Scammers Threatening to Kill Wives, Kids of Doctors — Scammers are calling Arlington doctors and pretending to hold one of the doctor’s family members hostage. The scam usually includes a woman screaming on the other end, pretending to be the doctor’s wife or daughter, and the supposed hostage taker making threats to kill her. So far this week at least two Arlington doctors have received the call. [MyFoxDC]
Hit-and-Run Driver May Have Been Intoxicated — Police are investigating whether the woman who ran over a man in a Columbia Pike parking lot may have been drunk and/or on prescription medication at the time of the incident. [NBC Washington – WARNING: Auto-play video]
Dems to Hold Primary — The Arlington County Democratic Committee last night voted to hold a primary for the upcoming County Board race. The primary will be held June 9, and the first day for candidate filing is March 9. A School Board caucus, meanwhile, will be held May 14 and 16.
D.C. Streetcar System in Jeopardy — The D.C. Council is considering scaling back or ending the city’s streetcar program. The long-delayed, problem-plagued H Street NE line still does not have an opening date scheduled. [NBC Washington -WARNING: Auto-play video]
School Boundary ‘Refinements’ Approved, Parents Peeved — The Arlington School Board on Thursday approved a series of small “refinements” to elementary school boundaries in North Arlington by a 3-1 vote. The changes will impact a few dozen current McKinley and Tuckahoe elementary students over the next two school years, transferring those students to other nearby schools. Several parents whose kids are affected have contacted ARLnow.com, calling the process and subsequent decision “short sighted,” “pointless” and “a sham.” [Arlington Public Schools, InsideNova]
Big, Tire-Eating Pothole on Wilson Blvd — An Arlington resident says he got a flat tire after driving over a monster pothole in the left-hand lane of westbound Wilson Blvd at N. Patrick Henry Drive. Arlington’s Dept. of Environmental Services responded to the man’s tweet, saying repair crews have been notified. [Twitter]
ACPD Assists with Bust of Diner Owner — The owner of a popular Baltimore diner has been arrested in a cocaine sting that Arlington County police helped to arrange. Prosecutors say Anthony Vasiliades, owner of the Sip & Bite diner, which was featured on the TV show “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives,” tried to buy $50,000 worth of cocaine from an undercover Arlington detective. [Baltimore Sun]
Casting Call for Arlington Cyclists — More than 50 people have signed up for a casting call for a promotional campaign that will highlight “everyday Arlington citizens who use a bicycle as means of commuting and/or recreation.” The casting call for the county-sponsored campaign, which will feature six short documentary films, ends today. [Modacity, Twitter]
County Planning Effort Launches — The Arlington County and School Boards have jointly appointed a 24-member “Facilities Study Committee” that is tasked with building “a consensus framework regarding the community’s future funding and facility needs.” The launch of the committee comes as Arlington Public Schools faces push back from residents as it tries to find county-owned land on which to build badly-needed new schools. [Arlington County]
A teenage girl has suffered serious injuries in a bike accident on a steep downhill portion of S. Walter Reed Drive.
Police believe the girl ran into the back of a stopped SUV near the intersection of Walter Reed and S. Randolph Street, at the bottom of a steep hill. The girl suffered a serious head and facial injuries and was rushed to the trauma center at Inova Fairfax Hospital.
The girl was reportedly wearing a helmet. The driver of the SUV remained on scene, according to Arlington County Police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck.
The accident happened around 3:30 p.m. As of 4:45 p.m., investigators were still taking photos and measurements at the scene.
The bicycle storage building damaged by the fire on N. Jackson Street Sunday, Jan. 4, 2015
The aftermath of Hybrid Pedals’ January fire (Photo courtesy @CAPT258)
The aftermath of Hybrid Pedals’ January fire (Photo courtesy @CAPT258)
Hybrid Pedals, whose back building caught fire Sunday, Jan. 4, 2015
The back of the fire-damaged Hybrid Pedals building
The interior of the fire-damaged Hybrid Pedals building
An electric bicycle shop in the Clarendon area was damaged by a fire Sunday night.
The fire department was called just before 8:00 p.m. for a fire at the Hybrid Pedals shop at 925 N. Jackson Street. The shop sells bikes outfitted with electric motors, also called “eBikes.”
The blaze was extinguished quickly, according to Arlington County Fire Department spokeswoman Lt. Sarah Marchegiani, but caused an estimated $150,000 in damage.
The fire started by the heat from a battery charger, Marchegiani said. No one was at the shop at the time and no injuries were reported.
