CommuterPageBlog

Well Done Transit Pays Off. Can Alexandria Do It?

Two of our favorite local bloggers have articles worth a read. Matthew Yglesias at ThinkProgress.org says there's no way around the high cost of well-done mass transit (TOD Pays, June 3, 2009). He's says its expensive but worth it. Says Matt:

"In the DC area, we have a great example of the difference as the Orange Line goes out in Virginia. In distant Fairfax County they built Metro on the cheap, in the I-66 median, and wound up with what amount to park-and-ride venues for a commuter rail network. That’s a useful asset for the county, but it’s nothing compared to what they got in Arlington County where they buried Metro beneath Wilson Boulevard and built a series of relatively close-packed stations, creating an extended corridor of walkable neighborhoods."

Hey cites Greater Greater Washington blogger Dave Alpert saying: “Arlington’s Rosslyn-Ballston corridor covers only 7.6% of the county’s land area, but generated 33% of its tax revenue.” Thus worth the investment in many different ways.

Alpert informs us that Alexandria is considering alternatives for potential locations of a new Potomac Yard Metrorail station between National Airport and Braddock Road (Alexandria Weighing Metro Station Alternatives, June 3, 2009). The alternatives range from building the Station along the existing track where it would serve less people and generate less development to building more costly options that would actually move the track to the center of the new community where it would generate more development and serve more people. Alexandria made the mistake 30 years ago, like Fairfax County, of taking the path of least resistance for it's Metrorail stations. It will be interesting to see if they've got the political will to do the more costly but more worthwhile option of moving the tracks. Let's hope they do.

If Alexandria officials need some inspiration they need look no further than this video documentary about "Arlington's Smart Growth Journey."

Chris Hamilton is the Commuter ServicesChief for Arlington County in the Transportation Division of the Department of Environmental Services, manager of CommuterPageBlog and a Metro/biking commuter from Rosemont in Alexandria.

Finally. . . the Seven Corners Pedestrian Overpass!

It's almost done; ribbon cutting scheduled for May 20.  Even before I moved to a part of Arlington that is not far from Seven Corners, I was aware of the significant number of pedestrian deaths that were occurring along the stretch of Route 50 (Arlington Boulevard) near Patrick Henry Drive and Seven Corners (right by the Home Depot to point out a familiar landmark).  Here's a map of the area (one detail: the actual location of the bridge is somewhat west of what is shown. This is taken from the official VDOT site):

I've also included a number of photos below, which you can expand by clicking.  There's also a great article in the Falls Church News Press by Penny Gross describing the placement of the main bridge section a couple of weeks ago.

I don't know the exact statistics, but since I started paying attention I would guess at least 12-15 people have been killed by cars in that area.  This bridge should have been built 20 years ago.  There is no good way to cross route 50.  I know that at least one of the pedestrians was killed crossing at the walk signal at the Patrick Henry intersection; there really is no safe way.  There are homes, apartments and significant commerce on both sides of the highway, so there are lots of reasons for people to cross.  One would think that the businesses would have an interest in making it easier for people to reach their establishments, too.  I don't know how strong a role they played in helping make it happen, however.

So hooray.  As usual, though, I have opinions about this project.  Here they are:
- Way, way overdue, as mentioned above.
- It took a long time.  This project was started in the fall of 2007.  Originally it was supposed to be complete last November.  Unfortunately, the original truss that was delivered was cracked, which caused a several-months delay.
- Why does the north side empty out inside the frontage road, so people still have to cross another lane of traffic to get to the sidewalk (see photos)?  If the frontage road had been shifted a little southward, the bridge would need to be somewhat longer, but not much.  They completely rebuilt this entire area, so it could have been designed that way.  I often wonder why--when we're building a piece of infrastructure that will be there for 40 years or more--that more thought isn't put into these details.
- Pedestrian access on both sides should be improved now that the bridge is complete
- It probably cost too much.  Although it appears to be an excellent facility, Fairfax County is not known for its willingness to invest in bike/ped facilities.  I suspect that the next time someone suggests an improvement, the county will say, "But that one at 7 Corners cost so much; we can't afford to spend that kind of money willy nilly on pedestrians."

Taken in February from the Barnes & Noble parking lot prior to installation of the bridge (click to enlarge)

Looking east from Seven Corners.  Home Depot is behind the bridge to the right (click to enlarge).

