Work on Clarendon Circle Rebuild to start next week

Next week, Arlington County will start work on the Clarendon Circle intersection improvement project which will add bike lanes and a queue box to the intersection, along with a host of other improvements.  

There will be bike lanes, with green paint, in both directions on Clarendon Blvd/Wilson Blvd, and going east on Washington Blvd. There will also be a queue box for cyclists going from Washington Blvd to north bound Clarendon Blvd. There are already bike lanes on Wilson and Clarendon north of the intersection.  Update: the image below is the right one. The bike lane going south will continue south on Wilson and then onto Fairfax) 

 

While not a bike project, it's interesting that they're closing N. Irving (in the bottom center of the image above) to help simplify the intersection. In it's place will be a green streets element

 

In addition, the project will be

• Reducing intersection size and tightening the intersection geometry
• Shortening pedestrian crossing distances and widening crosswalk areas
• Better aligning Washington Boulevard and Wilson Boulevard
• Upgrading traffic signals
• Installing new Carlyle streetlights
• Providing wider center medians at all crossings
• Adding curb extensions at the Liberty Tavern corner
• Planting new street trees

The first phase of construction will last about 10 weeks. 

Comments

[drumz]

Unless I knew I was going straight I basically always avoided this intersection when I lived nearby no matter what mode I was traveling in (car, bike, or walking).

[Chris Slatt]

The Arlington BAC actually got the layout improved a bit from concept to better support the flow from the Fairfax Drive / Northside Social parking lot.

See here (click to embiggen):

[washcycle]

Oh, I saw that in the presentation, but I was confused as to which was the final design. Thanks. I'll update the post.

[huskerdont]

I really look forward to this. The way the bike lanes just ended at the intersection before was just annoying, and the only reason I would go that way was just to be bloody-minded and make a nuisance of myself.