FABB Blog

Submitted by Steven Ward, FABB

Supporting documentation for an extension of the Custis Trail outside the Beltway, parallel to I-66

Fairfax County Trails Plan includes a Major Regional Trail along I-66. The Trails Plan is part of Fairfax County's Comprehensive Plan.

Tier 1 Final Environmental Impact Statement and Tier 1 Record of Decision contains the following:

Submitted by Steven Ward, FABB.

ENDORSEMENT TO NAME WIEHLE AVENUE-RESTON EAST  METRORAIL STATION BICYCLE PARKING ROOM

In a joint Board Matter with the Board, Supervisor Hudgins said that she is seeking the Board’s endorsement of naming the Wiehle Reston-East Metrorail Station bicycle parking room after Charlie Strunk. He has been the County’s first Bicycle Program Manager and will be retiring from County service today.

Supervisor Hudgins referred to her written Board Matter and outlined the history of the County Bicycle Program and Mr. Strunk’s involvement with the program.

Supervisor Hudgins announced that in 2014, with the opening of the Silver Line, the Department of Transportation (DOT) also opened the Wiehle Reston-East Metrorail Station Bicycle Parking Room. It is the first secure bicycle room in the County. Mr. Strunk led not only the design efforts, but coordinated with other County departments, stakeholders, and advocacy groups to ensure all voices and concerns were heard.

The Wiehle Reston-East Bike Room currently has 300 members from all over the region, including Maryland and the District of Columbia. This bike room is a proto type for other rooms being planned at the Stringfellow Park-and-Ride Lot, the Rolling Road VRE Station, Route 1 Transit Center; as well as the Herndon and Innovation Center Metrorail Stations.

In honor of his dedication to the County and tenacity in successfully developing the bicycle program, Supervisor Hudgins moved that the Board:

• Authorize the naming of the Wiehle Reston-East Bicycle Parking Room in honor of Charlie Strunk, the County’s first Bicycle Program ManagerBoard Summary -31- January 13, 2015 
• Direct that a plaque/sign be placed in the room to recognize Charlie’s significant contribution to both the Bicycle Program and the County 

Chairman Bulova seconded the motion and it carried by unanimous vote.

WABA is always looking for people with a passion to help make the Washington area a safer and more welcoming environment for people using bikes. To this end, WABA’s Board Nominating Committee is now searching for director candidates with strong leadership skills and experience in helping non-profit organizations execute strategy and development plans.

WABA enjoys a solid foundation of loyal members and a dedicated funding base. However, we have a particular interest in candidates who can help us further expand our partnerships with a broader pool of private organizations and individuals who share and will support WABA’s goal of making the Washington area the most bicycle friendly in the world. Direct experience with membership development, institutional giving, and major gifts a plus.

WABA board members are volunteers who serve two year terms and are expected to participate in regularly scheduled board meetings, provide counsel to WABA staff in their areas of expertise, and make WABA a significant part of their individual philanthropy.

Candidates who are interested in exploring whether their skills and interests align with WABA’s are invited to make an initial expression of interest by filling out the form. If you have previously filled out an expression of interest, and remain interested, please email me at mark@waba.org. While the search for director candidates is an ongoing one, the board expects to present a slate of candidates at the February 20 annual meeting.

While overall highway fatalities have been declining, pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities have been on the rise in recent years and now represent nearly 17 percent of total fatalities. The Mayor’s Challenge aims to reduce pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities around a framework of seven Challenge activities that are based on the latest innovations in improving pedestrian and bicyclist safety.

The initiative will begin in March when Mayors and staff responding to the invitation will convene at the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) headquarters for a Mayoral Summit to discuss how to build upon or implement the challenge’s seven activity areas.

The seven Challenge activities are drawn from the recommended actions stated in the2010 USDOT Policy Statement on Bicycle and Pedestrian Accommodation Regulations and Recommendations. For example, recommended actions in the policy statement include gathering and tracking data on biking and walking in their community and ensuring street designs are appropriate for pedestrian and bicycle safety. Attendees at the Summit will work with USDOT staff to identify new Departmental resources they can use during the Challenge and will network with their peers.

The Mayor’s Challenge is a vital piece of Secretary Foxx’s overall pedestrian and bicycle safety initiative. In September, Secretary Foxx announced the launch of the Safer People, Safer Streets initiative and asked USDOT field offices to conduct road safety assessments in every state. In March 2016, cities participating in the Challenge will reconvene for a capstone meeting to share lessons learned, and celebrate their success.