Looking West along Route 50.  You can see the ramp pedestrians will come down and then have to cross the frontage road on the right to get to the sidewalk.  Dumb.  (Click to enlarge)

 

At the top of the ramp looking south across the bridge.  Still a little work being finished up.

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Steve Offutt, Arlingtonian and future Seven Corners bike/pedestrian bridge user

Pedestrians and Cyclists Count

Arlington County transportation programs BikeArlington and WALKArlington are looking for volunteers to help count bicyclists and pedestrians in Arlington County on May 7th and 9th.  This regular data collection is fundamental research, part of a national project to document walking and cycling as modes of transportation.  Building long-term support for walking and cycling requires collecting regular, high-quality data on usage and demand.  More information about the national project can be found at http://bikepeddocumentation.org.  Think of them as traffic counts - without the traffic.

Observations are made at shared-use paths, along sidewalks, and at on-road bike lanes.  Many of the sites are easily accessible by Metro, and Arlington will provide materials and easy-to-follow training.  Shifts are two hours long, morning (7-9 AM) and evening (4-6 PM) on Thursday, May 7th, and noon to 2:00 PM on Saturday, May 9th. In addition to tracking cyclists and pedestrians, volunteers may choose to record additional observations, such as the percentage of cyclists wearing helmets, or those wearing "normal" clothes.

To express interest in helping with this study, email David Patton at bikearlington@arlingtonva.us.

David Patton is a Bicycle and Pedestrian Planner for Arlington County.

The Future: It's About Connecting Land-Use and Transportation Planning

So says Virginia Governor Tim Kaine who has pushed new regulations through the State's Commonwealth Transportation Board requiring that all new subdivisions must have through streets linking them with neighboring subdivisions, schools and shopping if they want the streets to be built and maintained by the State. Great idea and good for the Governor. The always thoughtful Eric Weiss details what this all means  (In Virginia, Vision of Suburbia at a Crossroads, March 22, 2009) for the future of development patterns in the cul-de-sac crazy suburbs, where one is wastefully forced to drive miles on congested main roads for milk, in a page one story in today's Washington Post.

Mr. Weiss explains the State reasoning as follows: "The new regulations will improve safety and accessibility and save money. No more single entrances and exists onto clogged secondary roads. Quicker responses by emergency vehicles. Lower road maintenance costs for governments." But this is the mindset the State is up against. From the article:

"Cul-de-sacs are the safest places in America to live," said Mike Toalson, executive vice president of the Home Builders Association of Virginia, which opposes the new rules. "The first lots sold are often on the cul-de-sacs because they are safe." As for developments with single entrances and exits, Toalson said, such configurations ensure that all traffic is local, neighbors watch out for each other and speeds are kept down. "Crooks look for multiple exits."

OMG! Where does one begin to pick apart such last century thinking. Think of the children! Crooks! Come on now. Really? Thank goodness our progressive Governor is having none of it. Now we need to think about how we can reconnect all those subdivisions that are already built. The article is well worth the read and gives some hope for a better future.

Chris Hamilton is the Commuter ServicesChief for Arlington County in the Transportation Division of the Department of Environmental Services, manager of CommuterPageBlog and a Metro/biking commuter from Rosemont in Alexandria

 

People Radically Understimate the Cost of Commuting

...when they chose to live further away to "afford" more house says Ric Edelman, a financial planner in Fairfax in answer to a question about how much money one should borrow when buying a house in yesterday's Washington Post Real Estate Section (How Much House Can I Afford, December 13, 2008, Washington Post). From the Post article:

"Avoiding that risk (exceeding the decades old formula of all your loans - mortgage, car, credit debt - not exceeding more than 36% of your gross monthly income) may mean buying a condominium unit instead of a house or living farther from the city than you wanted to, Edelman said. The first is fine. The second is a "disastrous compromise," he said. "People radically underestimate the cost of commuting when they're fixated on buying the home of their dreams."

"There are the economic costs of the commute itself, including gasoline, maintenance and repairs associated with the extra driving and the need to replace the car more often, he said. There are also lifestyle costs, including more time away from the family and the effects on physical fitness and stress levels."

Good things to keep in mind when making housing choices.

