… In recent months, we have received increased reports of crosswalks along MD 355 that are in need of maintenance. In the attached document, we have compiled a list of crosswalks that warrant your office’s attention. The document catalogs every crosswalk along MD 355 that is in need of either A) new paint,B) stripes added, or in some cases, both. The pictures in the document are current as of January 2020. Consistent with SHA’s own recommendations laid out in the Context Driven guide, we encourage the addition of “continental” crosswalks because they are more visible to motorists than the standard parallel lines. Additionally, the continental stripes indicate to pedestrians where to cross safely.
Thank you, delegation from District 16, for staying on top of this important pedestrian safety issues, and we look forward to seeing those new and improved crosswalks from SHA.
Here are are few images from their document, and you can see all the crosswalks by clicking here. (The White Flint/Pike District section begins on page 19.) Because of the advocacy of Friends of White Flint, the intersections of Route 355 and Nicholson Lane, Marinelli Street, and Old Georgetown Road already have freshly painted crosswalks with stripes.
Adam Pagnucco wrote a terrific analysis in The Seventh State about spending on pedestrian safety projects and the impact of that spending. The entire article is below, but if you only have a couple of minutes, here are the sentences Friends of White Flint thinks is most important. This analysis argues for smarter, lighter, quicker, faster projects to enhance pedestrian safety in the Pike District and across Montgomery County. (See our blog post from Feb. 12)
MoCo’s spending on pedestrian and bikeway projects steadily accelerated from $44 million in the FY7-12 CIP to $225 million in the FY19-24 CIP. Major projects like the Metropolitan Branch Trail, the MD-355 BRAC crossing and the Capital Crescent Trail are partially responsible for these increases. However, the FY21-26 executive recommended budget is a step back. The six-year total pedestrian and bikeway spending of $181 million is the lowest since the FY13-18 amended budget. So is the percentage of the total capital budget accounted for by pedestrian and bikeway projects.
MoCo spends a lot of money on pedestrian projects, but is the county getting a good return? A 2007 county council press release states that the county averaged 430 pedestrian collisions per year from 2003 through 2006. The Maryland Department of Transportation estimates that the county averaged 459 pedestrian crashes from 2014 through 2018. Between the two periods, the county’s population rose by 13% while its pedestrian crashes rose by 7%. Is that a sufficiently positive result from the enormous sums the county has spent in recent years? Given the significant needs in this area and the limited resources in the capital budget, the county may wish to study the most cost-effective ways of promoting pedestrian safety and direct its funding accordingly.
Pedestrian safety has been a challenge in Montgomery County for decades. How well is the county doing on this issue?
First, let’s look at MoCo’s rate of pedestrian involved crashes in comparison to the rest of the state. The table below, sourced from data provided by the Maryland Department of Transportation, compares the average annual number of pedestrian crashes by county to county populations.
Three of the top four counties on a per capita basis – Baltimore City, Baltimore County and Prince George’s County – are among the most urbanized jurisdictions in the state. The other county in the top four – Worcester – has an unusual amount of pedestrian activity on the Ocean City boardwalk. MoCo ranks 7th of 24 counties on crash rate but its average annual crash rate per 1,000 residents (0.44) is below the state average (0.54). Admittedly, the state average is skewed upwards by Baltimore City.
It’s interesting that MoCo’s pedestrian crash rate is similar to less urbanized jurisdictions like Wicomico, Dorchester and Washington Counties. Urbanized counties should have greater volumes of pedestrian activity because of a greater abundance of walkable districts. MoCo certainly has more of those than Wicomico, Dorchester and Washington Counties. That suggests that MoCo isn’t a relatively bad performer on this measure given its substantial (and increasing) urbanization.
One thing MoCo does is spend significant amounts of capital money on pedestrian projects. The table below compares capital budget spending on pedestrian and bikeway projects (the two are one category) to total capital spending excluding the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission in the last 16 Capital Improvements Program (CIP) budgets.
MoCo’s spending on pedestrian and bikeway projects steadily accelerated from $44 million in the FY7-12 CIP to $225 million in the FY19-24 CIP. Major projects like the Metropolitan Branch Trail, the MD-355 BRAC crossing and the Capital Crescent Trail are partially responsible for these increases. However, the FY21-26 executive recommended budget is a step back. The six-year total pedestrian and bikeway spending of $181 million is the lowest since the FY13-18 amended budget. So is the percentage of the total capital budget accounted for by pedestrian and bikeway projects.
All of this gives rise to two questions.
