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At the intersection of Woodley and Wisconsin at 9 a.m.today. (I heard the crash from down Woodley.) Not the first time I've heard or witnessed such crashes in my years in this neighborhood.
That is a dangerous intersection with no left-turn arrows/lights!
Wisconsin is a five-lane speedway between Woodley and Mass Ave in both directions, even during rush hour. The intersection is also the crossing point for the NCS and Eaton students, and Woodley is a highway for the a.m. parade of SUVs taking the children to school. The southbound 96bus turning left onto Woodley also blocks the oncoming traffic, and because the long stretch of Wisconsin is a straightaway, drivers race to beat the yellow light (even the pink light) when cars are already "in the box" waiting to make the turn -- which is legal. You have to have your finger on 911 speed dial if you dare to make that turn. Today at least no pedestrians involved, and the drivers of the two crashed SUVs seemed to be all right. Cathedral police were on it like white on rice! Thank you guys!
Mayor Bowser wants safer streets but is fixated on bike lanes and bus lanes, not the dangerous intersections. Let me count them for you, Mayor.
Steph Gerard
Woodley Rd
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Actually a lot of the bike lane and bus lane projects involve broader redos of the streets they're on, including making intersections and pedestrian crossing safer. Not saying the city can't make other intersections safer too, but it's not either/or. Andrew Klingle St. - original message -
At the intersection of Woodley and Wisconsin at 9 a.m.today. (I heard the crash from down Woodley.) Not the first time I've heard or witnessed such crashes in my years in this neighborhood.
That is a dangerous intersection with no left-turn arrows/lights!
Wisconsin is a five-lane speedway between Woodley and Mass Ave in both directions, even during rush hour. The intersection is also the crossing point for the NCS and Eaton students, and Woodley is a highway for the a.m. parade of SUVs taking the children to school. The southbound 96bus turning left onto Woodley also blocks the oncoming traffic, and because the long stretch of Wisconsin is a straightaway, drivers race to beat the yellow light (even the pink light) when cars are already "in the box" waiting to make the turn -- which is legal. You have to have your finger on 911 speed dial if you dare to make that turn. Today at least no pedestrians involved, and the drivers of the two crashed SUVs seemed to be all right. Cathedral police were on it like white on rice! Thank you guys!
Mayor Bowser wants safer streets but is fixated on bike lanes and bus lanes, not the dangerous intersections. Let me count them for you, Mayor.
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Andrew has it exactly right. The bike and bus lanes will make pedestrians safer, as shown in the attached diagram of the pending CT Ave. bike/bus lane. The bike and bus lanes to be installed on Connecticut Ave., together with pedestrian refuge islands that are made possible with the elimination of the ill-conceived 4/2 rush hour reversible lanes, decreases the number of lanes that a pedestrian will need to cross before the light changes from six lanes to just four, and at the same time slows the traffic flow, thereby ameliorating, if not eliminating altogether, the "speedway" effect that Steph describes taking place on Wisconsin Ave. north of Mass. Ave. A dedicated high-speed bus lane on Wisconsin Ave., which is even more needed with the Wegmans and other developments going up in the Tenleytown and Friendship Heights areas, will assist not only with mobility access but would also reduce the potential for pedestrian accidents on Wisconsin Avenue.
In passing, I will take this opportunity to warn people about the HAWK light on Wisconsin Ave. just north of where Steph reported today's accident. I myself nearly got hit by a car on Wisconsin Ave. (I think Veazey and Wisconsin, but not certain), when I had the right of way with a walk signal at a HAWK light. But by the time I crossed, the HAWK light was no longer a solid red, but a flashing red. With the walk signal, I thought I could safely cross the street, but I was sadly mistaken. Drivers were going right through the flashing red lights, barely slowing down. It was scary, I won't ever attempt to cross a street that only has the flashing red, even if, as I did in this case, have a walk signal.
- Warren
- previous message -
Actually a lot of the bike lane and bus lane projects involve broader redos of the streets they're on, including making intersections and pedestrian crossing safer.
Not saying the city can't make other intersections safer too, but it's not either/or.
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Re the HAWK lights at Veazey & Wisconsin that Warren mentions. The same danger occurs wherever HAWKs are installed. The flashing red lights mean to STOP but they also mean to GO! even though pedestrians still have the walk sign! How ridiculous is that?! A driver has no idea when approaching the flashing red lights if they are "before" or "after" pedestrians cross! The wee sign says "proceed on flashing red when clear" -- even though the driver can't see if the crossing is clear because of other lanes of traffic blocking sight lines. I cross the Veazey street and the Garrison street HAWKs daily, and it's a guessing game for me, Russian roulette for pedestrians. (HAWK must be the acronym for moron!) Basic traffic math: yellow means caution/slow down, red means stop, and green means go! HAWK eliminates green altogether. Is it some kind of politically incorrect to adhere to universal norms? Steph Gerard Woodley Rd - from previous message -
[snip] I will take this opportunity to warn people about the HAWK light on Wisconsin Ave. just north of where Steph reported today's accident. I myself nearly got hit by a car on Wisconsin Ave. (I think Veazey and Wisconsin, but not certain), when I had the right of way with a walk signal at a HAWK light. But by the time I crossed, the HAWK light was no longer a solid red, but a flashing red. With the walk signal, I thought I could safely cross the street, but I was sadly mistaken. Drivers were going right through the flashing red lights, barely slowing down. It was scary, I won't ever attempt to cross a street that only has the flashing red, even if, as I did in this case, have a walk signal.
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Ako & Jeff Schwartz Shigihara
Pretty much the world over and for at least the almost 50 years I have been driving, a flashing red light has meant "stop". Flashing red is treated like a stop sign. This is true whether the light is on a post, a fire truck, or a school bus. Flashing red means stop. The key problem might be that many (most?) folks don't stop at stop signs. Even when a pedestrian is in the crosswalk, they will roll or barrel through. Sad that the sign with the instructions to stop and proceed when clear is both needed and ignored. Jeff on 28th St - from previous message -
[snip] The flashing red lights mean to STOP but they also mean to GO! even though pedestrians still have the walk sign! How ridiculous is that?! A driver has no idea when approaching the flashing red lights if they are "before" or "after" pedestrians cross! The wee sign says "proceed on flashing red when clear" -- even though the driver can't see if the crossing is clear because of other lanes of traffic blocking sight lines. I cross the Veazey street and the Garrison street HAWKs daily, and it's a guessing game for me, Russian roulette for pedestrians. (HAWK must be the acronym for moron!)
Basic traffic math: yellow means caution/slow down, red means stop, and green means go!
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No need to guess. If you see flashing lights, prepare to stop. You can confirm whether they mean stop or go once there.
Sarah on Macomb
- from previous message -
[snip] A driver has no idea when approaching the flashing red lights if they are "before" or "after" pedestrians cross! The wee sign says "proceed on flashing red when clear" -- even though the driver can't see if the crossing is clear because of other lanes of traffic blocking sight lines. I cross the Veazey street and the Garrison street HAWKs daily, and it's a guessing game for me, Russian roulette for pedestrians. [snip]
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