Electric bicycles with a brand-new look will dock at select Capital Bikeshare stations in Fairfax County this spring.

The rental bicycle-sharing service is rolling out 850 new e-bikes across the D.C. area, more than doubling its current stock and bringing its total fleet close to 7,000 bicycles, according to the Washington Post.

Initiated yesterday (Monday) and continuing through April, the rollout includes 45 e-bikes owned by Fairfax County, which will introduce them to five stations in Tysons, Reston and Dunn Loring:

• Tysons Metro North
• Dunn Loring Metro
• W&OD Trail/Sunset Hills Road & Isaac Newton Square
• Wiehle-Reston Metro South
• Reston Town Center Metro North

Manufactured by the ride-sharing company Lyft, the new e-bikes will be able to reach speeds of 20 mph with the electric assist, have longer-lasting batteries, provide better visibility with retroreflective paint, and eliminate the shift transmission on the older e-bikes, according to Capital Bikeshare.

The company intends to phase out the existing, black-painted model of e-bikes this August, the Fairfax County Department of Transportation previously said.

The county is working to expand its Bikeshare network with new stations in the Tysons, Franconia and Huntington areas in the works. Another 100 e-bikes will be ordered to support those stations this spring.

“In 2024 and beyond, Fairfax County plans to acquire approximately 200 additional e-bikes to support expansion around the Huntington and Innovation Metrorail Stations, Baileys Crossroads, Seven Corners, and Annandale,” FCDOT said in a news release.

While e-bikes are more expensive, the county has said the costs of the initial rollout will be covered by federal grant money and rider fees.

The bikes cost 10 cents per minute for annual Capital Bikeshare members, with a $2 fee for parking outside of a station. Non-members pay $1 to unlock the bike and 15 cents per minute. Members of the Capital Bikeshare for All program can ride e-bikes for free for up to 1 hour and don’t have to pay the $2 out-of-station fee.

The new model of e-bikes is also being added in D.C. and Arlington County.

Construction of a new walkway on Fox Mill Road in Reston is nearly halfway complete.

The project — which includes the installation of a walkway from Reston Parkway to Fairfax County Parkway — is 40% complete, according to Robin Geiger, a spokesperson for the Fairfax County Department of Transportation.

Based on the current timeline, the walkway will be completed in April.

“The contractor has briefly stopped working because they are waiting delivery of structures that should arrive soon to resume work,” Geiger wrote in a statement to FFXnow.

Work will then resume on the western end of the project by Fairfax County Parkway. The project includes roughly 2,000 linear feet of an 8-foot-wide asphalt walkway, including curb and gutter, on the north side of the road.

A separate project with more intersection improvements is currently in the design phase.

It includes the installation of a permanent traffic signal at the intersection of Fox Mill and Pinecrest Road, the construction of left-turn lanes on northbound and southbound Fox Mill, the addition of four crosswalks, and an 8-foot-wide walkway and curb ramp on the southeast corner of the intersection.

The $5.7 million project is financed through Fairfax County funds.

A temporary traffic signal was installed in the area in August 2021. Right-of-way acquisition will begin in the summer, followed by the beginning of construction in the fall of 2024, according to the Virginia Department of Transportation.

Fairfax Connector could be free for all children ages 12 and under.

The Fairfax County Department of Transportation’s current policy is kids under 5 years old do not need to pay a fare. The new policy would extend that to all children under 12.

Older children can already get a free student bus pass: all Fairfax County middle and high school students can ride on all Fairfax County routes and some Metrobus routes for free between 5 a.m.-10 p.m. with a student bus pass. The transportation department said in a presentation the change would “close a gap” in the county’s fare-free policy for kids.

Those children would still obviously need to be accompanied by a fare-paying adult to receive a free fare.

In a presentation, the Department of Transportation said there are several potential benefits to the change.

• Closes the gap in fare-free travel for children between ages 5-12
• Increases accessibility and removes barriers to travel for parents. Especially beneficial for trips to access medical or social services
• This change will help children become acclimated to using public transit from an early age thereby creating increased transportation alternatives

FCDOT is collecting feedback on the proposed change until next Friday, March 10.

The policy change is scheduled to be presented to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on April 11. If approved, it would take effect on April 30.

Fairfax Connector launched a pilot last month allowing low-income riders to get half-price fares.

(Updated at 3:40 p.m.) Fairfax County hopes to get a head start on its annual street paving and restriping efforts this year, thanks to the D.C. area’s warmer-than-usual winter weather.

