CSG and CASA’s joint efforts have prompted an important public meeting next week! VDOT, in collaboration with Fairfax DOT and Supervisor Penny Gross, will hold a meeting to hear community requests for potential safety improvements for Route 7 in the Culmore neighborhood of Bailey’s Crossroads.
I hope you will join CSG and CASA for a rally, followed by the meeting, to demand urgent action to make Route 7 safer for the residents of Culmore and everyone who travels the road.
Route 7 – Culmore Pedestrian Safety Public Meeting
Thursday, August 4, 2022
Pre-Meeting Rally – 6:30 pm
Public Meeting – 7:00 pm
Bailey’s Elementary School
6111 Knollwood Drive, Falls Church
According to a walkability survey conducted by CSG and CASA, residents living in Culmore feel unsafe walking and biking along Route 7. They cite poor lighting, dangerous driving, and the lack of connected sidewalks, bike infrastructure, and safe crossing options as core problems.
It’s not surprising they feel unsafe. Since 2015, in this one mile stretch of Route 7 through Culmore there have been 18 pedestrian crashes, 4 of them fatal and 14 with serious injuries.
We are urging several quick fixes that are critical for making the area safer now while longer-term plans are developed, including:
- Lowering the speed limit and adding driver speed feedback signs
- Installing a temporary, in-street sidewalk connection until a permanent one can be built in front of the gas station where a woman was struck and killed in December
- Adding high visibility crosswalks across Route 7 and all side streets and driveways in the corridor
- Providing brighter pedestrian-scale lighting
- Reprograming the traffic signals to give pedestrians a head start and more time to cross Route 7
I hope you can attend the rally and meeting to help show strong support for making the changes needed to make Route 7 safer in Culmore.
If you can’t make the meeting, consider sending an email to Fairfax County and VDOT using our action form here.