Another accident at the GW Parkway crossing

[TwoWheelsDC]

According to Brooks, cyclists and pedestrians are “required to stop and make sure the roadway is clear before crossing” the section of parkway where today’s accident occurred.

Christ….the article actually makes it sound like this was on the Washington Blvd section and not the parkway proper. Either way, the sight lines for both these intersections are such that a ped in the crosswalk is easily visible (not so much if they are standing under the ped crossing sign, oddly enough) from quite a distance….meaning that either the cyclist misjudged the distance of the car and/or its speed and entered the intersection at a point where the driver couldn’t stop in time, or the driver simply wasn’t paying attention. I’ll assume the latter until shown otherwise.

Also, if a ped IN the crosswalk has the right of way, and a car hits said ped IN the crosswalk, how the eff is the driver not getting a ticket?

[acc]

Diplomacy has not worked. Talking reasonably and rationally has not worked. It is almost a certainty that cyclists will get hit at these intersections. NPS is on notice and yet nothing happens. Today’s statement was basically, wow it’s confusing out there and people are getting hit. How many more injuries and or deaths will have to occur before anything constructive happens?

I’m particularly annoyed tonight because I was almost hit in an intersection on the W&OD this afternoon when the first car stopped and the second car slowed perceptively enough that I entered the crosswalk. It has been a bad week. On Sunday I almost drowned. Today I almost got hit by a car. The woman stared right into my eyes and kept coming despite me being in the crosswalk. Luckily, I’m no fool. I did not go beyond the first stopped car. At the very last moment she jammed on her brakes. Only at that point did I proceed.

This seems to be a problem with driver education. I should not have to stop in a crosswalk when a car is visibly slowing down as I enter. That contravenes all logic and commonsense.

ann

[vvill]

Sorry to hear that ann. I have days like that where I end up wondering if I should really be commuting by bike given the quality of drivers in the area.

The GW crossing is ridiculous. The first time I came across it (sometime last year) I was amazed that it was indeed a bike crossing across the GW Parkway. People routinely drive 70mph on that north of Key Bridge (I would often drive it as part of my commute). It’s one piece of bike infrastructure around here I always avoid.

I talked a bit to a NPS representative at the Rosslyn BTWD pitstop about it. I walked away with a NPS branded bell and an information card.

[paulg]

Come on Park Service get something done to make these highly dangerous intersections safe for everyone. People are getting injured and killed on a regular basis and have been for years. Giving out tickets to drivers who stop for people crossing is not the answer. If the park service admit the area is confusing then they should sort it out.

[rcannon100]

I work in SW. I went from crossing Memorial bridge (which I liked) to crossing the 14th St bridge (which is blustery). This removed FIVE GW and other nasty road crossings (2 GW, 2 at Lincoln Circle, one on the mall at 17th St near the WWII). This was a good thing. The GW is an insane asylum; the NPS should be held criminally negligent. We have been approaching them for decades and even when they recently redid memorial circle they did nothing to make it safer.

And its not safe for cars either. When I use to drive, I witnessed an accident a week up on memorial circle on the virginia side of the bridge. The merge there is…. silly.

So I also got to talk to a NPS guy about all this. His excuse. The hump back bridge took 10 years. These things are all tied up in Historic Preservation and NEPA concerns. OH BS! Same BS for Lynn and Lee Hwy. Accident after accident after accident. Approaching govt officials for decades. And nothing.

As for the W&OD, there is always dropping down on to 4MR. Its more fun and it cuts out like what, 10 street crossings??

But seriously, sorry to hear its been a bad week. It is about the joy of the ride, and sometimes that joy can be hard to find.

[eminva]

Okay, trying some outside-of-the-box thinking here . . .

Let’s admit what the GW Parkway is: a major commuting highway that serves an essential function in the region.

What about a campaign to move the whole GW Parkway out of NPS jurisdiction? Call it an interstate and put it under the appropriate authority (is that VDOT? Sorry, not a transportation person here). They can keep the “park,” such as it is, under NPS control (e.g., all the land to either side of the road).

