Buffered Bike Lanes? More, Please
Arlington County recently installed buffered bike lanes in busy Clarendon. That’s great! Now it’s time for more.
There’s a part of Clarendon Boulevard where — as it passes the Market Common Clarendon and Whole Foods — the normal rules of traffic appear to be mysteriously suspended. Drivers in the right lane swerve left to get into the Whole Foods parking lot on the left, and drivers in the left lane shoot right for the Starbucks entrance without even glancing in their mirrors.
And through it all? One of Arlington’s busiest bike lanes.
Arlington County recently installed a new buffered bike lane, moving cyclists further away from parked cars and other traffic further away from cyclists. It’s not a cycletrack — it doesn’t have a barrier between cyclists and other road traffic — but it provides many of the same benefits of increased separation.
The original Clarendon bike lane often wasn’t the safest place for cyclists. While it met the technical minimum width specified in national standards, it still placed some users squarely within the “door zone.” Riding in the door zone puts cyclists in danger of serious injury if they ride too close to a car whose driver carelessly opens the door into traffic. Arlington County doesn’t keep reliable records of dooring-related injuries, but officials are aware of several incidents in recent years.
Arlington’s planning and traffic engineers saw an opportunity to address this problem when much of Clarendon Boulevard was scheduled to be resurfaced. While it‘s possible to grind off and restripe existing facilities, that often results in less-than-ideal pavement condition. So the county generally takes resurfacing as an opportunity to review whether existing facilities — striping, for instance — serve the needs of a road’s users. In this case, Clarendon Boulevard’s bike lane clearly didn’t.
The new lane is a step in the right direction. The design was heavily influenced by the National Association of City Transportation Officials Urban Bikeway Design Guide. Arlington, as a generally forward-looking jurisdiction when it comes to traffic management and design, collaborates on the content of the guide, combining its experience and best practices with other counties and cities to help shape future facilities.
And in the future? More of these facilities should be appearing in Arlington. This one should extend eastward through Courthouse. Next up should be Fairfax Boulevard from Clarendon through Ballston. And one day, if the state Transportation Department can get out of the way — Lee Highway.
It’s not possible everywhere, but in these cases, Arlington’s got the room to make its streets safer.
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Don't forget, the Arlington Fun Ride is this Saturday. Sign up here.
Mark Blacknell is a member of the Arlington Bicycle Advisory Committee, president of the Washington Area Bicyclist Association board of directors, and a League Cycling Instructor.
In This article
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Market Common Clarendon
2800 Clarendon Blvd, Arlington, VA -
Whole Foods Market
2700 Wilson Blvd, Arlington, VA -
Starbucks Coffee
2690 Clarendon Blvd, Arlington, VA
Paula
10:48 am on Monday, October 1, 2012
These lanes do nothing about Arlington's primary traffic safety problem: bicyclists running stop signs and traffic lights. Why such hostility from the bicyclists about basic traffic safety?
Allen Muchnick
10:51 pm on Monday, October 1, 2012
The people who ride bicycles in Arlington are a diverse population, similar to the diversity of motorists. Collectively, Arlington's bike riders are far less hostile to "basic traffic safety" than Arlington's motorists, who typically treat posted speed limits as minimums, roll through stop signs, and often drive distracted.
Do you have *any* statistical evidence, Paula/Jim, that bicyclists running stop signs and traffic lights in Arlington are often involved in or cause traffic crashes, much less constitute "Arlington's primary traffic safety problem?
A.B.
1:07 pm on Monday, October 1, 2012
It gets worse, there was an op-ed in the NY Times Sunday Style Section yesterday urging urban bicyclists not to wear helmets. Duh.
Allen Muchnick
11:00 pm on Monday, October 1, 2012
A.B./Jim, the NY Times article did NOT urge any bicyclists not to wear helmets. Rather, it correctly pointed out that mandating or forcefully promoting bicycle helmet use can be counterproductive, reduces bicycling by both adults and children, and is hardly more warranted than mandating helmets when walking, driving a car, or taking a shower.
It's well documented that places with the highest incidence and safest bicycling have the lowest proportion of bicycle helmet use.
Allie
3:31 pm on Monday, October 1, 2012
Our streets and highways are being reserved for non-residents to drive to the 400-800 vehicle parking garages where they will work, one to a vehicle. Residents will be forced to walk or ride 2-wheel vehicles (not necessarily bicycles) to be able to escape gridlock in their own neighborhoods. County Board is headed toward approving 4,000 parking spaces for new buildings in 2012.
