July 2009 Arlington BAC Meeting Notes

I don't attend these, so this is from the minutes, and is probably incomplete and possibly wrong.

Ben Yatt, a rising high school junior in Arlington County presented his plan (including blue prints) to place air pumps at strategic places along bike paths - like the one pictured from the W&OD trail - as part of his Eagle Scout Project.  The committee offered advice and considerations and endorsed the idea.

Trail Maintenance issues – Re-paving is happening in two spots along local trails. Also the BAC continues to identify locations where roots are bulging beneath trails.

Chris Hamilton, Chief of Arlington County Commuter Services, spoke about the initiatives county members are taking:

          Initiative regarding biking in Arlington.
·         Dennis Leach, the transportation director, wants to expand the bike community.
·         A ~25-person meeting July 14th with county representatives (Mark Blacknell to attend representing the BAC) will discuss best practices, issues, and model cities such as Portland.
·         This group needs to prepare to brief Jay Fisette; BAC’s support is needed.
·         This will re-prioritize the board’s priorities to get biking #1.
·         The County Staff will be making the decision.

Coming Events:

September 14 joint meeting with Alexandria Ped-Bike Committee:

o   A rough agenda includes:
§  Arlington/Alexandria Community Bike Ride 2010
§  DASH buses lacking bike racks
§  Marking the route from the Shirlington overpass to the Wayne Anderson Trail.

§  Communicate each group’s priorities

October 17th Bike DC/Arlington ride update:

o   There is as proposed route, budget, and contractor and will be official in 1 week.
o   Proposed route starts in DC, ends in Crystal City and includes the GW Parkway. [WC: This would be big, considering that biking on the Parkway is against the rules. It was only 11 years ago that Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt halted a planned car-free day on 11 miles of the Parkway.]
o   BAC agreed to help with communicating the ride to the community.
o   An Arlington-exclusive ride was proposed. The topic is tabled until November’s meeting.

Mark Blacknell reported on the recent death of an Arlington cyclist.

BAC members reported from the crash site that the green light for bikers only last 5-6 seconds. Whether this was a crash factor or not, it’s a concern for biking safety in the county. Mark has not gotten investigation updates but will forward any information to BAC. The BAC has requested that  Ashley Robinson, the BAC's new police liaison to speak to this topic. The BAC will write to Wayne Wentz, Arlington's chief traffic engineer, asking if it is possible to reprogram loop timings so that bikes get more time.

County Staff report and issues

Trail Counts:

·         Numbers were gratifying (many were up since the May count) but volunteer numbers were low.
·         The next count is the official yearly count: September 10 and 12, 2009.

Lyon Village Switchbacks (The S of Injury)

·         High-friction surface coating is expensive (but yes, cheaper than medical bills).
·         A representative in Richmond may be able to help secure funds as a “crash-reduction measure.”
·         Formal records of “crash and burns” would be useful. Send these stories to David Patton at dpatton@arlingtonva.us

·         Contacting local hospitals on their bike accident numbers may be useful, too.

Columbia Pike Form-Based Code bike parking standards:

·         The issue has been postponed with the Form Based Code Working Group.
·         Eric Bootsma is reviewing possible code changes.
·         The BAC consensus was to ask for Class 1 parking (locked room or cage) in the buildings and agree to fewer racks outside. Class 1 was left out when the Form Based Code was drafted, and the number of required outdoor bike racks was excessive (one every 60 feet).

Arlington Transportation Enhancement awards deallocation risk.

·         December 1st deadline for Federal Transportation Enhancements Awards.
·         There is no deallocation risk at this time.
·         Metro bike parking at Ballston and Clarendon are in the works.
·         The shovel-ready list will also be used to select projects.

Photo by M.V.Jantzen