The county and Virginia departments of transportation program will kick off next month in Merrifield with the proposed addition of bicycle lanes on Ellenwood Drive from Route 29 to Route 50, along with crosswalks at two intersections.

“Because of the warmer winter weather, VDOT recently began repaving some streets during the winter on short notice,” an FCDOT spokesperson said. “The Ellenwood Drive project was selected for this accelerated schedule, which also helps reduce the repaving backlog.”

The street’s two travel lanes will narrow to 10 feet to make room for the 5-foot-wide bicycle lanes, which would be separated from the curb by 7-foot-wide parking lanes, according to a presentation from the Fairfax County Department of Transportation.

In addition to linking two key thoroughfares, Ellenwood Drive is a good candidate for on-road bicycle lanes, because it has wide travel lanes, on-street parking and sidewalks on both sides, and the lanes can connect to trails on both ends, FCDOT says.

The Arlington Blvd service road at the southern end of Ellenwood has a trail connection to Armistead Park. In addition, the upcoming Fairfax Landing neighborhood’s developer is constructing a 6-foot-wide asphalt trail that will extend the Armistead Park Trail north to the Route 29 service road.

Per the presentation, parking reductions will be limited to the loss of two spaces at Ellenwood and the Route 29 service road.

However, the Fairfax Alliance for Better Bicycling (FABB) says more parking likely needs to be sacrificed to build bicycle lanes that are actually safe and comfortable to use.

“If you keep on-street parking, your options are very limited to add safe bicycling routes,” FABB board member Shawn Newman said. “Our preferred option would be to remove the parking on one side of that street and to add in buffered bike lanes, so a bike lane with adequate space next to it in order to provide bicyclists space between them and the vehicle.” Read More

(Updated at 9:55 a.m. on 2/15/2023) A groundbreaking for a new Washington & Old Dominion Trail bridge over Wiehle Avenue is set for next month.

The event, which was originally scheduled for earlier this week, was postponed due to the unavailability of some elected officials.

The new bridge replaces an existing at-grade crossing. Only minor roadway, sidewalk and median changes to Wiehle Avenue are planned at this location.

The project — which has been in the works for years — will boost bicyclist and pedestrian access near the Wiehle-Reston East Metro station. The bridge will include a gravel path and asphalt trail.

The project will be completed in spring 2024, according to the Fairfax County Department of Transportation.

Dominion Energy Virginia completed the relocation of transmission facilities in August 2021. An AT&T line was one of nine utility facilities to be relocated.

In a statement to FFXnow, Fairfax Alliance for Bicyclists (FABB) President Bruce Wright lauded the county for proceeding with the long-needed project. He encouraged the county to take one step further by managing detours and trail use at night:

One of the most dangerous road crossings on the W&OD Trail is at Wiehle Ave. Trail users must cross 6 lanes of Wiehle Ave traffic at an unsignalized crossing that is very close to the busy Sunset Hills Rd intersection. There are four southbound travel lanes, including a left turn lane. Where crashes have occurred, cyclists headed eastbound cross the first three lanes when the left turn signal changes. Motorists in that lane proceed through the signal and may not see cyclists or pedestrians crossing the adjacent lanes, and a crash occurs…

While there are only two northbound lanes, motorists can be approaching the crosswalk from three different directions and will often not yield to trail users. When they do yield, there is very little stacking space and cars can be backed up into the Sunset Hills intersection. The median refuge is not very wide which further complicates the crossing.

The new bridge will be a great benefit to W&OD trail users who will be able to safely cross Wiehle without having to stop or rely on motorists to yield to them. Motorists will benefit as well as they will not have to stop for trail users very close to a signalized intersection. Our only concern is how well the W&OD Trail and Wiehle Ave sidewalk/trail detours are handled. There needs to be safe, convenient 24/7 access for trail users. The W&OD Trail is officially closed at 9pm but many people need to use the trail given there are few safe alternatives at night. While we understand that there may be times at night when the trail will need to be closed, it should only be for brief periods after 9pm. If trail users must cross Wiehle at the Sunset Hills intersection, the pedestrian signal timing needs to be extended.

A spokesperson for FCDOT said information on the project was still being updated.

Correction: The bridge was previously expected to be finished this fall, but the timeline has gotten pushed back after a delayed start. H/t to Adam Rubenstein.

The Metro stations at the Dulles International Airport and Ashburn have been the busiest stations since phase two of the Silver Line opened in the middle of November.

