Bike crash on Mt. Vernon Highway

Bike Helmet May Have Saved Child's Life is a report at wusa9.com about a crash on Mt. Vernon Highway:

The life of an 8-year-old boy on a bicycle may have been saved by his bike helmet, according to Fairfax County Police.

On Tuesday at about 6 p.m., police responded to a report of a crash on Mount Vernon Highway near Surrey Drive. A child riding his bike had veered into the path of an SUV. The driver was not able to avoid the boy, who was hit and injured. He was flown to Inova Fairfax Hospital to be treated for non-life threatening injuries.

The medics who responded to the accident as well as the officers on the scene credited the child's bike helmet as a key factor in helping to save his life. In Fairfax County, bicycle helmets are required by law.

The boy is recovering from a number of injuries; the photo of his mangled helmet was provided by those who responded to the scene of the accident.

In Fairfax County helmets are only required on children under the age of 15.

NPS discusses GW Parkway at Mt Vernon meeting

At this week's meeting of the Mt Vernon Council of Citizens' Associations Transportation Committee reps from the National Park Service and the US Park Police discussed safety issues related to the George Washington Memorial Parkway. Bicycling has been banned on the Parkway since at least 2006 "in the name of safety." It's odd that bicyclists are banned from riding on the road since we are allowed to ride on almost all other roads in Virginia, many of which I would consider more dangerous than the Parkway.

Adam Froehlig of Just Down the Parkway posted notes from the meeting:

• Numerous complaints about increased traffic in BOTH directions of the Parkway during rush hour with BRAC and the new hospital at Ft Belvoir cited as the cause. Excessive speeding by traffic was also mentioned.
• Because of the traffic, it's very difficult for drivers to turn out onto the Parkway during rush hour, especially for those turning left. Nevermind the issues that cyclists and pedestrians face trying to cross the Parkway.
• On that note, NPS has no current plans to improve bike/ped access to the MVT, though they had considered intersection improvements at Belle Haven Rd at one point. This is problematic since, between the south end of Old Town and the "Stone Bridge" at Alexandria Ave (a little over 3 miles), there is no way for bikes and peds to access the Mount Vernon Trail that doesn't involve hopping a curb and going through grass.
• The current (acting) NPS Superintendent has no intention of lifting the GW Parkway bicycle ban. The NPS reiterated that the current policy ban was put into place "in the name of safety".
• When asked about MVT improvements, the rep said that NPS is looking into an "express bike lane" in the Gravelly Point area. This would allow through cyclists to avoid the heavy congregation of pedestrians just east of the parking lot that go there to watch airplanes take off and land at National Airport.
• US Park Police apparently have data on accidents/crashes that occur on the Mount Vernon Trail proper. They're looking into making that data available to members of the transportation committee.
• NPS has automated traffic counters at several locations along the parkway and postsaggregate monthly stats on them. The committee asked if they also have hourly counts, which they'll look into. The hourly counts would give a better idea on when the low-traffic times are on the Parkway.

The Committee is also considering support for a resolution to allow bicyclists on the Parkway during certain times. The draft resolution will be discussed at their next meeting on Monday, March 5 at 7:30pm at Whitman Middle School library.

Bike Plan area meeting comments now online

Three area meetings have been held to gather input from cyclists for the Fairfax bicycle master plan. The Great Falls-McLean meeting, the fourth of eight, is on Monday Dec. 12.

During each meeting notes are compiled for use in developing the final plan recommendations. Toole Design folks have done a good job of summarizing comments from each meeting and those notes are now posted online on the Materials & Resources page of the bike plan website. Below are some selected comments from the meeting notes:

Clifton Area Meeting (Oct 6, 2011):

• For blind corners and steep grades, put signs with blinking lights that detect cyclists (when the sign detects a cyclist, the lights begin blinking to warn motorists that a cyclist is around the corner/going up the hill. They continue blinking until the cyclist is out of the way). 
• If the BIKES MAY USE FULL LANE is used, it may be helpful to add a plaque to the sign assembly that says “FOR SAFETY”, to remind motorists that cyclists who may be in the middle of the lane are not doing so just to annoy the motorist, but rather because it is the safest location for the cyclist to be in when there is no shoulder. 
• Where feasible, [in the uphill direction of narrow roads,] construct a segment of shoulder for bicyclists to use, which allows them to ride outside of the travel lane and then merge in again.