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Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and a Metro/biking commuter from Rosemont in Alexandria

New Development. It's All About Sustainability

So says San Francisco Zoning Administrator and Assistant Planning Director Lawrence Badiner in reference to his City's 2005 ordinance requiring new residential buildings to reduce parking requirements and promote transportation options. "The idea is that if there are fewer cars in the world, more people use the Muni (local transit line) and there are less carbon emissions. It's all about sustainability." We learn this from the always interesting Neil Takemoto at his Cool Town Studios blog in a post entitled Developers Provide Green Incentives to Home Buyers (November 13, 2008).

Mr. Takemoto, who's blog has for years been on the cutting edge of placemaking development trends, says there's an emerging market for "green housing and transportation." He brings a few examples from the the bay area in Oakland and San Francisco where developers are offering free carsharing services and memberships, free bikes, bike repair lounges and lockers and free annual transit passes. And we learn that as of September, 2008 Oakland requires all developers with projects of more than 50 residential units or 50,000 s.f. of non-residential space to complete a "transportation demand management" plan, including strategies to increase bicycle, pedestrian, transit and car-share use. We also find from Neil that in San Francisco the parking requirements are as low as one parking space per four units in some neighborhoods. Now that's aggressive.

In our area these kinds of requirements have been in place since the late 1980's in Montgomery County (Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance) and the City of Alexandria (TMP Ordinance) and since 1990 in Arlington (TDM Policy). And to good effect. We'll come back and share some examples and findings in the future. It should be noted that the District and Fairfax are now exploring wasy to implement these kinds of TDM policies with new development too. What's interesting is that while these policies seem to have generally started as way to fight traffic congestion, they are now gaining additional currency as a green or sustainability issues. Let's hope more areas catch on to these good practices, regardless of the reason. 

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Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and a Metro/biking commuter from Rosemont in Alexandria

Can We Use Our Streets Differently? NYDOT Shows The Way

Can we use our streets differently? Yes we can! And according to Neil Takemoto at the always wonderful Cool Town Studios (The Most Innovative Gov Agency in the U.S.?, October 22, 2008), the most innovative government agency in the U.S., New York City's Department of Transportation, shall lead the way.

Says Neil: "If you’re looking for a model of a government agency that’s looking out for creatives, your first stop should be New York City’s Department of Transportation (DOT), as has been stated several times on this site. Behind every progressive organization there’s a leader, and that’s DOT Commissioner, Janette Sadik-Khan, who not surprisingly commutes to work by bike. Kudos to Streetfilms for providing this interview that every transportation decision-maker or advocate should watch."

The 11-minute StreetFilms video is a must for planners and citizens alike who have hope that we can further continue to transform our cities into places with complete streets. Streets that emphasize all users including pedestrians, bikes, and transit - not just cars.

Some highlights include:

• Traffic calming of the future. Drivers take their physic cues from the newly created plazas and slow down because the spaces are designed for people not cars. Drivers do adapt.
• Bus only lanes are provided and painted terra cotta and given soft barriers to demarcate the lane. On-street fare collection reduces waiting time.
• Bike only lanes, pedestrian plazas and the Summer Streets Pedestrian-Only Saturdays are all great examples of how this innovative agency is setting the pace.

And Neil provides these other links:

• Streets to plazas examples.
• Summer Streets pedestrian-only Saturdays.
• The pedestrianized Broadway Boulevard.
• The Streets to Plazas Program, one of the most compelling programs in the U.S., but not mentioned in the video, which goes to show they’re focused on results.
• Click here for the Sustainable Streets plan she mentions at the end which summarizes the DOT’s vision.

Enjoy and lets make sure we start doing more of these things right here in our own region. Kudos to NYC DOT.

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Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and a Metro/biking commuter from Rosemont in Alexandria

The Invisible/Virtual Tunnel - Now Even More Invisible?

If you're following my series of posts recommending immediate implementation of a "virtual tunnel" between the Farragut stations (1st post, 2nd post), you will be dismayed by this piece of news I read in the Washington Post yesterday: SmarTrip Upgrades Pushed to 2010.

As mentioned in my last post, in a conversation with a Metro employee, I was informed that the upgrades to the SmarTrip cards would include the capability to provide for many improved features, including these kinds of transfers (BTW - another potential tunnel that has been studied is between Metro Center and Gallery Place, which would also be a candidate for a virtual tunnel).

