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New road safety measures planned in Rosslyn
City leaders in Arlington will soon make changes to a popular corridor that connects Arlington’s Rosslyn neighborhood to D.C.’s Georgetown neighborhood. FOX 5's Sierra Fox has all the details.
ARLINGTON, Va. - City leaders in Arlington will soon make changes to a popular corridor that connects Arlington’s Rosslyn neighborhood to D.C.’s Georgetown neighborhood.
It’s a busy stretch of road that officials say has a lot of serious injuries and crashes. That's why they want to make improvements now.
The goal is to make the area safer for bikers, drivers, and walkers, which is why new bike, pedestrian, and vehicle safety measures are coming to Rosslyn.
The focus is on North Lynn Street between 17 and 19 Streets – which leads right to the Key Bridge.
"Yeah, I think it could be productive. There’s definitely a lot of cars coming through, a lot of people running, a lot of traffic that goes through here," said one person who lives nearby.
Arlington County has received several complaints from residents who say, "This stretch is very dangerous. too many car lanes, no protected bike lane. I feel trapped between speeding cars and the opening doors of stopped cars. Travel lanes and bike lanes are often blocked by vehicles driven by rideshare and food delivery operators. Dedicated short-term parking and enforcement/towing of illegally parked vehicles would help."
One person FOX 5 spoke with about the issues said, "I think it’s a problem of the signage and people not knowing what to do because I think the cars want to be safe, but some of them are just confused."
Arlington Street Smart campaign aims to save lives
A pedestrian and bicyclist safety campaign continues in Arlington County as police hold enforcement activities Monday.
The initial concept includes reducing this stretch of road from four vehicle lanes to three, adding a protected bike lane, and improving parking for food deliveries. A final plan will be implemented this fall.
"Sometimes when it comes to politics, I think the bicyclists always get their way, but then sometimes the best thing for everyone isn’t the best thing, that’s the best for the bicyclists," said one pedestrian walking on North Lynn Street.
A man who had his bike with him mentioned, "As both a driver and biker, once you start biking you have a little more empathy, so it’s the kind of situation where it might be inconvenient for drivers, every day, if they’re only doing that, but step outside your little zone for a little bit and really empathize with people who are trying to get to work or go around in a different medium."
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