So far, more than 60% of entries at the new stations happen during peak periods, according to Martha Coello, who works with the Fairfax County Department of Transportation’s special projects division.

At a Board of Supervisors transportation committee meeting yesterday (Tuesday), Coello noted that customers of the six new stations appear to generally be coming from or going to downtown D.C. The most frequented points of origin or destinations are Farragut West, McPherson Square, Foggy Bottom and Metro Center.

“A lot of the common starting and ending points…are actually in downtown D.C.,” she said.

Coello said that Fairfax Connector bus service changes in the Herndon and Reston area are going smoothly, with new routes providing more than 500 passenger trips per day.

The 11.4-mile extension into Loudoun County sees about 3,500 daily boardings. Around Thanksgiving travel time, that number hovered closer to 5,000 boardings, Coello said.

As of yesterday afternoon, the county was still waiting to finalize the execution of its maintenance and operations agreement with Metro for facilities in the county. That step is simply contingent on the receipt of documents, Coello said.

The installation of a sidewalk on Sunrise Valley Drive near Reston Parkway is still ongoing. The project is currently in the land acquisition phase, with construction anticipated in the spring of next year.

The county is also working on the removal of bus bays near the Wiehle-Reston East Metro station. That project will wrap up in the next few months.

After bus services were realigned, there is no longer a need for the bus bays.

The bays were primarily used by Loudoun County buses and are a “surplus at this point,” Coello said.

Talks are underway to design a street-level crossing across Route 123 at Tysons Blvd, a daunting challenge that would — at least in theory — improve access to Tysons Corner Center for pedestrians, bicyclists and others.

Fairfax County, the Virginia Department of Transportation and Macerich, the mall owner and developer, are currently hashing out an agreement for the crossing as an alternative to the existing pedestrian bridge that links the mall’s plaza to the Tysons Metro station on the other side of Route 123, also known as Chain Bridge Road.

“We’re not there yet, but we are diligently working to find the best and safest street-level crossing there as well, because just that bridge is not the best way to have a crossing,” Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik said when sharing the news at last month’s World Day of Remembrance ceremony honoring pedestrians killed in vehicle crashes.

Exactly what a safe Chain Bridge Road crossing might look like remains to be decided.

According to Palchik, the discussions began in the wake of 74-year-old Annandale resident Filadelfo Ramos Marquez’s death in a crash on Dec. 30, 2021.

At the time, police noted that Ramos Marquez wasn’t using a crosswalk when he got hit by the driver of a 2010 Toyota Camry going south on Chain Bridge. However, the closest crosswalk to the mall is two-tenths of a mile to the south at International Drive. Reaching it means crossing a bus entrance for the Metro and multiple gas station driveways on a narrow, sometimes uneven sidewalk.

The Metro walkway isn’t particularly convenient either except for those actually planning to take a train, and it’s not open 24 hours a day like it was supposed to be, Palchik told FFXnow.

“We’re still figuring that out,” she said when asked what a safe crossing would look like. “I think VDOT has one idea of what it would be, we have one idea, Macerich has another idea.”

Palchik says the crossing should include a pedestrian refuge in the middle of Route 123 so people at least have a place to stop, and lights will “definitely” be needed. Right now, the Tysons Blvd intersection only has traffic lights to direct vehicles with no signs or signals to indicate pedestrians might be present.

A VDOT spokesperson confirmed the department “is planning pedestrian enhancements due to the volume of pedestrian traffic and proximity to transit,” but no design details are available yet since the project “is still in early stages.”

VDOT also said Macerich is planning to modify a part of an intersection at the mall. When asked about its plans, a spokesperson for the real estate developer directed comments instead to Palchik’s office and the Fairfax County Department of Transportation, which didn’t respond to an inquiry by press time.

The developer’s proposal to replace the now-vacant Lord & Taylor store with a mixed-use tower was revised again last month to include “a grand portal” through the tower that will better connect Tysons Corner Center’s elevated plaza to the street below.

The mall’s next phase of development will also include a 10-foot-wide trail from the Metro bus bays to International Drive, according to the updated application filed with Fairfax County on Nov. 21.

The proposed staircase and additional streetscaping were added in anticipation of a future street-level crossing at Tysons Blvd, the Washington Business Journal reported.

Acknowledging that congestion can be a concern on Chain Bridge, both going north to the Capital Beltway and south toward Vienna, Palchik says a safe, more accessible crossing is still necessary, as walkability remains a challenge in Tysons.