Click here for additional information pertaining to the Mayor’s Challenge.

Biking has become an increasingly popular way to get around the District. As of 2013, about 4.5 percent of the District’s population commuted to work via bike, according to figures from the U.S. Census Bureau. The creation of Capital Bikeshare, which celebrated its fourth year in 2014, has also boosted the popularity of biking in the city. Capital Bikeshare is hosting an open house Wednesday to talk about expansion plans and a proposed rate hike.

BICYCLE IMPROVEMENTS

47. Bicycle Facilities. At time of site plan submission for each Building(s), the Applicant shall designate bicycle racks, bike lockers, and/or bike storage areas on the Application Property, in those specific locations as identified on the Plan, which may be further refined at the time of site plan subject to FCDOT approval. Signage shall be posted on the exterior side of the buildings near the entrances to indicate bike parking available to the
public, if any. The bicycle racks shall be inverted U style racks, or of such other design approved by FCDOT. Bicycle facilities shall be installed prior to the issuance of the first RUP or Non-RUP for such use in accordance with the site plan on which the applicable bike facilities are shown.

Short-term bicycle parking shall be provided in accordance with FCDOT guidelines and located anywhere within the Application Property. Long-term bicycle parking shall be in a secure location as selected by Applicant such as a bicycle room, cage, locker, or other secure parking option. Bicycle parking shall be provided as follows, or subject to lesser rates as approved by the Director of FCDOT or his designee at time of site plan:

A. Office Bicycle Parking. The Applicant shall provide one (1) long-term bicycle parking space for every 10,000 square feet, or portion thereof, of office GFA and one (1) short-term bicycle parking space for each 20,000 square feet, or portion thereof, of office GFA.

B. Multi-family Residential Bicycle Parking. The Applicant shall provide one (1) long-term bicycle parking space for every 10 multi-family residential units and one (1) short-term bicycle parking space per every 50 multi-family residential units.

C. Retail Bicycle Parking. The Applicant shall provide one (1) long-term employee bicycle space for every 25,000 square feet of retail GFA and one (1) short-term bicycle parking space for every 10,000 square feet of retail GFA.

48. On Road Bicycle Facilities. The Applicant shall provide on-road bicycle facilities along North Shore Drive as shown on the Plan and as coordinated with both VDOT and FCDOT at time of the first site plan for Buildings A1 or A2 within the curb to curb width and in accordance with the following.

A. Along the south side of North Shore Drive, an on-road bike lane of 6 feet in width (including a two (2) foot wide gutter pan) extending east from Village Road to Cameron Crescent Drive; and
B. Along the north side of North Shore Drive, a sharrow will be provided from Cameron Crescent Drive west to Village Drive.

49. Bike Share. The Applicant has designated three (3) areas within the Application Property (one on the East Side and two on the West Side) and as reflected on the Plan for use as future bike share stations by others. Such spaces shall be made available upon request of the County at no cost to the operator of such service. If a bike share service has not requested the use of the areas after Stabilization of the East or West sides as defined herein, respectively, this proffer obligation shall become null and void and of no further force and effect.

Below is extracted info from VBF's latest report on bike-related bills in this year's VA legislative session. See the last paragraph about contacting your delegate to have them support the Following Too Closely bill:

Del. Manoli Loupassi from the Fan District did a nice job of patroning (Highway Maintenance Bill) HB 1402 (into which Del. Betsy Carr’s similar HB1501 had been combined) This bill would provide that the Jurisdictions that do their own Highway Maintenance rather than having VDOT do it for them (City of Richmond, Henrico county, and Town of Ashland are in this category) do not lose their maintenance reimbursement if they convert highway “lane miles” to bike lanes, as is now the case. This is a fairly big deal since the current reimbursement practice has been a big dis-incentive for the installation of bike lanes in those jurisdictions).

After some discussion, and some mild dissent from Del. Randy Minchew of Leesburg, the bill was REPORTED by a 6-1 vote, with only Minchew voting against, and now goes on to the full Trans Comm, probably on Tuesday morning at 8:30.

Last of all was Del. Carr with her (Highway Maintenance Bill - Paved Trails) HB1502, which would give the City of Richmond maintenance reimbursement at 1/2 that of highway mileage for that portion of the Capital Trail which was (and will be) built by VDOT in the City but will be the City’s to maintain (unlike the rest of the Trail, which was built by VDOT and will be maintained by them). With little sentiment by the panel members for helping the City in this way, the bill was TABLED by a 7-0 vote.

