"Walkable" Mosaic District not so bike-friendly

We've been hearing about the new Mosaic District development in Merrifield that is supposed to be transforming that area into a walkable community. See the Post article "Development transforming Merrifield into more walkable community." Only the first phase is complete, or nearing complete, so we'll hold off judgement about how walkable and bikeable the development is, but we did see what's in store for cyclists who want to ride to that area and it isn't pretty.

5-foot sidewalk on Lee Hwy at Gallows Rd

The county Trails Plan indicates that major paved trails 8 feet in width are planned for each side of Lee Highway adjacent to the development. What we found were 5 foot sidewalks on the south side and 6 foot sidewalks on the north side. There are no bike facilities on the road that has 10 lanes in some sections.

When this area was being planned several years ago there were suggestions from cyclists for bike lanes on Lee Highway. I can remember now-Planning Commissioner Earl Flanagan saying to me some time afterwards that those pesky bicyclists wanted too much and they didn't get bike lanes. We'll we didn't get a paved trail either. It looks like we're stuck with a narrow sidewalk on one side and a slightly less narrow sidewalk on the other side. All the more reason to make one of the travel lanes a bike lane by taking it when riding there; but only for the more experienced riders. Shouldn't we be encouraging more people to travel by bike to places like this?

To make things interesting, VDOT placed (or approved the placement) of a large pole holding traffic signals right in the middle of where a cyclist would enter the sidewalk on a curb ramp at one of the intersections (Yates Way?).

It's depressing to see what has happened in this area. To say this area in general is a walkable place is delusional. Pedestrians will take their lives in their hands trying to cross Lee Highway and Gallows Road. As you can see in the top photo, the right turn lane was designed for maximum speed for motorists and maximum danger for pedestrians. Conditions in the interior of the development should be much better for non-motorists, but they will likely need to drive to get there.

The only consolation is that these roads were planned many years ago. It seems that the county and VDOT do not have the flexibility to modify auto-dominated road plans in what should be walkable places. The roads can be re-engineered, but it's sad that they were built this way in the first place.

As a side note, when browsing the Mosaic District site we noticed that Fresh Bikes now has a shop located there. Maybe they can help make this location more bike-friendly.

SAIC Transportation Fair

Handing out literature at SAIC Trans. Fair

Yesterday we attended the SAIC Transportation Fair. As you can see from the photo on the right, it was held outdoors in one of the massive parking lots next to the building located on Greensboro Dr in Tysons. It's always impressive how much free parking space is used in Tysons, where land is very valuable. And people think that bicyclists don't pay for facilities. We all pay for free parking.

We talked to several people who live very close to Tysons. They all said they would ride to work if they could do so safely. I had a copy of the latest version of the Fairfax County Bicycle Route map that is being delivered to the county this week, showing people the many bike-friendly routes leading to Tysons. The worst part of the ride for most people is along Gosnell Road and Westpark Road. During rush hour the streets are packed with commuters and even the most experienced cyclists are challenged by the conditions. We need to make these critical connecting routes more bike-friendly.

New trail that ends near service road

We rode to the event, using the same route we used to the Wolf Trap concert, instead turning right on Gelder Ln at Trap Rd, left on Bois Ave, left on Montmorency Dr to the end where there's a trail into Tysons behind the Sheraton. We crossed Route 7 and took a right on the paved trail to Spring Hill Rd at the site of the new Metro station. There's a short climb after turning right on Greensboro Dr to the SAIC parking lot. It took about 35 minutes, probably less time than it would take to drive, park, and walk to the building during heavy rush hour. It was a very pleasant ride for most of the trip.

Northbound bike lane on Gallows Rd closed

On the return trip we wanted to check out the Gallows Road bike lanes again as they were part of a discussion of bike lane widths at the Bicycle Master Plan advisory committee meeting on Wed. We rode to Tysons Corner Center mall then to the ring road past the Towers Crescent building to a left on the bridge over Route 7 where we took the photo above. There's a new, much needed trail that extends from the new bridge over the 495 Express Lanes/Beltway to this location where it abruptly ends. Someone needs to complete this connection to the service road you seen in the distance. We're trying to find out if that's in the works.

Backing out of the W&OD Trail

If you're riding on the Gallows Road bike lanes this week beware that there is construction on the northbound lane just north of Idylwood Rd where the bike lane is closed and cyclists must merge with traffic in the center lane.

The bike lanes are a vast improvement over previous conditions. When traffic is congested cyclists can easily ride to head of the line at traffic lights. The lanes are about 4 feet wide with a 2 foot gutter pan. Even so we'd like them to be 5 feet wide but they work pretty well as is.

Finally, we eventually made our way back to the W&OD Trail where we took the photo of a motorist who had turned right onto the W&OD Trail thinking it was either a road or an entrance to the adjacent Whole Foods store. People do some crazy things out there so beware. That's the second car we've seen on the W&OD Trail in that area, but we would definitely not want bollards placed at the entrances which are a hazard to cyclists, especially at night. Maybe better signage is needed.