Reston-Herndon Area Meeting (Oct 20, 2011):

• Focus on making areas around schools safer to allow all children to bike to school. 
• Focus on education materials to share the road signs, sharrows. 
• Focus on making multi-use path crossings more visible throughout Reston. 
• Ensure that there is dedicated funding for the implementation of the plan. 
• Work with schools to create Safe Routes to School program. 
• Accommodate cyclists at intersections: time traffic lights for bicycle speeds, add loop detector markings, bike boxes, bike signal leads and video detection. 
• Make sure bike parking facilities meet/exceed standards. 
• Please make sure that all bike facilities meet NACTO standards. 

 Mt. Vernon-Eastern Lee Area Meeting (Nov 17, 2011):

• Ft Hunt Road is a preferred connection for bicycle commuters. 
• Bike Lanes, a adequate and consistent paved shoulder width, and/or shared roadway signs are desired to increase safety and visibility of cyclists 
• Residential streets parallel to the GW Memorial Parkway serve as an alternative route to the very busy Mt Vernon Trail, especially when it is crowded. 
• Short neighborhood connecting paths through parks and school grounds exist but need signage. 
• An off-road path along Ft Hunt from Westgrove Rd, past the Library towards Belle View Road needs to be resurfaced and widened and would improve safety for young people bicycling to/from the library and a school across the street. 
• Conflicts with high speed vehicular traffic, during AM/PM rush hours especially, make it difficult to connect to shopping destinations along the entire Route 1 corridor. 
• Two choke points make it difficult to travel on parallel side streets: one at Route 1 and Buckman Road and one at Beacon Hill Road and Route 1. 
• Crossing Route 1 is also challenging at these and most other intersections.

Cyclists turn out for Mt. Vernon area bike plan meeting

Bob Patten (left) taking notes on local bike conditions.

About 30-35 cyclists attended the Fairfax Co. 
Bicycle Master Plan meeting for the greater Mt. Vernon area last night. Representatives from VDOT, Fairfax Co., and the Board of Supervisors attended as did members of FABB.

After cyclists studied and commented on detailed maps of the area, Bob Patten of Toole Design gave an overview of the master planning process. He also described several types of bicycle facilities such as cycletracks, buffered bike lanes, shared lane markings (sharrows), and others.

Bob stated that the plan will result in a map showing specific facilities proposed for roads in the county. There will also be policy recommendations to ensure that county policies treat bicycling as an integral part of the transportation system. These not only include bike route facilities but also bike parking requirements, opportunities for bicycle safety education at all levels, improved enforcement, and encouragement of bicycling by using such measures as transportation demand management incentives.

Participants then gathered around the maps to mark  where they would like to ride and to identify barriers to their travel. The Huntington and Franconia-Springfield Metro stations are major destinations.

Several natural and manmade barriers make cycling in this area a challenge. Route 1 is the biggest challenge. Few cyclists choose to ride with 45 mph traffic and there are almost no side paths along the road. Many of the surrounding neighborhood streets don't connect, especially on the south side.

Just north of Route 1, Huntley Meadows Park and Fort Belvoir form another barrier. For a 2 mile stretch just north of Mt. Vernon Estate, Little Hunting Creek is a major barrier between several residential neighborhoods, forcing cyclists to use either the Mt. Vernon Trail or Route 1.

There are several major attractions in the area including Mt. Vernon Estate, Mason Neck State Park and Natural Wildlife Refuge, Pohick Bay Regional Park, Huntley Meadows Park, and Fort Hunt National Park. U.S. Bike Route 1, the East Coast Greenway, and the Adventure Cycling Atlantic Coast route all pass through this area. The area could be a major cycling destination if there were good bicycle routes connecting major attractions. It's going to take the work of everyone to make this happen.