Arlington Pit Stop Route Questions

[baiskeli]

When the cars coming from 66 have green, they don't have to look over their left shoulder for traffic coming from the left. Green means they can turn right if the crosswalk is clear.

Oops, sorry, like I said, it's complicated. You are of course correct, on the right turn on red they're looking left.

[baiskeli]

Here's why I included the right on red.

Car is coming off the Parkway and waiting at the red to turn right onto Lynn toward the bridge. Looking left for a gap. Cyclist comes from behind driver's shoulder. At that intersection, the pedestrian crossing light turns green a second or two before the light for cars turns green. A driver who was trying to turn right on red may not see you in the crosswalk at that point. And when the car's light turns green, he/she may not even bother to look, and just turn. I've had three or four near-misses in that situation where if I wasn't looking carefully at those cars, I would have been right in their path.

[dasgeh]

Here's why I included the right on red.

Car is coming off the Parkway and waiting at the red to turn right onto Lynn toward the bridge. Looking left for a gap. Cyclist comes from behind driver's shoulder. At that intersection, the pedestrian crossing light turns green a second or two before the light for cars turns green. A driver who was trying to turn right on red may not see you in the crosswalk at that point. And when the car's light turns green, he/she may not even bother to look, and just turn. I've had three or four near-misses in that situation where if I wasn't looking carefully at those cars, I would have been right in their path.

I'm not disputing that you have to be very careful with drivers - many of them don't look to see if there are people in the crosswalk. I agree that making eye contact with each driver who will cross your path (there are two lanes, I've even seen a car go around and create a third) is very important. But it's doable. I worry that newbs who hear about Lynn and Lee will think "there's no way I could possibly cross there" and give up. It's very possible to cross there. If you're not comfortable at very low speeds, it's best to dismount and walk your bike, so you can stop on a dime. If you wait so you're crossing at the very beginning of the walking person so all cars have red, it's easier. It's also easier to cross with other bikes and peds. It's annoying to go so slowly, possibly dismount, not be able to use the full "walking person", but it's at most a 1 minute delay.

So new people reading this, it's not inherently a death trap. It's a place to be very, very careful, and not expect to go fast, but you can get through it. And welcome to cycling. Despite this one intersection, it really is AWESOME!

[baiskeli]

I'm not disputing that you have to be very careful with drivers - many of them don't look to see if there are people in the crosswalk. I agree that making eye contact with each driver who will cross your path (there are two lanes, I've even seen a car go around and create a third) is very important. But it's doable. I worry that newbs who hear about Lynn and Lee will think "there's no way I could possibly cross there" and give up. It's very possible to cross there. If you're not comfortable at very low speeds, it's best to dismount and walk your bike, so you can stop on a dime. If you wait so you're crossing at the very beginning of the walking person so all cars have red, it's easier. It's also easier to cross with other bikes and peds. It's annoying to go so slowly, possibly dismount, not be able to use the full "walking person", but it's at most a 1 minute delay.

So new people reading this, it's not inherently a death trap. It's a place to be very, very careful, and not expect to go fast, but you can get through it. And welcome to cycling. Despite this one intersection, it really is AWESOME!

Exactly!

This crossing is okay if you just do it right. It's one of those crossing where you shouldn't push your luck, like some cyclists do at other crossing (and sometimes this one).

Hope to see lots of newbs crossing there tomorrow from the Rosslyn pit stop.

[BobK]

Excellent additional comments, guys! I am getting a pretty good sense of the issues I will be running into in Rosslyn tomorrow.

I think I have been incredibly spoiled on my normal ride. No really bad intersections to speak of at all. I tip my hat to those of you who have to deal with this route on a daily basis!

Thanks, again.

Bob