1. MoCo spends a lot of money on pedestrian projects, but is the county getting a good return? A 2007 county council press release states that the county averaged 430 pedestrian collisions per year from 2003 through 2006. The Maryland Department of Transportation estimates that the county averaged 459 pedestrian crashes from 2014 through 2018. Between the two periods, the county’s population rose by 13% while its pedestrian crashes rose by 7%. Is that a sufficiently positive result from the enormous sums the county has spent in recent years? Given the significant needs in this area and the limited resources in the capital budget, the county may wish to study the most cost-effective ways of promoting pedestrian safety and direct its funding accordingly.
2. As noted above, the executive’s new recommended capital budget decreases pedestrian and bikeway spending to its lowest level in seven years. One reason for that is that the overall level of capital spending is declining. (That’s a subject for a future series.) With all areas of the capital budget under stress and the looming possibility that school construction delays will trigger residential moratoriums, it’s extremely difficult to add or even maintain funding for any program, not just pedestrian and bikeway projects. That said, county elected officials will look terrible if they declare pedestrian safety to be a “public health crisis” but then cut funding for pedestrian and bikeway capital projects.
Overall, MoCo’s record on pedestrian safety is not a bad one when compared to the rest of Maryland. But funding constraints could hinder its prospects for improvement.
Budgets are tight and people are still getting struck by cars, so let’s look at some low-cost, quick-to-install pedestrian improvements. Not after a year of study. Not by over-engineering a project until it’s unaffordable. Not by letting perfect get in the way of good enough. Let’s use these tested, vetted methods to make pedestrians safe and walking accessible to all in the Pike District.
Below are some of their ideas (if you don’t have time to look through the full WalkBoston guide.
Paint with a purpose
Well-marked crosswalks: Intersections and heavily used midblock crossings need wide, well-painted crosswalks. A 10-foot crosswalk is ideal. Keep the paint fresh to ensure visibility. Signs may be needed to make pedestrians aware of unexpected traffic movements such as right turns on red.
Lane markings: Painting fog lines – the road edge lines that define a single vehicle lane of 10 or 11 feet – helps reduce vehicle speeds. Stripes that mark parking lanes and bicycle lanes have a similar effect.
Curb bump-outs: Make streets narrower by painting a curb extension directly on the street. Bump-outs make walkers more visible, shorten crossing distances and provide larger waiting areas.
Tighter corners: A tight painted corner (think small downtown vs. highway interchange) makes drivers reduce their speeds when turning. This also shortens the crossing distance for walkers.
Improved visibility at intersections: “Daylighting” an intersection, as in the photo above, refers to providing clear sight lines between pedestrians crossing and drivers in cars. People walking and driving can see one another better if vehicles are parked farther back from corners and crosswalks.
Advanced yield “shark teeth” markings: Triangles painted directly on the street warn drivers of an upcoming crossing so they are reminded to slow down.
Add signs
In street yield to ped signs: A reflective, flexible sign in the middle of an unsignalized crossing reminds people driving that they must yield to people walking. These signs narrow travel lanes and slow traffic.
Pedestrian crossing signs: Roadside signs provide visual cues for drivers to slow down and look for people in crosswalks. They can be mounted on reflective posts or include flashing lights to improve their visibility.
Slow zone signs: Drivers can be warned that reduced speed limits are in place for schools, senior centers, parks, etc.
Wayfinding signs: These help people find their way around a community and encourage walking. They can include directional arrows, walk times and distances to local landmarks and services. Sign systems can be permanent or temporary.
Make streets lively
Parklets: Usually created in one or more on-street parking spaces, parklets create new sidewalk space for people to gather, sit or eat. Additionally, when people gather closer to the roadway, drivers automatically slow down. A parklet can be a seasonal and temporary installation, ideally located in a business district.
Pop-up parks: Often larger than a parklet and can enliven underutilized public sidewalks, streets, or plazas for people to use. For instance they might take over an entire street on a summer Sunday to encourage walking or create a place for seating and games. They are always temporary.
Benches: Places to sit allow old and young to eat, rest, talk, gather, enjoy the weather and read.
Trees & Planters: In addition to providing shade, beauty and improving environmental conditions, street trees are a useful safety tool, making streets feel narrower and slowing traffic. Planters create a safety buffer between vehicles and people walking.
Banners: Overhead banners help create a sense of place and a distinctive community character. They can add decorative elements to a streetscape and advertise events.
Lighting: Pedestrian-scale lighting (about 12–16 feet high) illuminates sidewalks, benches, bus stops and other amenities that make walking feel comfortable. Temporary holiday and event lighting creates an inviting sense of place.
On Saturday, dozens of pedestrians, bicyclists, concerned community members, and elected officials gathered to remember a man who died last month crossing Rockville Pike near Federal Plaza and TGIFridays restaurant.
After Action Committee for Transit read the long list of all the pedestrians who had died in the last year, Councilmember Evan Glass said, “Pike District must be liveable and walkable; that’s the bottom line.” Councilmember Andrew Friedson said, he was “upset, frustrated, and sad” and “we can’t fix this problem int ersection by intersection.” Councilmember Hans Riemer said, “the fact that we have strong advocates is a sign that things are starting to change.” Council chair Sidney Katz said “our goal is to have no deaths.”