This would force them to admit that you cannot have bikes and pedestrians crossing the road and that appropriate infrastructure is needed for crossings/exits/entrances of all types. Given the large number of tourist attractions in the vicinity, I think they could not ignore this and would have to put something workable in place.

Motorists might like this because it would mean projects like the Humpback Bridge could be accomplished more quickly and easily. Also, it could eventually correct a lot of the crappy engineering that makes it such a drag to drive on. Finally, they wouldn’t have to worry that one day they might hit a cyclist.

Liz

[RESTONTODC]

@acc 21416 wrote:

I’m particularly annoyed tonight because I was almost hit in an intersection on the W&OD this afternoon when the first car stopped and the second car slowed perceptively enough that I entered the crosswalk. It has been a bad week. On Sunday I almost drowned. Today I almost got hit by a car. The woman stared right into my eyes and kept coming despite me being in the crosswalk. Luckily, I’m no fool. I did not go beyond the first stopped car. At the very last moment she jammed on her brakes. Only at that point did I proceed.

This seems to be a problem with driver education. I should not have to stop in a crosswalk when a car is visibly slowing down as I enter. That contravenes all logic and commonsense.

ann

Ann, you forgot to wear the Bike Arlington reflective vest.

I was walking in dark cloth with the Bike Arlington reflective vest on the W&OD other day. Every cars stopped for me. They’re confusing me with a speed trap cop. Everyone looks at me likes “please don’t pull me over”.

I wish the vest is small. I can fit two persons in to it.

I hope the rest of your week goes well.

[KLizotte]

@eminva 21423 wrote:

Okay, trying some outside-of-the-box thinking here . . .

Let’s admit what the GW Parkway is: a major commuting highway that serves an essential function in the region.

What about a campaign to move the whole GW Parkway out of NPS jurisdiction? Call it an interstate and put it under the appropriate authority (is that VDOT? Sorry, not a transportation person here). They can keep the “park,” such as it is, under NPS control (e.g., all the land to either side of the road).

This would force them to admit that you cannot have bikes and pedestrians crossing the road and that appropriate infrastructure is needed for crossings/exits/entrances of all types. Given the large number of tourist attractions in the vicinity, I think they could not ignore this and would have to put something workable in place.

Motorists might like this because it would mean projects like the Humpback Bridge could be accomplished more quickly and easily. Also, it could eventually correct a lot of the crappy engineering that makes it such a drag to drive on. Finally, they wouldn’t have to worry that one day they might hit a cyclist.

Liz

Unfortunately VDOT places cars first and foremost; we were told that was the reason why the Lynn Street intersection has not been fixed (VDOT controls that area) during the streetside meeting held with officials last year. They are adamant that nothing be done that causes cars to become backed up along the ramp.

I also interrogated an NPS ranger on this subject a couple of months ago and was told that only an act of Congress could fix the GW crossings fully but he did say that NPS has plans to re-route the roads on the south side so that one of the crossings will be eliminated. They are currently awaiting funding for this to occur. This is probably the one and only time I think an agency disobeying the letter of the law is in order but if they don’t have any money….

In addition to speeding cars along those sections is the confusion about who has the right of way (the law is not clear on this point since merely standing at a crossing does not necessitate that cars stop) as well as the fact that drivers have a reasonable expectation that there will not be any crossings on a highway. I’ve seen near accidents when cars stop and when they don’t stop.

I think it would be useful if WABA or similar organization collected ten years worth of stats on accidents that have occurred at these crossings to use as evidence that something needs to be done. Then a concerted letter writing/rabble rousing initiative should commence using this data. We could probably get media coverage if we staged protests there during rush hour; would have been a great thing to do during Bike to Work day; wish I’d thought of it earlier (but can you be arrested for doing that I wonder?)

At a minimum, we could pressure the NPS police to provide crossing guards during rush hour (instead of hunting down cyclists at Hain’s Pt). Just think of how many cops are needed to manage the traffic direction changeover during rush hour on Rock Creek Parkway – that’s five days a week, 52 weeks a year!

