Letter: Supporting better biking on Eisenhower Avenue

On July 22nd, WABA sent this letter in support of a proposed road diet and safety improvements on Eisenhower Ave in Alexandria.

You can view this document in PDF form here.

July 22, 2024

Traffic and Parking Board

City of Alexandria

301 King Street

Alexandria, VA 22314

Re: Eisenhower Avenue Transportation Study (Docket Item #7)

Dear Chairperson Lewis,

I am writing on behalf of the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) and our more than 5,000 members across the City of Alexandria and the Washington metropolitan area to express our support for Interim Option 1 for the Eisenhower Avenue Transportation Study, echoing the sentiments of our partners at the Alexandria Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) and Alexandria Families for Safe Streets (Alexandria FfSS).

Option 1 best aligns with the project goals to reduce speeding, reduce vehicle crashes, provide separated space for roadway users, and add more pedestrian crossings. Providing two lanes for travel with a center turn lane reduces the complexity of the roadway, and will help reduce crashes for vehicles navigating this corridor. Adding more crossings and bicycle lanes will improve pedestrian and bicycle safety, reduce speeds, and make both sidewalks and bike lanes more comfortable. The Interim Option 1 aligns best to advance the City of Alexandria’s Vision in the Small Area Plan.

Safety: The collection of proposed changes to Eisenhower Avenue will make for a meaningfully safer corridor. To wit, a narrower roadway (3 lanes vs. 5) discourages excessive and dangerous vehicle speeds and will be easier and safer to cross on foot or by bike. New dedicated bike and pedestrian facilities - in some sections additionally shielded from vehicle traffic by a parking lane - will provide for significantly more comfortable and safer transit for non-car travelers along this corridor.
Connectivity: Eisenhower Avenue is a critical corridor for bicyclists, scooters, and pedestrians across Alexandria. Right now, access to the Metro is difficult and there are limited bicycle facilities available. Pedestrian crosswalks require crossing 4 or 5 lanes, are difficult, and are infrequent. Option 1 provides multiple opportunities for pedestrian crossings to connect the planned Eisenhower West Small Area Plan redevelopments to each other. This short connectivity, paired with bike lanes between the Van Dorn and Eisenhower Street Metros, is critical to support multimodal and public transit along the corridor.
Sustainability: Transportation is one of the leading causes of climate change and greenhouse gas emissions. Investing in protected bike lanes significantly reduces greenhouse gas emissions, lowers transportation costs, and prevents roadway deaths and serious injuries. Unfortunately, Alexandria has significant gaps in its infrastructure that discourage bicycles. We have an opportunity to address one such gap with this Eisenhower Avenue project.

In conclusion, WABA urges the City to choose Interim Option 1 for the Eisenhower Avenue Transportation Study as most consistent with the goals of this project and the safety of all roadway users. Further, we urge the City to reject Option 2 as inconsistent with this project’s goals. Option 2 provides very limited pedestrian crossings, and so fails to address the feedback that pedestrian crossings are difficult and infrequent. Further, it fails to support the long term Small Area Plan’s long term vision for the street. To achieve the Alexandria Mobility Plan and Eisenhower West Small Area Plan, we must change this road to better support all roadway users. Option 1 is a great first step in achieving these objectives.

Sincerely,

Kevin O’Brien, Virginia Organizer

More about Alexandria Complete Streets

More about Complete Streets

Complete Streets are streets designed to accommodate all users, and that prioritize historically underinvested modes of transportation like transit, walking, and biking. An incomplete street might lack adequate sidewalks, low-stress bike infrastructure, or safe and comfortable access to transit.

Effective Complete Streets policies change the way a jurisdiction plans and builds transportation infrastructure—sidewalks, low stress bike infrastructure, and transit should be included in any new or rebuilt street by default, rather than as an add-on when there's space or demand.

While most regional jurisdictions have a Complete Streets policy of some sort, they lack teeth and permit transportation departments to continue to build streets that put cars first and squeeze other modes into the margins.

More about Advocacy

WABA fights for a region where biking, walking and transit are the best ways to get around.

We educate policymakers and organize grassroots advocates for to speak up for safer places to bike and walk; and for laws and policies that protect people who are walking and biking, reduce dangerous driving, and facilitate changes to the built environment.