Morroy Announces Re-election Bid — Arlington Commissioner of Revenue Ingrid Morroy announced that she will be seeking re-election in 2015 at last night’s Arlington County Democratic Committee meeting. Morroy, who is recovering from recent hip replacement surgery, outlined her goals for a new term. The goals include returning property assessments to the Commissioner of Revenue’s office, thus bringing it under the supervision of an elected official who’s directly responsible to taxpayers.
Arlingtonian Running for UK Parliament — Arlington resident Sonia Klein, who was born in London, is running for a seat in the UK House of Commons. Klein, who’s affiliated with the Labour Party, can run because residency is not required to run for House of Commons seats. Klein has previously served as vice chair of precinct operations for the Arlington County Democratic Committee. [InsideNova]
Whipple Appointed to Board of Health — Gov. Terry McAuliffe has appointed former state Sen. Mary Margaret Whipple to the Virginia Board of Health. Whipple previously represented the 31st District, which includes Arlington, in the state Senate. [Commonwealth of Virginia]
New Cycletrack Proposed — Arlington County is proposing a sidewalk-level cycletrack along S. Walter Reed Drive to connect the W&OD Trail and the Four Mile Run Trail. However, some cyclists are concerned the cycletrack would be barely distinguishable from the adjacent sidewalk. [Greater Greater Washington]
Clarendon Office Building Sold — The recently-constructed office building at 3003 Washington Blvd in Clarendon has been sold. KBS Real Estate Investment Trust has reportedly agreed to purchase the building from Penzance Cos. for $146.8 million. The building is 95 percent leased to eight tenants. [GlobeSt, Washington Business Journal]
Arlington-based charity Bikes for the World, which takes used bikes and ships them to underprivileged communities around the world, will donate its 100,000th bicycle tomorrow.
The charity will send the bike as part of a shipment of 500 bicycles to Costa Rica, to be distributed to workers who use the bikes as part of their jobs in their rural economy, according to a Bikes of the World press release.
Bikes of the World has been sending bikes around the world, to places like the Philippines, Ghana and Afghanistan. The bikes help children get to school and help families climb out of poverty by providing reliable transportation. The bikes also provide jobs for people in the receiving countries, who get work reconditioning the bicycles once they arrive.
The 100,000th bike will be loaded into a shipping container tomorrow at noon at 1420 S. Eads Street as part of America Recycles Day. All of the bikes the nonprofit ships are donated by Americans in eight states and D.C., and recycled for their use internationally.
The way Arlington residents commute continues to change, with more working remotely than at any point in the last decade, according to a new study.
The study, tabulated in infographic form (left) by county-funded transit research organization Mobility Lab, used 2013 data to analyze the commuting habits of of 131,300 working Arlington residents and the 180,300 who work in the county.
According to the study, 7 percent of all commuting trips by Arlington residents are either on foot or with a bicycle, and 4 percent of Arlington workers report either walking or biking to work. While 7.4 percent of commuting trips were biking and walking in the previous study, conducted in 2010, Mobility Lab Research Director Stephen Crim told ARLnow.com that he believes the 576-resident sample did not represent the county’s changing commuting patterns.
“We looked at this in comparison to census figures, and the census is showing really strong growth [in walking and biking] between the 2013 community survey and the 2010 community survey,” Crim said, “so we think there is an increase, but the sample didn’t pick that up.”
The longer term trend is clear: in 2004, only 4 percent of county residents biked or walked to work, and only 2.8 percent arrived at their jobs in Arlington via bike or foot.
The number of Arlington residents that drive alone to work is virtually unchanged — from 55 percent in 2010 to 54 percent last year — and hasn’t decreased significantly over the last 10 years, despite local officials’ emphasis on the “Car Free Diet.” Crim said that transit advocates should not be discouraged, however.
“A few percentage points over that period I’d say is real progress,” he said. “For Arlington residents, it’s a kind of hard argument to make because a lot of them are not going that far to work. Satisfaction across all the different modes is about the same. It’s that much more difficult sometimes, to make the argument, when someone still owns a car to not use it for work. They might have to drive a short distance or not get on a crowded interstate, so it’s a real challenge for all of Arlington’s programs.”
Compared with other jurisdictions around the region, Arlington’s residents lag behind only the District’s in alternative modes of transportation to driving. The regional average for those who drive alone to work is close to 70 percent, but only 38 percent of D.C. residents drive solo to the office.
Arlington residents’ use of Metrorail took a slight dip, from its peak of 27 percent in 2010 to 26 percent last year. The number coincides with the region as a whole; according to Mobility Lab, Metro’s ridership has been in decline since 2009.
The biggest statistical shift in working patterns comes from employees teleworking. In 2004, only 13 percent of Arlington residents said they teleworked at any point during the week. In 2013, that number is 30 percent, with the respondents teleworking on average 1.3 days per week. In addition, 19 percent of Arlington residents said they can’t telework at their current job, but “could and would” if the option were available to them.
