King St letter to VDOT

[Bruce Dwyer]

March 8, 2000

Mr. Thomas F. Farley
District Administrator
Virginia Department of Transportation
3975 Fair Ridge Drive
Fairfax, Virginia 22033-2906

Dear Mr. Farley:

I am writing you on behalf of the Alexandria Bicycle Committee regarding the
improvement project on King Street in Alexandria.  First let me applaud the
design that your staff presented at the March 1 information meeting.  The
drawings revealed that the redesigned railroad bridge area would look very
much like the exiting bridge and roadway, preserving a “historical look and
feel”.

Cyclists in Alexandria do have a concern with the exiting roadway that has
not been addressed in the proposed design.  Namely, the lanes are too narrow
to accommodate a bicyclist and motor vehicle travelling in the same
direction.  There have been accidents involving cyclists at this location
because of the narrow lanes.  The proposed design adds an eastbound lane,
but it does not widen the curb lanes to 14 feet.  This width is called in
various FHWA and VDOT publications regarding roadway design treatments to
accommodate bicycles.

In 1998, the City of Alexandria City Council adopted a Bicycle
Transportation and Multi-use Trail Plan as an element of the Transportation
Chapter of the 1992 Comprehensive Master Plan.  The Bicycle Plan
incorporates the FHWA and VDOT design standards and specifically calls for
14 foot curb lanes (excluding curb and gutter) for this King Street project,
Project number B5 of the Plan.  During the design hearing for a similar
project at Braddock Road several years ago, the same concerns were raised
and we were assured that the wide curb lane standard would be implemented.
That project is near completion and should provide a much improved safety
situation for cyclists and pedestrians.  We strongly feel that the King
Street project deserves the same treatment.  Both of these roadways are
officially designated bike routes that must have bicycle safety incorporated
into the design.

I do understand that there are restrictions on the width of the roadway
because of the existing placement of the pillars supporting the Metrorail
bridge.  If the four-lane design with 14-foot curb lanes cannot be
accommodated, we recommend that the current three-lane configuration be
preserved.  As a long time bicycle and pedestrian through this area, I have
never seen that the narrow roadway was a traffic constriction.  Rather it is
the intersections at either end of the project that restrict the flow of
traffic. We also would recommend the three-lane configuration for fear that
a four narrow lane configuration would be more dangerous for motorists,
pedestrians, and cyclists.  Four lanes will create a configuration that will
speed up traffic; the three-lane configuration would have a traffic calming
effect.  The pedestrian crossing situation in this area is extremely
dangerous now and will not be significantly improved in the new design.
Four lanes just are not needed at the expense of pedestrian safety.

Thank your for the opportunity to comment.  We look forward to a
satisfactory resolution for our concerns.  The Bike Committee is willing to
work with your staff to achieve a safe environment for cyclists and
pedestrians.  We would appreciate being informed as the design process
proceeds.

Please feel free to contact me (703-549-3263, ouibike at worldnet.att.net) if
you have any questions.


Sincerely,



Bruce Dwyer
Chair, Alexandria Bicycle Committee
Park & Recreation Commission


Cc:

Rich Baier
Director, Transportation & Environmental Services
City of Alexandria

Sandra Whitmore
Director, Parks, Recreation & Cultural Activities
City of Alexandria