According to the Post, the software vendor, Cubic Transportation Systems, has missed deadlines and run over budgets and basically screwed this whole process up pretty badly.  Evidently, Cubic has been WMATA's fare technology vendor for the entire history of the agency (and apparently has gotten fat and happy and stopped worrying about satisfying their client).  Might be time to inject some competition.

Back to the point of these posts, though.  Given this new delay (and who knows if deadlines will be missed again), I could probably dig the tunnel myself with a shovel and a pick before the software upgrades are completed.  I'm of the understanding that the current SmarTrip cards and farecards can accommodate the minor software change to allow for the virtual tunnel to be implemented now.  Why not ask Cubic to make this simple change as a small concession for their inability to deliver the other upgrades on time and on budget?  I think Metro could and should request it.  What do you say, Mr. Catoe?  Or maybe the new SmarTrip card director, Cyndi Zieman, can take the initiative to get it done herself.

Stay tuned!  I tested the transfer personally and will relate my experience in my next post.
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Steve Offutt lives in Arlington and owns a pick and shovel
(Shout out to Greater Greater Washington for picking up on my posts)

Transit and Density and Why Washington Might Be Different

I'm told that transit and TDM fans should read Think Progress' Matthew Yglesias blog because he's a Washingtonian and often talks about transportation issues even though it's largely a political blog. A post yesterday (Transit and Density, September 19, ,2008) is one of the reasons why. He found a cool chart from Greater Greater Washington (another good blog) that is copied here that examines a city's population use versus a city's population density in terms of thousands of people per square mile.

What makes this interesting is that Washington, D.C. is an outlier in that the City's transit use is higher than it's density would seem to indicate. Why? Theories abound in the comments section of the post. Join the fun.

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Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and a Metro/biking commuter from Rosemont in Alexandria

Invisible/Virtual Tunnel Update (Good News and . . .)

I'm pleased that my recent post about creating a virtual tunnel between the Farragut stations has gotten some notice, which may actually be helping to move this idea forward.  Blogs that have picked it up include:

Greater Greater Washington

Beyond DC (19 comments on this one)

Chuck Coleman's Random Thoughts blog included an electronic communication he had with Shiva Pant, sitting in for John Catoe, on a lunchtime chat.  Pant indicated that the electronic transfer is in the works.

I had a personal conversation with someone at Metro, too.  He told me something similar: the SmarTrip software is being significantly upgraded to allow for a lot more functionality with the cards (evidently, SmarTrip cards aren't all that smart right now).  The capability to do transfers like this is being included in the software upgrade, but it's at least 9 months out before that upgrade will go into place.  He said that he had heard that Chris Zimmerman had inquired internally about it.  I don't know if that was because of my communication with Mr. Zimmerman or not, but I'm glad that he's engaged.

However, and this is important, just because the SmarTrip upgrade will include the capability to do this transfer, doesn't mean it will go into effect at that time!  My contact said that the "business side" of the system has to be addressed, too. . .and that could take six months.  It may be necessary to amend the fare tariffs to include this change, and that requires public input and other meetings, etc.--which take time.

So Metro needs to get started on that part of the process now. That way, the "virtual tunnel" transfer can go into effect immediately upon the upgrade.  Those of you who read this blog and have any contacts at Metro, please help out by checking to make sure the institutional infrastructure is prepared, too.

I read the fare tariff, and, in my opinion, I'm not sure any changes would actually be necessary.  Currently, fares are determined by distance without any specific issues associated with transfers at L'Enfant or Metro Center or elsewhere.  No fare tariffs would have to change if a physical tunnel were built between the stations.  So I think one could interpret the tariff as already accommodating all transfers--whether they are through a physical tunnel or electronic tunnel shouldn't make any difference.

However, knowing bureaucracies like Metro, they'll figure out a way to make it a months' long process, so anything we can do to get that started should start now.

And a final soapbox.  I believe that if Mr. Catoe directed staff to put this transfer in place now, it could get done in a matter of weeks.  My contact said the current software is capable.  Waiting for the upgrade is a convenient excuse.  But every day that goes by costs Metro riders 30-100 hours of wasted time (my best guess) not to mention the lost opportunity of reduced congestion at Metro Center.

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Steve Offutt, Arlington resident