Friends of White Flint, which co-sponsored this event, continues to work toward making the Pike District/White Flint area safer and more accessible for pedestrians. We’ve had some successes — new crosswalks, replacing missing crosswalks, automatic walk signals, longer crossing times — but that is not enough, and we will continue to advocate for more pedestrian improvements.
The Montgomery County Council will host a pedestrian, bicycle and traffic safety town hall meeting at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 9 in the Wheaton High School auditorium to hear from residents about safety issues they are encountering on roadways and sidewalks and in crosswalks. Residents are encouraged to attend the meeting to talk with councilmembers about areas of concern in the community and to learn more about the county’s ongoing efforts to meet the goals of Vision Zero.
So far in 2020, there have been three pedestrian deaths in the county, and two of these deaths occurred on Maryland Route 355 (Rockville Pike). In 2019, 13 pedestrians and one bicyclist were killed in crashes.
Representatives from the Maryland State Highway Administration; the Montgomery County Department of Transportation; the Vision Zero Initiative; the Pedestrian, Bicycle, and Traffic Safety Advisory Committee; Montgomery County Park and Planning and Montgomery County Public Schools are also expected to attend.
Interpretation services will be provided for Spanish speakers.
Wheaton High School is located at 12401 Dalewood Dr. in Silver Spring.
Event #3
White Flint Sector Plan
Implementation Advisory Committee
Wall Local Park-Kennedy Shriver Aquatic Center
Monday, February 10, 2020 7 p.m.
AGENDA
1.Development Implementation and Development Moratorium
2. White Flint CIP Projects:
Mobility: Western Workaround, White Flint District East, Metro Station Access Improvements, Northern Metro Station Entrance, and MD 355 BRT
Public Facilities: White Flint Fire Station and Wall Park Garage
3. Pike District Downtown Committee (Brian Downie)
4. White Flint Implementation Coordinator Report (Peter Fosselman)
5. MCPS: WJ and B-CC (new elementary school) meeting on Feb. 18, 7 p.m., at North Bethesda Middle
Join Friends of White Flint and other organizations on Saturday, February 8 at 2:15 pm at Federal Plaza along Rockville Pike to rally for safe streets and remember Michael Gamboa who tragically dies crossing Rockville Pike.
After more than a year of advocacy, we have great news from SHA. I’ve cut and pasted their email below. I’m delighted that our efforts are getting results. Having no-turn-on-red on all four corners of Marinelli and Route 355 has been a major priority since that is the busiest pedestrian crossing in all of Montgomery County outside of a central business district.
“We are pleased to share that our MDOT SHA Office of Traffic and Safety (OOTS) recently approved establishing a “No Turn on Red” for eastbound Marinelli Road at MD 355 and for southbound MD 355 at Marinelli Road. OOTS is currently coordinating with our local partners Montgomery County Department of Transportation (MCDOT) regarding “No Turn on Red” sign fabrication and installation. We anticipate installation by the end of February, weather permitting. MCDOT operates and maintains most state-owned intersections on the state’s behalf, including overheard sign installation.”
Don’t miss out! Councilmember @EvanMGlass will host a countywide town hall to discuss the county’s efforts to keep our streets safe for pedestrians, bicyclists and drivers at the Montgomery County Council this Saturday, Dec. 14 at 10 a.m.
In 2019 there have been 11 deaths and 579 incidents involving pedestrians and bicyclists on Montgomery County roads. We can and must do better.
Join Councilmember Evan Glass in Rockville on Saturday, December 14 at 10:00 a.m. when he hosts a countywide town hall to discuss the county’s efforts to keep our streets safe for pedestrians, bicyclists, drivers –– everyone.
Representatives from the Department of Transportation, the State Highway Administration and other important agencies will be present to hear your thoughts and concerns.
Earlier this fall, Montgomery County started to develop a Pedestrian Master Plan, which would provide a roadmap to improve safety and comfort for those getting around the county on foot or in wheelchairs, strollers, tricycles, or training bikes—that is, our most vulnerable road users. The next step is for county employees to survey every road and street in the county to take an inventory of pedestrian safety.
GGW wrote previously about the county’s #walkinghere campaign, which encourages residents to share the conditions of their walking trips on social media. Now county staff are documenting pedestrian experience throughout the county. They’re starting with major commercial areas, You can follow the progress of the map here.
How comfortable are these roads?
Pedestrian pathways and intersections are being evaluated on a series of metrics: width of path, width of buffer from cars, traffic speed, lanes of traffic to cross, crosswalk markings, and presence of refuge islands.