Allen Muchnick
11:06 pm on Monday, October 1, 2012
Allie/Jim,
Can you cite *any* statistical evidence that traffic congestion has increased in Arlington neighborhoods or that Arlington's "streets and highways are being reserved for non-residents"?
I didn't think so.
CSG
7:03 pm on Monday, October 1, 2012
I think a moped or scooter with enough power to climb hills easily would be a wise choice for getting around the County between April and November.
Allen Muchnick
11:15 pm on Monday, October 1, 2012
CSG/Jim,
Congratulations on finally posting a non-ridiculous comment, but what makes you think a moped or scooter is impractical during our generally mild winters?
Mark Blacknell
10:45 pm on Monday, October 1, 2012
So when I started this column, it was with the hope that it would reach out to and provoke a conversation with a wide audience in Arlington. Cycling isn't for everyone, but it can make a difference in all of our lives - kinda like trucks and cars (i.e., you don't have to drive one to benefit from one).
And really, I've gotten a lot out of this - great feedback (some in comments, mostly directly) from people who've read it. I've learned more about APS, about perceptions of safe street sharing, etc., than I'd really expected. So I'm very thankful for that.
But the comment conversation here has really been quashed by one individual - Jim Hurysz - who posts under multiple pseudonyms (he is Paula, A.B., Allie, and CSG, above.). His obsession with spreading FUD (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear,_uncertainty_and_doubt) when it comes to cycling is unfortunate, and not a little curious. I've asked him - in person - to give it a rest. Alas, it mostly made him deny any involvement, go red in the face, and immediately launch into the same harangues that his various aliases do here.
That's disappointing.
I'm perfectly fine with criticism (tho' I prefer it to be well-informed and open to response). But the constant trolling and sockpuppeting? It's getting kind of tiresome. I'd much prefer to use this space for genuine back and forth about how Arlington will best address the challenges of transportation and safety as it grows into an increasingly urbanized space.
Janet
4:47 am on Tuesday, October 2, 2012
My name is Janet. Why attack people who make relevant comments?
Anyone who drives around Arlington sees many reckless bicyclists.
Many bicyclists are not wearing helmets.
Please stop attacking people who are only trying to save lives.
Mark Blacknell
9:16 am on Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Jim/Janet/A.B/ Paula/Allie/CSG - your comments aren't relevant or aimed at saving lives. If they were informed, or somehow led to an interesting conversation related to the piece, I'd not care about the incessant sockpuppetry. But mostly they're just ill-informed repetitive banging on the same worn-out drum. While the County Board and other public employees politely listen to your semi-coherent ramblings, I don't have to do that. You're part of the problem, Jim, not the solution.
A.B.
9:01 am on Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Article in Sunday's NY Times: "To Encourage Biking Cities Lose Helmets". Pretty irresponsible.
We're not even talking about bicyclists speeding down our streets with a BAC of .12, 'cause there's no enforcement except for people operating motor vehicles.
I hope some of the $140 million in the 10-year CIP for street paving actually gets used for street paving.
CSG
10:18 am on Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Chris, Jay, Walter, Mary, Libby, Alan, Mark,
Safety starts with you. You can pave the streets with pavement markings but until there's a comprehensive safety program, with enforcement, bicycle safety is going to be an increasingly serious problem. Does not help that a national newspaper is raising the helmet issue.
But who's really to blame here? County Board and local media, e.g., Patch, for empowering another special interest to do it's thing. People who suffer the consequences - motorists who have to avoid bicyclists wearing black at night and running traffic lights and stop signs - are the "problem" according to the bicyclists.
Nice to see that Patch encourages "debate", except when the debate involves one of its pet special interests.
Rachel Hatzipanagos
11:47 am on Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Everyone is welcome to share their comments but as with any article please keep any personal attacks out of it. Let's just disagree without being disagreeable or to put it in legalese: http://clarendon.patch.com/terms
A.B.
1:18 pm on Tuesday, October 2, 2012
OK, then please remove the previous comments that violate AOL-Patch TOS by personally attacking people.
No one should be attacked for telling people to be safe. If you're a highway worker, a highway construction worker, VDOT road crew person, etc., you have to always wear a safety vest and usually a hard hat too.
For 1/10 the cost of painting the bike lane lines on the pavement the County could provide every bicyclist a helmet and a safety vest. Same County that thinks nothing of spending $400,000 for public art in one park.
Allie
11:50 pm on Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Shame on Rachel and Jason for allowing confrontational personal attacks to be posted on Patch.
Why do I have to visit the Arlington Yupette blog to relevant and proactive safety information like this:
http://www.bikeportland.org/2012/09/20/portland-streetcar-inc-bta-release-new-safety-video-7710
???