Posts by Bryan Barnett-Woods — Contributor
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Here’s where crash fatalities and injuries are happening in Prince George’s County
Prince George’s County published data maps of traffic fatalities and injuries as part of an effort to better identify trends, high risk populations, and dangerous locations. The county plans to use this data to work toward Vision Zero, a goal to eliminate traffic fatalities and injuries by 2040. Keep reading…
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How roadway capacity and safety intersect with Vision Zero goals
The goal of Vision Zero initiatives is to have no deaths or serious injuries from traffic collisions. This is an important target for the municipalities in the region that have adopted a Vision Zero policy. One challenge to meeting this marker is to address two dual needs for transportation — capacity and safety. Keep reading…
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Why don’t all state roads in Maryland have sidewalks?
Many state roads in Maryland don’t have any sidewalks. At best, that means they’re a hostile or unsafe place to walk. At worst, you may not be able to walk there at all. Why aren’t there more sidewalks? The state is legally obligated to build and maintain roads but not sidewalks, so they’re often patchy at best. Keep reading…
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Why DC has so many rowhomes, and how they’re different from townhomes
Many neighborhoods in DC, from Capitol Hill to Petworth to Georgetown, have streets lined with rowhomes. This style evolved in response to the city’s constraints on space, and these houses also help fill the need for a type of housing that’s between detached homes and large apartment buildings. Keep reading…
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What does a trail network in the Washington region actually look like?
Trails like Four-Mile Run in Arlington; the Washington, Baltimore & Annapolis in Prince George’s County; and the Marvin Gaye Trail in Washington all help people stay active, connect neighborhoods and workplaces, and support sustainable modes of transportation. Unfortunately, most of the time jurisdictions build their own trails without considering the greater network they feed into. Keep reading…
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Traffic safety may be subjective, but designing the road shouldn’t be
A fundamental tenet of Vision Zero is the explicit acknowledgment that the transportation network needs to be designed for the safety of everyone - people driving, people using transit, people walking, and people bicycling or using scooters, etc. However, most (but not all) transportation infrastructure has been built to facilitate automobiles and roadway design that implicitly supports motor vehicle primacy and safety. Keep reading…
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Prince George’s has adopted Vision Zero. It has a long road ahead.
Prince George’s County has recently launched its Vision Zero safety campaign, joining many other jurisdictions in the region. Vision Zero is a transportation safety program that aims to eliminate all transportation-related fatalities and serious injuries for people walking, bicycling, using transit, driving, or using any mode. Keep reading…
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I took the #TransitChallenge in Prince George’s County. Here’s how it went.
First started in Ottawa, Canada, the #TransitChallenge is a week-long pledge to leave one’s car at home and instead use public transit or active transportation like bicycling or walking. In June, nine Montgomery County officials organized by the Action Committee for Transit also took the challenge and tweeted about how their trips went. Keep reading…
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Adjusting the price of parking based on demand has many benefits, a Chinatown study shows
As on-street parking becomes more coveted, cities are looking for ways to better manage those spaces. In January 2019, the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) published a final report from its year-long Penn Quarter/Chinatown Parking Pricing Pilot program. Keep reading…
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Residential parking permits are valuable. Why don’t cities price them accordingly?
The Prince George’s County Council recently discussed legislation designed to better implement residential parking permits. The bill is a positive step towards better managing on-street parking for the county's growing communities and neighborhoods, but one challenge for any such legislation is addressing how residents perceive property rights, ownership of street space, and what’s “fair.” Keep reading…