 When you’re traveling in Arlington, always be on the lookout for bikes. Taking a few extra seconds to check your blind spots can save a life. Learn more about Arlington’s Vision Zero Critical Crash Campaign here.
Arlington County first launched the Critical Crash Mitigation Campaign in 2022 and has now relaunched the campaign in 2023. The campaign is focused on changing human behaviors that are commonly involved in transportation crashes that result in severe or fatal injuries. The bike awareness graphic above is one example of the campaign in action. In the coming year look forward to similar messaging in this newsletter and around the county using the following themes:
The 2023 relaunch includes expansion of the campaign to include an in-street element that targets people walking and biking. The in-street materials include messaging about safety tools to create awareness of (1) what they are and (2) why they are effective in enhancing safety. By increasing awareness about safety infrastructure, we will increase awareness about safe transportation practices. This tools-focused campaign component will start by educating roadway users about four types of tools identified in the Vision Zero Multimodal Engineering Safety Toolbox:
- Curb modifications (i.e., bump outs)
- Pedestrian crossings with leading pedestrian intervals (LPIs) and 'No Turn on Red' signs
- Rectangular rapid-flashing beacons (RRFBs) at crosswalks
- Bike boxes / two-stage bike turn boxes
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Come out to Tyrol Hill Park on Saturday, September 9 (2-5 pm) to visit with members of the County Vision Zero Team and more at the 2nd Annual Community Festival. Arlington Schools Hispanic Parents Association (ASHPA), the Arlington County Police Department (ACPD), and Arlington Mill Civic Association are hosting this family event with a Moon Bounce, music, popcorn, snow cones, and an opportunity to meet and chat with ACPD officers, County staff, and Arlington's Community Leaders. We look forward to seeing you there! |
The county will be piloting speed humps across several school slow zones this fall. School Slow Zones are permanent 20mph speed limit on a neighborhood street within 600ft of a key school access point. Learn more here. In 2022 and 2023, the County retrofitted over 25 school zones and have started planning the remaining 19 school zones to be retrofitted in 2024.
While Arlington has not added new speed humps in the last decade, reducing vehicle speeds is fundamental to reducing severe crashes. This initiative reintroduces speed humps via a limited pilot focused on reducing speeds in school slow zones where data shows the introduction of 20mph speed limits has not lowered speeds. The speed hump pilot will include Gunston Middle School, Hoffman Boston Elementary School, and Cardinal Elementary School. These locations were selected by staff after collecting speed data on segments that were viable candidates for speed humps within the Phase 1 school slow zones and selected the three locations with the highest speeds for the pilot.
Additional speed hump sites may be considered in school slow zones following this initial pilot.
 The pilot will use tactical speed humps because they are easy to both install and remove quickly if needed. They are cost effective, tested for durability, and made from 100% recycled material. Installation will begin this fall. Staff will monitor and collect data through the winter, followed by public engagement in spring 2024.
Arlington’s 2022 Annual Crash Report is available here! The report provides an overview of transportation and safety patterns throughout Arlington in 2022. In 2022 there were four fatal crashes, three of which involved alcohol and two involved pedestrians. There was about one crash per 1,650 vehicle miles traveled in the county with an average of 5.6 crashes occurring every day and every 4.3 hours. There were 49 sever injury crashes, 96 pedestrian-involved crashes, and 40 bicycle-involved crashes. Studying these crash trends in depth help Vision Zero staff to strategically target safety improvements and outreach to get closer to our goal of zero serious crashes in Arlington.
Check out the report for more key findings from the 2022 Arlington Crash Report and from past years.
Save the evening of Thursday, October 19 (7-9 pm) for the Vision Zero External Stakeholder’s Group Meeting. This virtual meeting is open to the public and will offer community members and Vision Zero partners the opportunity to bring questions and concerns to County staff. This is the annual meeting of the Vision Zero External Stakeholders group, and members of the public are encouraged to attend and participate.
Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) launched Metro Lift, a program that will give Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients a 50% discount on MetroRail and MetroBus fares. SNAP provides food benefits to low-income families to supplement their grocery budget so they can afford the nutritious food essential to their health and well-being. Purchasing a new SmarTrip costs $2 in addition to any funds added, which can be a barrier for our residents trying to access Metro Lift.
You can organize and lead a campaign to collect SmarTrip cards from your community to then donate to Arlington County’s Food Security Coalition. The coalition will distribute the cards to Arlington SNAP recipients. Your campaigns will help ease the burden of transportation costs for Arlington families. Click here for more details on this volunteer opportunity.
Walking School Buses (a group of students walking to school with one or more adults) are a way to make walking to school easier for families while maximizing the health benefits of walking for students and reducing congestion and pollution in neighborhoods around schools.
The “Us Bus” is a new walking school bus initiative in Arlington that matches senior adult volunteers with Arlington elementary students/families to engage seniors and support students walking to school. Thanks to a unique Arlington County partnership among the Commission on Aging’s Age-Friendly Arlington Initiative, Arlington County’s 55+ Program, WalkArlington and Virginia Safe Routes to School, a successful Arlington Public Schools (APS) pilot with Oakridge Elementary School in Spring 2022, and a generous grant from the Arlington Community Foundation, the Us Bus is taking steps to expand to other schools and neighborhoods around the County.
The Us Bus is LOOKING FOR ADULT VOLUNTEERS to help lead our Walking School Buses at elementary schools around Arlington AND FAMILIES/STUDENTS who live in school walk zones and would like to join the Us Bus Walking School Bus! Volunteers set their own schedules. Each Us Bus outing requires only about ONE HOUR of your time. The schedule is up to the volunteer!
To learn more and sign up, click here: https://friendsofthealliance.org/walking-school-bus/
As mentioned above, the Critical Crash Mitigation campaign is now featuring spotlights on many of the tools that we are employing to promote transportation safety throughout the county. Bike boxes are one of these critical tools as they can offer a 65% crash reduction for bicycle-vehicle crashes. Bike boxes provide bicyclists with a designated space ahead of stopped traffic while waiting at a red traffic signal. They increase visibility of bicyclists and can help them position themselves to make left turns when the traffic signal changes to green.
Bike boxes allow bicyclists to safely navigate in front of cars stopped at a signalized intersection so they can get in the correct position for a left-turn or get a head start across the intersection when the signal changes. They are located between the stop bar for vehicles and the crosswalk and are colored green to highlight potential conflicts.
Click here to find more information about bike boxes and two stage turn boxes as well as many of the other important road safety tools employed by the County.
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High-Injury Network Safety Audits:
Quick-builds in Progress:
- Fairfax Dr and N Jefferson St
- Wilson Blvd crossing between N Oak St and N Pierce St
- N Ohio St & 18th St N
- 2nd St S and S Garfield St
Recently Completed Quick-builds:
Visit the Vision Zero Safety Projects page to learn more about safety-driven quick build projectss, capital projects, pilot projects, High-Injury Network safety audits, and more.
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