I had hoped to get up to the House Militia, Police and Public Safety SubComm meeting to support Del. Rich Anderson’s HB1926 restricting the use of Cell Phones by drivers which started at 7:30. After the meeting, I learned that HB 1926 had been TABLED on a voice vote, which will be a big disappointment to the Drive Smart people and the others working to reduce Distracted Driving, who had some hopes of getting it through. With that result, I don’t hold any hope for Sen. Wexton’s similar, but a little more strict SB1279, which will be heard next week.

Meanwhile, HB1342, the Following Too Closely bill got its 2nd reading today on the House Floor and probably will get voted on Tomorrow. If you haven’t done so, it’s not too late to contact YOUR Delegate and ask them to support it. I think its in good shape, but nothing is certain until the vote is tallied, so your contact will be a big help.

We support all except one, the mandatory sidepath bill, which of course we oppose. Some of these bills are identical, or nearly so. As they move forward, they are typically “conformed” into a single bill.

This project is moving quickly, with strong support from Governor McAuliffe. If HOV lanes are added, every bridge crossing I-66 between the Beltway and Haymarket will be rebuilt. This is an ideal time to add a grade-separated, multiuse trail, parallel to I-66, similar to the Custis Trail. The merged Custis Trail/W&OD Trail inside the Beltway splits from I-66 at the Beltway. Having a wide, paved trail would allow for many short trips in the highly developed I-66 corridor outside the Beltway to be taken by bike and on foot, and would provide a tremendous recreational asset as well.

Public meetings are planned later this month to provide information about the project and to solicit feedback from residents. Cyclists need to be present at these meetings to speak out for making the I-66 corridor truly multimodal.

Collecting better active transportation data is essential to building long-term support for walking and cycling, and for improving conditions for those who choose to walk and ride bikes. The County currently has 32 permanent installations, and six portable counters to gauge and monitor usage and demand.

U.S. VMT (in trillions) as tracked by FHWA's Travel Volume Trends ("Actual") and as projected by U.S. DOT's C&P reports (by year reports are dated). (Chart: SSTI)

How much traffic will increase is a debate that affects us in very practical ways here in Portland, where (for example) the Oregon Department of Transportation has cited future traffic increases as a reason not to improve bike lanes on Southwest Barbur even though its own data shows that auto traffic on Barbur peaked in 2003.

Andy Cotugno, the transportation planning director for regional planning agency Metro, said Wednesday that his organization won’t be affected by the federal change, in part because his team’s projections already reflect the plateau in miles driven per person.

“We’ve scaled our transportation plans down to be more realistic,” said Cotugno.

Cotugno often circulates a chart showing that in the Portland metro area, driving rates per person peaked in 1996, eight years before they did the same nationally.

But Cotugno said he worries that state DOTs and other agencies are too eager to circulate overestimates for future travel demand as a way to justify the need for more money.

Episcopal Bishop Heather Cook will be charged with manslaughter in the fatal crash that killed cyclist Thomas Palermo, Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn J. Mosby announced Friday morning.

 Cook will face charges of leaving the scene of a fatal accident; driving under the influence and causing an accident due to texting while driving. Both the manslaughter and leaving the scene charge carry a maximum sentence of 10 years imprisonment.

 A warrant will be issued for Cook's arrest, prosecutors said.

"The driver of a motor vehicle shall not follow another motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer more closely than is reasonable and prudent, having due regard to the speed of both vehicles and the traffic on, and conditions of, the highway at the time."

"Payments made to affected localities shall be based on the number of moving-lane-miles of highways or portions thereof available to peak-hour traffic in that locality. Moving-lane-miles of highway that are converted to two-way bicycle travel lanes shall continue to be included as moving-lane-miles of highway for purposes of calculating payments under this section."

"Wherever a highway is marked with double traffic lines consisting of two immediately adjacent solid yellow lines, no vehicle shall be driven to the left of such lines, except (i) when turning left or (ii) in order to pass a pedestrian, a device moved by human power, a stopped vehicle, or a vehicle moving at less than 25 miles per hour in the same lane, provided such movement can be made safely;"

For the first time in many years the Board of Supervisors committed to spending $204 million over the next six years for pedestrian and bicycle projects of which about $40 million is for bike projects. While specific funding sources have not been identified for all projects, the Board is committed to finding those funds.