To be fair to NPS I think they are caught between the letter of the law, funding constraints, and multiple jurisdictions overseeing the area. I think we have to go above them to the folks who can force and fund the issue.

[eminva]

@RESTONTODC 21424 wrote:

Ann, you forgot to wear the Bike Arlington reflective vest.

I was walking in dark cloth with the Bike Arlington reflective vest on the W&OD other day. Every cars stopped for me. They’re confusing me with a speed trap cop. Everyone looks at me likes “please don’t pull me over”.

I wish the vest is small. I can fit two persons in to it.

I hope the rest of your week goes well.

I was just thinking last night, as I almost got hit THREE TIMES within one mile, and then had an adult pedestrian dart in front of me on the Ballston-Custis connector while making eye contact, that I need to do a little “Project Runway: Bike Arlington Challenge” with my sewing machine soon so I can wear that vest. If I have time this weekend, will post a photo of the results.

@KLizotte 21426 wrote:

Unfortunately VDOT places cars first and foremost; we were told that was the reason why the Lynn Street intersection has not been fixed (VDOT controls that area) during the streetside meeting held with officials last year. They are adamant that nothing be done that causes cars to become backed up along the ramp.

I don’t disagree, but I think the best answer is total grade separation, which would have to happen if it we acknowledged the GW Parkway is an interstate. Given that DC is on one side and Arlington Cemetery is on the other, I think they would have to build a bunch of pedestrian overpasses or face the wrath of their Congressional overlords.

Also, I didn’t articulate this too well, but I think cyclists and pedestrians are not a big enough interest group to solve this alone. My proposal was designed to bring drivers into the fold, because if we could improve things from their perspective, they have a bigger voice.

Oh well.

Liz

[Mark Blacknell]

A few points:

The Lynn-Lee and GW crossings are different problems bound up in different bureaucracies. The first’s biggest problem is VDOT, and the second’s is NPS.

The GWMP (the part of NPS in control of the GW Parkway) takes an incredibly hidebound approach to how their enabling legislation determines their mission. For example, the former superintendent of GWMP told me that, because the Capper-Comton Act of 1930 only mentioned automobiles traveling on the GW Parkway, they had no legal authority to permit bikes on the parkway. That was just mind-boggling.

Do not underestimate the obstacles posed by the dozens of hoops – all from different agencies and commissions – that any real crossing solution has to pass through. While I continue to point the finger squarely at NPS’ inaction over the years, it’s quite true that it’s not entirely up to them. Want to put up a stop light at the GW north-bound crossing? You very likely have to convince the US Commission of Fine Arts (http://www.cfa.gov/about/bios/index.html). Seriously.

NPS does have a few points of light on staff. Just not nearly enough.

Interested in what the GWMP believes the purpose of the park/parkway to be? Try to square this Long Range Interpretive Plan with the reality on the ground – http://www.nps.gov/hfc/pdf/ip/gwmp-lrip-2005.pdf

[rcannon100]

The Lynn-Lee and GW crossings are different problems bound up in different bureaucracies.

I have lived in Arlington for 25 years. During that entire time, cyclists have approached Arlington and jurisdictions to fix this intersection. At this point, everything is just a lame excuse.

There are low hanging fruit solutions that are not employed. Why is there not an Arlington police officer at this intersection on a regular basis facilitating traffic flow. Arlington is an urban environment. Big grown up cities station police officers at their traffic problems, that they cannot structurally solve, so that the police officers can keep the traffic safely moving (the old dont-block-the-box efforts). There is not a single reason why this easy solution could not be employed on a regular basis.

But its not.

Lame excuses.

[dbb]

Good link to the GWMP plan. Thanks Mark.