“We do want to continue to build that as an urban city and core, and that means people walking [and] rolling across not just internal streets, but Route 123 and Route 7,” Palchik said.

Much has changed in the landscape of Tysons and people’s travel habits since Capital Bikeshare first pulled into town in 2016.

As a result, Fairfax County plans to relocate some of the bicycle-sharing company’s 15 established stations in the area to new spots that better accommodate Tysons’ growing residential population and the rise of remote work accelerated by the pandemic.

“When Tysons wasn’t as urbanized as it is today…we didn’t have a lot of choice but to essentially go into office parks,” said Zachary DesJardins, the county’s acting active transportation manager. “As you might imagine, during the pandemic, those areas have not done very well. People just aren’t going to the office very much.”

As part of a larger expansion of its Bikeshare network, the Fairfax County Department of Transportation has proposed installing 14 new stations in Tysons, including three that would be relocations of existing stations.

Detailed in a virtual public meeting on Dec. 5, the sites being suggested are mostly near housing or other areas with the density to generate more trips. For instance, stations by grocery stores have done well during the pandemic, according to DesJardins, so one could go on Silver Hill Drive, down the street from The Boro’s Whole Foods.

The availability of infrastructure to support Bikeshare is also a consideration. A space has opened up at the Greensboro Metro station for the first time with the completion of a concrete pad six months ago, and FCDOT wants to put a station at Old Meadow Road and Cathy Lane to take advantage of the recently opened pedestrian bridge over I-495.

Elsewhere in the Providence District, the county plans to add four more stations in Merrifield, including one in a garage at the Mosaic District, and five in the Vienna Metro station area, which will connect to the network that Fairfax City is expected to introduce next summer.

The expansion is being funded by a federal Transportation Alternatives Program grant for 12 stations and electric bicycles and a Northern Virginia Transportation Commission grant for nine stations and classic bicycles. Local funds will be used to move the existing stations in Tysons.

Combined with plans for Bikeshare in the Franconia District, DesJardins said the county will purchase a total of 95 electric bicycles with the federal grant in anticipation of Capital Bikeshare phasing out its current black e-bikes in August 2023.

Currently provided for free, e-bikes make up 6% of the county’s network but are used for 15% of trips, according to FCDOT. Unlike Capital Bikeshare’s traditional bicycles, they can be locked into standard, public bicycle racks.

The county is eyeing new e-bikes a lock, reflective materials and GPS that could be used to track them if they’re stolen, DesJardins said. They cost four times more to buy than a traditional bicycle and are more expensive to operate, but FCDOT says the expenses will be covered by the federal grant and user fees, respectively.

“I’m personally very excited about the e-bikes,” Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik said. “As you said, hills make difficult the use of regular bikes for most of us, so that’s a great addition.”

FCDOT is accepting public feedback on the proposed new Bikeshare stations until 5 p.m. Friday (Dec. 16).

Comments can be submitted online, by mail (FCDOT, Capital Bikeshare Program, 4050 Legato Road, Suite 400, Fairfax, VA 22033), email to bikefairfax@fairfaxcounty.gov, and by phone at 703-877-5600.

Fairfax County is adding seven Capital Bikeshare electric bicycle stations in the Franconia District, splitting them between the Franconia/Springfield Metro station and the Huntington transit station area.

Last week, the Fairfax County Department of Transportation (FCDOT) held a public meeting where it laid out its plan for the expansion of the Capital Bikeshare program in the Franconia District.

The goal is to add seven stations in the Franconia District and one at the Huntington Metro south entrance that would technically be in the Mount Vernon District. The stations are scheduled to be installed starting next year and into 2024.

“When you need to get from Point A to Point B with more than two feet but less than four wheels, borrowing a bicycle in might be your answer,” the Fairfax County Department of Transportation said on its website.

All the stations would have e-bikes, as opposed to classic bicycles, due to demand. While currently only 6% of its Capital Bikeshare fleet are e-bikes, they make up 15% of total trips, according to FCDOT. E-bikes can also be locked to any public bicycle rack.

The proposed locations of the stations include four near the Franconia-Springfield Metro station and three in and around the Jefferson Manor neighborhood.

The suggested station locations are:

• Fairhaven Avenue & Monticello Road
• N Kings Highway & Fort Drive
• Poag Street & S Kings Highway
• Franconia/Springfield Metrorail North
• Seatrend Way & Andrew Matthew Terrace
• Charles Arrington Drive & Manchester Lakes Drive
• Metro Park Drive & Walker Lane

These exact locations are not set in stone, however.

