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Transportation safety panel urges crosswalk upgrades, flags e‑bike risks
Summary
The Transportation Safety Commission asked staff for regular memos on street‑level safety measures, recommended pedestrian‑activated crosswalks (RRFBs) at problem locations and identified e‑bikes and e‑scooters as a growing safety concern, recommending education and potential ordinance changes coordinated with neighboring jurisdictions.
Beth Eekas, reporting for the Transportation Safety Commission, Bicycle Advisory Committee and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, told the council the groups focused this year on three problem areas — Cottage Street, Plum Street SW and Air Hill Avenue — and recommended targeted remedies including pedestrian‑activated RRFB crosswalks and new pavement legends to highlight pedestrian and cyclist presence.
Eekas said the TSC has encountered instances where Public Works has implemented traffic‑control changes without a memo to advisory bodies; the commission asked staff to include a brief monthly memo on regulatory and striping changes so commissioners can answer public questions reliably.
The commission also flagged snow‑removal communications and an increasing number of safety incidents involving e‑bikes and e‑scooters on town streets and paths. Eekas said the technology has outpaced legislation and urged an education-first approach, coordinated with Fairfax County, Loudoun County and Nova Parks, and recommended bringing Nova Parks into the Nov. 12 discussion the mayor plans to hold with the police chief on e‑mobility enforcement and safety.
Councilmembers and commissioners discussed enforcement limits — Nova Parks posts speed limits but typically relies on county police to enforce them — and the different classes of e‑bikes under Virginia law. Several councilmembers asked staff to research ordinances in Falls Church, Loudoun and Fairfax counties and return with recommended options for education, signage, and potential regulatory changes.
The council did not vote on policy changes during the work session; TSC requested continued staff coordination and more formal notice of DPW street‑level interventions to commissioners so the advisory bodies can respond to citizens more consistently.
