Proposed DDOT rules: safe accomodation for pedestrians, cyclists at work zones

[PotomacCyclist]

http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/breaking_ground/2014/08/safe-passage-new-rules-demand-clear-path-for.html?page=all

“The Department of Transportation on Friday released proposal rules to guarantee “safe accommodation” for pedestrians and bicyclists “through or around a work zone that is equal to the accommodation that was provided … before the blockage of the sidewalk, bicycle lane, or other public bicycle path.” The rules release follows the D.C. Council’s adoption of the Bicycle Safety Amendment Act of 2013, which took effect last December but could not be implemented until regulations were in place.

Safe accommodation must provide a route that is physically separated from motor vehicle traffic if a protected bicycle lane is block, a route that is free of obstructions and surface hazards, and one that does not share a covered or open walkway with pedestrians.”

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“Perhaps most importantly, the rules demand that “the safe and reasonable flow of pedestrian and bicycle traffic be maintained in preference to construction activities and the flow of construction vehicles.” Contractors that fail to provide safe accommodation may have their public space permit revoked, which is bad news for whatever project they’re working on.”

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“DDOT expects to enact the proposed rules in 30 days.”

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[mstone]

That’s more than vdot does for its own projects. (Currently pissed about the Stringfellow road project, where they took out all of the crosswalks and most of the sidewalks for a mile, on a road with three schools. At least they put bags over the crosswalk signals to limit their own liability.)

[jrenaut]

It’s about time. How many months has it been since they passed the law saying this had to happen?

[DSalovesh]

This is a great start, and covers most of the main concerns we’ve seen over the last few years. I especially appreciate that they recognize that moving vehicles have to be a higher priority than parked ones.

I’m a little concerned about how this will scale as bike facilities expand from the ~50 miles we have to the hundreds we have our sights set on. Will these rules work in 2023, 2033? Will they work for trails and completely segregated bike facilities? There do seem to be an awful lot of weasel-words that might be challenging for DDOT to enforce, and I’m not exactly thrilled that it broadly incorporates the ADA instead of specifically talking about acceptable surface treatments for temporary accommodations and navigability.

[Author]

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