Arlington County recently approved updates to the bicycle portion of the County's Master Plan. The bicycle portion had last been updated in 2008 and the updates addressed both the plan and the proposed bike and trail network map.
There were a few late changes to the plan but it was mostly the same as was last presented. In addition to dropping the Arlington Hall Trail as noted in my last post on the plan, they
- Added language to emphasize the protection of significant natural resources.
- Agreed to undertake a feasibility study of a W&OD Trail connection in the East Falls Church neighborhood and to implement on-street safety improvements in the near term. "A representative of the East Falls Church neighborhood raised a concern that the final draft only calls for an engineering study to address a gap in the W&OD Trail in the East Falls Church neighborhood. County staff feel that an engineering feasibility study is the appropriate initial action to addressing the trail’s discontinuity and identify possible options. Findings from that study can be used by the County and regional partners to determine whether to move forward with design and construction of a project." The planning commission recommended adding the language "In the near term consider spot improvements to improve safety for bicyclists and pedestrians along sections of Van Buren and Tuckahoe streets that connect the trail."
In addition, the planning commission recommended the following addition of language to Appendix D, which is the list of Planned Bicycle Facility Projects.
In the project descriptions below, references to “enhanced bicycle facility” call for low-stress bicycle facilities that comply with the design guidance in Appendix C. Taken together and with current bicycle facilities that meet the guidance, these projects establish the Low Traffic Stress Bicycle Network referenced in Figure 1 of this document. The exact facility type will be determined through a project scoping process once funding is identified with the minimum acceptable facility being determined by Figure 4 in Appendix C
This language, they say
more closely relates proposed on-street bikeway design to national guidance for low-stress bicycling
And they added a recommendation
Longer-term, pursue opportunities for enhancing bicycle connections within the Alcova Heights neighborhood to create greater connections within only County and/or NFATC properties allowing bicycles to traverse north and south without utilizing Glebe Road
The updates to the plan are good and the list of proposed projects covers most things bike advocates want. But the plan is only the first part. As the reports note:
While some of the project proposals are expected to be delivered by private entities or regional partners, most of the projects will require allocation of County resources through the biennial Capital Improvement Program (CIP). Allocation of necessary funding during the CIP process will be determined as the priority of proposed bikeway projects are weighed against other transportation projects and capital needs.
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