The major bike-related projects included on the list are: Old Keene Mill Road Bike Shoulders ($9 million), Route 236 Corridor Improvements (bike lanes, wide curb lanes, bike shoulders, $7.5 million), Scotts Run Stream Valley Trail ($3 million), Cinderbed Road Bikeway ($4 million), Mount Vernon Memorial Highway (Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail) ($6.5 million), Mason Neck Trail ($5 million), and improvements to Holmes Run Stream Valley Trail ($1.5 million).

Bike/Ped projects in Transportation Bond overwhelmingly supported by voters

In November 72% of Fairfax voters agreed to fund $100 million in pedestrian, bicycle, and some road projects. While only 6% of those funds were earmarked for bicycle projects, cyclists will likely also use many of the pedestrian projects.

Silver Line opens; cyclists flock to Wiehle station bike room

In July the five Fairfax Silver Line stations opened along with the county's first secure bike room at Wiehle station. Biking to the Wiehle and McLean stations was popular from the start, with free parking at the Wiehle station filling during the first week and the McLean station racks also heavily used. WMATA placed additional bike parking at the McLean station. Metro service along the Dulles corridor is having a major impact on redevelopment and on how residents get around. See FABB's Bicycling and the Silver Line page for links to bike routes to the stations.

NVRPA plows W&OD Trail

For the first time, NVRPA cleared snow on major sections of the W&OD Trail. In other W&OD trail news, NVRPA released a W&OD Trail safety report in June. NVRPA also completed a connector trail from the W&OD Trail to Meadowlark Gardens Botanical Park.

VDOT conducts repairs on Fairfax County Parkway trail

For the first time that we're aware of VDOT devoted extensive resources to repairing the Fairfax County Parkway Trail. FABB has advocated for repaving of the trail for several years. While only portions of the trail are being repaved, the entire length of the trail has been evaluated by VDOT and repaving and repairs are being made as needed.

VDOT also installed wayfinding signage on the Parkway trail detour in the Fair Oaks area. In other trail repair news, Fairfax County completed repairs of the Ashgrove Trail, a bicycle connection to the Spring Hill Silver Line station. If you know where other trail safety improvements are needed, use the new Pedestrian Safety Improvement Request Tool to identify them.

Route 7 bridge over Dulles Toll Road to include grade-separated trails

The Route 7 bridge over the Dulles Toll Road will be replaced and the current design includes trails on each side of the road with ramp crossings that are separated from high speed traffic. FABB and other potential trail users advocated for this design from the early stages of the project. We are also advocating for a similar treatment for the proposed trail along Route 123 under the Beltway.

Three foot passing bill adopted by Virginia

After several failed attempts, the three foot passing bill was approved by the VA Senate and House by wide margins. The law went into effect on July 1. Several other bicycle-related bills failed. VBF's 2015 legislative agenda has not yet been made public.

Bike lanes installed on Sherwood Hall Lane and Courthouse Road

As part of the repaving of Sherwood Hall Lane and Courthouse Road, VDOT reconfigured the road to reduce some on-street parking and add bike lanes along most of Sherwood Hall Lane between Fort Hunt Rd and Route 1 and on Courthouse Rd in Vienna from Route 123 to Nottoway Park. Cyclists spoke out in support of the Sherwood Hall Lane project which was approved despite some local opposition. When bicyclists attend meetings and show their support it makes a difference.

Bikesharing is feasible in Reston

According to the Reston Bike Share Feasibility Study, a bike sharing system is feasible in Reston, implemented in two phases. Phase 1 would consist of 13 stations with 130 bikes, with all but one station located north of the Toll Road. Most proposed stations would be located in the Town Center area. The station locations were determined based primarily on potential demand and the desire to reduce the space between stations. The county received $400,000 from MWCOG to begin implementing the system.

Bicycle access through Ft. Belvoir completed

The primary bicycle route through Ft. Belvoir, Woodlawn Road, was closed after 9/11. Since that time bicycle access through the facility has been difficult. With the opening of Jeff Todd Way/Mulligan Road, bike access has been restored.

Bike to School Day and other Safe Routes to School events

Bike to School Day continues to grow in Fairfax, especially in Vienna and Reston. A Safe Routes to School Workshop was led by Mark Fenton, nationally known expert on public health and active transportation. Mark also was the featured speaker at the county's Healthy Communities by Design Summit.

Route 50/Arlington Blvd Trail Concept Plan released

WABA published the Route 50/Arlington Blvd Trail Concept Plan which outlines the creation of a connected bike trail along Route 50 from Arlington to Fairfax City.