Welcome!

There are four parts to this initial public engagement opportunity for the Wilson Blvd & N. Rhodes Street Safety Project:

  1. Project Background and Goals
    • Why this project? Why now? We answer these questions below.
  2. Project Location and Existing Conditions
    • Here, we define the project area and show you what is there today, including traffic data.
  3. Questions About Your Experiences
    • On this page, we have four questions for you about how you travel to and through the intersection to learn more about your experiences here.
  4. Interactive Map
    • Here, you'll be able to add your own notes to specific locations within the project area, to share more detailed experiences with the project team as we develop a conceptual design for the project.

 

This engagement opportunity is open through October 22, 2023. Following a review of your input, the project team will summarize what we heard and share it back with you.

We'll then include your feedback into a conceptual design that we'll bring to the community in Winter 2023-2024 for a second round of public engagement.

Questions? Comments? Email Nate Graham, Public Engagement Specialist at nsgraham@arlingtonva.us.

Project Background

This capital project originated as a Vision Zero Quick Build project to construct a bus stop island at the northeast corner of this intersection.

After reviewing the safety needs and our design standards for intersections like this one, transportation staff determined that a more expansive project covering the entire intersection would better address all of the safety and operational issues present at this location.

We've now initiated a Capital Project process to resolve these issues, beginning with this initial public engagement.

Project Goals

  • Improve intersection safety for people walking, biking, taking transit and driving in this key commercial and residential corridor
  • Update outdated signal equipment to meet current county standards 
  • Update sidewalks and pedestrian ramps to meet the most recent accessibility standards
  • Reduce conflicts between transit vehicles serving the transit stop and people biking on Wilson Blvd
  • Address other safety and operational issues identified through observation and public engagement

Project Basis

Planning guidance from this project comes from the following County Board-adopted plans and policies:

Master Transportation Plan

  • Streets Element: the County's Complete Street Policy (Streets Element Policy #4.2) informs the scope of this project to improve safety for all road users, including people walking, biking, taking transit and driving.
  • Bicycle Element: This segment of Wilson Blvd is included in the Bicycle and Trail network as an existing facility and a "Primary Bicycling Corridor"

Vision Zero Action Plan

  • The 2021 Vision Zero Action Plan calls on County Transportation staff to take a proactive approach to safety, to eliminate severe and fatal crashes from our transportation network by 2030
  • Crash data analysis conducted in 2022 as part of the County's Vision Zero efforts showed that this intersection was a high crash location for pedestrians, who are disproportionately represented in severe and fatal crashes in Arlington.

State of Good Repair

Additionally, the corridor is within 1/4 mile of the HB Woodlawn Secondary Program and the Shriver Program at The Heights, and part of a major commercial and residential corridor in Northern Arlington that experiences significant pedestrian and transit use.