New bike lanes on Gallows Road

Bike lanes on Gallows Road north of the W&OD Trail

There are now bike lanes on Gallows Road from the W&OD trail into Tysons. The project has been in the planning stages for many years and is now mostly complete. Bike lanes now extend from just north of the I-66 bridge at the Dunn Loring Metro station to Tysons near Madrillon Road.

It was disappointing to see that the bike lanes end before Old Courthouse Road. Ideally they should be extended beyond Route 7 into the heart of Tysons but that wasn't part of the project. However, we had understood that the lanes would reach Old Courthouse Road so we'll check with the county to find out if there are plans in the near future to extend the lanes.

The speed limit on Gallows is 35 mph but motorists appeared to be driving much faster when we were there this morning. The bike lanes appear to be 4 feet wide not including the gutter pan. We'd prefer they were 5 feet wide given the high speeds on the road. One huge advantage of the bike lanes is that during rush hour, when traffic is backed up, cyclists can easily pass stopped traffic in the bike lanes.

Bike lanes end before Old Courthouse Rd in the distance

This is a big step forward for the county. The bike lanes are a visible sign to motorists that cyclists belong on the road. Thanks to the county for finding the funding for the project and to VDOT for adding to the bike lanes in Fairfax. We look forward to the appearance of more bike lanes, especially in the Tysons area as it redevelops with the arrival of Metro.

In fact, the lanes on Old Courthouse Road are very wide and there is a wide center turn lane. It would be very easy and relatively inexpensive to restripe the road to add bike lanes, at least from Gallows Rd to Route 123.

Braddock Rd and Gallows Rd bridges over Beltway to open today

According to the Virginia Megaprojects site, both the Braddock Rd and Gallows Rd bridges over the Beltway will open today. The Braddock Rd bridge will have two 10 foot sidepaths and the Gallows Rd bridge should have a 10 foot sidepath, a 5 foot sidewalk, and 5 foot shoulders. Not sure if these will be open or not. If you know, please comment below.

See our HOT lanes summary page from a while back for links to cross sections of most of the bridges. The images are from photos we took at a public hearing and are not very good quality, but you can mostly tell what is proposed.

See the Megaprojects news releases about the bridge openings.

VDOT meeting on Gallows Rd/Route 29 construction

VDOT rendering of the project

VDOT is holding a public meeting Wednesday night from 7-9pm at Luther Jackson Middle School to discuss the Gallows Road/Route 29 project that will include widening both Gallows Rd and Route 29. According to the Countywide Trails Plan, bike lanes are designated on Gallows Rd, with major paved trails (>8') on each side, and major paved trails are called for on each side of Route 29. That doesn't quite match what's being built:

After three years of major utility relocation and right of way acquisition, the Virginia Department of Transportation begins construction on the $110 million project to improve the congested Route 29 and Gallows Road intersection in Merrifield.Improvements to the intersection will increase safety, reduce congestion and enhance bicycle and pedestrian access, and include:

• Widening Route 29 from two to three through lanes in each direction between Merrilee Drive and I-495 (about 0.6 miles)
• Widening Gallows Road from two to three through lanes in each direction between Gatehouse Road and Prosperity Avenue (about 0.8 miles)
• On Route 29, a six-foot sidewalk on the westbound side and 5-foot sidewalk on the eastbound side
• On Gallows Road, a 10-foot asphalt shared-use path on the west side, and six-foot sidewalk on the east side
• Dual left-turn lanes on Route 29 at Gallows Road
• Landscaped medians on both approaches

Co Trails Plan

The meeting on Wednesday is a "pardon our dust" meeting. Public hearings for this project occurred several years ago after study by a task force, before FABB was formed. Around that time we recall being told by a member of the Transportation Advisory Commission, currently a Planning Commissioner, that "those bikers" wanted too much, despite the fact that the Trails Plan contained the above recommendations. Looks like we didn't get much either.

Gallows Road is a major north-south connector for all modes of transportation, and a 10 foot shared-use path isn't sufficient to serve the pedestrian and bike traffic expected in this area. The 5 and 6 foot sidewalks along Route 29 are even worse. Given the late stage of this project, it's not very likely these plans will change. We plan to attend the meeting on Wednesday.

Update July 26—We've learned that wide outside lanes are included on Gallows Road. Bike lanes were proposed but they are not included in the final configuration. Wide outside or "wide curb" lanes work well for many cyclists although most people who are reluctant to ride in traffic would much prefer striped bike lanes. Bike lanes are currently striped on Gallows from the W&OD Trail to the bridge over I-66 just north of Dunn Loring Metro. Later this year bike lanes will be striped from the W&OD Trail north to Tysons.