanes will provide space for cyclists to travel on-road in a much safer manner than the originally proposed dual 12-foot travel lanes. Thanks to all the cyclists who contacted Board members to express your desire for on-road bicycle accommodations. This is a major victory for bicyclists in the county.

At a ceremony held before the meeting Chairman Connolly and several Board members celebrated the installation of bike racks on all Fairfax Connector buses as of today. The racks are easy to use and will help cyclists extend their rides and will provide many options for commuting and recreational cyclists in the future. As we mentioned earlier, we are thankful to Charlie Strunk, the county bike coordinator, for working with Connector staff to help make this happen.

During the Board meeting prototypes of the forthcoming Fairfax County Bike Map were handed out to all members of the Board. Chairman Connolly talked about the importance of the plan and how it fits into the overall Bicycle Initiative undertaken by the Board this year. FABB members serve on the Bike Map Advisory Committee.

The Board also was scheduled to vote today on the Tycon Tower mixed use rezoning in Tysons, next to the building commonly referred to as the "shopping bag building". FABB worked with the developer and the county to ensure that on-road bike lanes along the Tysons Ring Road are included in the plan. We also lobbied for bicycle parking at the residential and commercial/retail buildings, for residents, employees and visitors. The developer has proffered to use the U-type racks.

Finally, the Board was scheduled to vote on the Merrifield Mixed Use development. FABB members met with the developer to discuss the need for better bicycle access to and through the proposed development. We also discussed the need for adequate bicycle parking. While very little was ultimately proposed for access to the site, bicycle parking is being proposed, and bicycle access within the site is addressed. We hope that in the future county requirements will alleviate us of the need to monitor this type of development as closely as we do now.

It was a big day for Fairfax bicyclists. posted by Bruce Wright at 8:37 PM permalink