“All locations are subject to input from the community and our elected officials and could change as a result,” FCDOT spokesperson Robin Geiger told FFXnow.

Each station is slated to cost about $55,000. That includes the station itself, installation, and six e-bikes. The county plans to acquire its own e-bikes to ensure “future e-bike service after contractor-provided e-bikes begin phasing out in August 2023,” according to staff.

E-bikes are significantly more expensive than classic bikes, but rider fees and grants will cover operating costs.

A Northern Virginia Transportation Commission grant will pay for the four stations at the Metro, while a federal grant for underserved communities will finance the other three stations.

Fairfax Country currently has more than 50 Capital Bikeshare stations but is working on doubling that. Beyond the seven coming to the Franconia District, 21 additional locations are being added in the Providence District as well.

Over the past year, Reston has also gotten an additional 19 stations.

Residents can weigh in with input and comments about the Capital Bikeshare plan and proposed locations in the Franconia District through Dec. 16.

The pedestrian and bicycle network around the West Falls Church Metro station in Idylwood is uncomfortable to use in some places and nonexistent in many others, a newly released report found.

The West Falls Church Active Transportation Study confirms community complaints that local roads are unsafe and inadequate for current residents, let alone the influx of newcomers anticipated with 1.8 million square feet of new development planned in the transit station area (TSA).

Faced with transportation infrastructure often designed to move drivers at the expense of other road users like pedestrians and bicyclists, the report proposes an array of potential improvements, from new sidewalks to a road diet on Haycock Road.

“Providing active transportation accommodations in a built-environment can be challenging and costly, but it is vital, especially for areas that are focused on transit-oriented development,” the report said. “Safe and comfortable sidewalks and bicycle facilities may encourage transit usage as they can provide access to more people within transit station areas.”

Developed by Fairfax County staff and an advisory group of residents and road safety advocates, the study launched last December after the Board of Supervisors set the stage for redevelopments of the Metro station and Virginia Tech’s Northern Virginia Center campus, raising concerns that the added density will exacerbate safety and congestion issues in the area.

With major construction already underway on the former George Mason High School campus in Falls Church City, the report states that the new developments will “likely result in an increase in traffic on the area’s roadways.”

For example, on Route 7 (Leesburg Pike), where the majority of crashes in the TSA over the past five years are concentrated, daily traffic volumes are projected to rise from about 30,000 vehicles prior to the pandemic in 2010 to over 50,000 vehicles in 2045.

Projects recommended by the report include sidewalks, shared-use paths and paved trails on several roads. It also proposes safety measures at key intersections, such as flashing beacons for the Washington & Old Dominion Trail crossing at Virginia Lane and a pedestrian refuge on Idylwood Road near Lemon Road Elementary School.

Some of the recommended high-visibility crosswalks on Leesburg Pike at the Idylwood, I-66 and Pimmit Drive intersections have already been added, as of October, according to footnotes in the report.

The report also suggests considering road design or operational changes, including road diets, one-way streets near the Metro station, and “slow streets” with lower speed limits, traffic barriers and limited access.

Road diets repurpose existing travel lanes for bicycle lanes, transit, parking or other uses, though the Virginia Department of Transportation typically uses them to create center left-turn lanes. The report proposes Haycock Road between Turner Avenue and Falls Church City, and Great Falls Street on the I-66 overpass as possible candidates.

Slow streets would be a new concept for Fairfax County, but D.C. experimented with them during the first year of the pandemic, and some cities, particularly in California, are adopting them permanently.

The report suggests testing the idea with one or two local streets, such as Chestnut and Gordons Road between Dale Drive and Shreve Road or Highland Avenue between Haycock and North West Street.

“As with road diets, slow street projects would require an assessment of the potential traffic impacts and must be closely coordinated with VDOT and affected members of the community,” the report says.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors formally accepted the report yesterday, directing county staff to incorporate the recommendations into the countywide active transporation plan and identify possible funding sources.

Dranesville District Supervisor John Foust, who represents the TSA, along with Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik, said he’s “absolutely confident” that the report accurately reflects the needs and priorities of the community.

“I frequently walk those areas personally, and I believe this study does a good job of describing existing pedestrian and bicycle conditions and needed improvements in the area and of prioritizing safety and access improvements that are needed,” he said.