Interesting quotes from the intro (emphasis added):

“George Washington Memorial Parkway…not just another pretty place…to be stuck in traffic, but a Highway to History.”
Vincent L. Santucci, Chief Ranger, George Washington Memorial Parkway

“The George Washington Memorial Parkway, carefully planned and landscaped by the federal government beginning in the 1920s, was a forerunner of the scenic parkways intended for pleasure driving that became popular in the following decade. The memorial parkway’s design and landscaping- and its absence of billboards and other clutter- set a high aesthetic standard for automobile travel routes that reflects what so many American highways could have become, but, unfortunately, id not.”
Richard W. Sellars, National Park Service Historian

Some of the other quotes alluded to the fact the parkway wasn’t a pleasure driving location most of the time:

“The George Washington Parkway is one of the most beautiful roadways in our country; I enjoy traveling the Parkway on a Sunday afternoon for a peaceful and relaxing drive.”
John C. Metzler, Jr., Superintendent, Arlington National Cemetery

It is also interesting that the front page of the Parkway Wide Plan (page 10 of the doc and page 14 of the pdf) shows four contemporary photos of the GWMP but in those photos only six cars are visible. Maybe traffic was too heavy to get a good rush hour picture. Front and center on that page is the once a year BikeDC event with dozens of cyclists on a closed side of the parkway.

I think that we need to start pushing our political representatives to improve conditions along the parkway to allow for a true multiple use arrangement. Only when the NPS accepts the fact that their allegiance is to more than the auto will cycling facilities get integrated into their capital projects.

[jabberwocky]

Whatever the historical precedent (or what NPS claims now), the GW parkway is currently a de-facto highway, with a large traffic volume moving at high speed. Grade crossings really have no place there. I live nowhere near there but have crossed it a few times, and even on the weekends those crossings are cringe-inducing.

[rcannon100]

So I was pondering my reaction to Mark….

Mark is one of those saints that walks amongst us. I mean that. We do not say thank you enough. To Mark, Tim, Shane and all the other drum majors in the cause of cycling. I want to be clear that my frustration is not at Mark or any of them.

That said… I think there can be only one emotion that comes from cyclists when discussing Lynn St and Lee Hwy, and when discussing the GW Parkway crossings: Exasperation. So the problem is hard. So the problem involves multiple jurisdictions. Tough! That is what government is for, to face and solve the hard decisions. They have had decades, literally decades to solve these problems. And they have not. They have rebuilt portions of these roads – and still refused to acknowledge our concerns. Every interaction we have with govt officials at this point should reflect exasperation. So you have to comply with NEPA; so you have to comply with historic preservation. So Do I! And my agency gets it done. It may take some hard work. So Get To It! Do something! Anything! Sitting back and bemoaning the fact that the solution to Lynn St and Lee Hwy involves ArlCo, VDOT, NPS, and DC – doesnt solve Lynn St and Lee Hwy.

If we want politicians to respond to us, there are basically two paths: (1) money or (2) making so much noise that they will solve the problem so we go away.

Every chance we get, every interaction we have, every time there is an incident, every one of us should contact Jim Moran, Elenor Holmes Norton, Arlington County Board, and the GW NPS and tell them: “this is not okay.” Every one of those has email, a twitter account, facebook, and telephone lines. Steve Offutt got some serious traction recently by showing up, I think it was, one of those monday evening talk to the ArlCo board things and talking to them about bollards. We need to be in their ears.

[KLizotte]

@eminva 21428 wrote:

Given that DC is on one side and Arlington Cemetery is on the other, I think they would have to build a bunch of pedestrian overpasses or face the wrath of their Congressional overlords.

Also, I didn’t articulate this too well, but I think cyclists and pedestrians are not a big enough interest group to solve this alone. My proposal was designed to bring drivers into the fold, because if we could improve things from their perspective, they have a bigger voice. Liz

Pertaining to your first point, yes, we need more congressional authorization, “push”, and funding to get these crossing fixed. Right now the response has been lukewarm.

On your second point, yes, this is the one time when drivers, peds, and cyclists can agree that money should be spent to create tunnels or bridges so as to completely segregate the traffic. I’m sure the regular auto commuters would love to see the end of the crosswalks as much as us.

At the end of the day though it comes down to money and we as taxpayers have to show that we are willing to pay for the improvements either by raising new funds or diverting it from other sources.

[Author]

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