Patrick Henry Elementary Honored by State — Patrick Henry Elementary School was among 40 schools around the state honored by the Virginia Board of Education for improving the academic performance of economically disadvantaged students. It was named a Highly Distinguished School for exceeding both state and federal benchmarks two years in a row. [WJLA]
Arlington, Falls Church Have State’s Best Jobs Numbers — Arlington and Falls Church tied for the lowest jobless rate in Virginia last month. They both listed a 3.7 percent unemployment rate for September. Arlington’s unemployment rate had been at 4 percent in August. [InsideNova]
Dog Loose at Airport — Among the cases recently handled by the Animal Welfare League of Arlington was a dog loose on the property at Reagan National Airport. The pooch had been reported missing and was reunited with its owner. [Washington Post]
Bike Light and Arm Band Giveaway — All cyclists, runners and walkers who stop by the Crystal City exit of the Mount Vernon Trail tonight from 4:00-6:00 p.m. will receive a free bike light or LED arm/leg band, courtesy of the Crystal City BID. Limit one item per person, while supplies last.
Capital Bikeshare stations in the R-B corridor. Future stations are indicated by funding year
Capital Bikeshare stations in Arlington. Future stations are indicated by funding year
Bikeshare stations in Arlington. Future stations are indicated by funding year
The Capital Bikeshare program continues to grow in Arlington, and its annual report shows more residents are using it, and riding farther, than ever before.
As of June 30, 2014, Capital Bikeshare had 2,771 registered members in Arlington, a 31 percent increase over 2013, and the biggest year-over-year increase since the program was introduced in 2011. The program cost the county $536,000 last year — it spent about $1.4 million and generated $895,000 in revenue — also the best recovery-to-expenditure ratio since the program started.
While announcing its annual report for Capital Bikeshare, BikeArlington said it’s planning to have 137 stations in operation by FY 2020, compared to the 75 stations that are up and running today.
There are nine stations in the county that are currently funded and ready to be installed, with four along Lee Highway and four scattered throughout South Arlington. Crystal City, Pentagon City and Rosslyn will benefit most from the FY 2015 planned expansion, which projects to add 18 stations throughout the county.
There were 191,961 Capital Bikeshare trips that started in Arlington last year, a 24 percent increase over 2013, and BikeArlington estimates riders burned 16.2 million calories during their trips.
One development that may slow progress during 2014 was the bankruptcy of Capital Bikeshare’s equipment supplier in January, and the more recent bankruptcy of the region’s station vendor.
“There is still some uncertainty about the supply of new equipment due to our station vendor’s bankruptcy,” BikeArlington wrote on its website. “In addition to the equipment vendor’s bankruptcy, the two companies that worked together on the hardware and software components of the system have discontinued their partnership. The manufacturer of the software and circuitry for our Capital Bikeshare stations has committed to producing a new, enhanced bikeshare station that will work seamlessly with our existing system. We haven’t yet had a chance to test this new station, but look forward to ensuring this equipment meets or exceeds our expectations.”
BikeArlington didn’t say whether the bankruptcies or dissolved partnerships would delay the installment of future stations. The ones that have been installed since the bankruptcy were purchased before the company went under.
Seeking Fed Funds for Transportation Projects — Arlington County is seeking $840,000 in federal grant funds for three transportation projects. The projects include: bicycle and pedestrian improvements near McKinley Elementary School, Americans with Disabilities Act improvements along the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor, and an expansion of the Capitol Bikeshare system. [InsideNova]
D.C. More Expensive than NYC, SF? — In terms of housing-related costs, it’s more expensive to live in the D.C. area than New York City or San Francisco. That’s according to a new study by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. [Washington Post]
Cyclists Facing ‘Bikelash’ — Bicyclists don’t like being called “bullies” and “terrorists,” but the county’s Mobility Lab blog argues that it’s best not to respond with reason and logic to the increasing amount of “bikelash.” Instead, the blog encourages cyclists to act more strategically by organizing, publishing their own media outlets and engaging in the political process. [Mobility Lab]
Cars, bikes and pedestrians fight for space at Lee Highway and N. Lynn Street. (file photo)
The work will extend the curbs at the “Intersection of Doom,” minimizing cyclists’ and pedestrians’ time exposed to car traffic. (Courtesy of Arlington County/Toole Design Group)
Cars and bicyclists fight for space at Lee Highway and N. Lynn Street.
A County Board-approved plan will remove a lane of traffic from Lee Highway and widen Custis Trail (Courtesy of Arlington County/Toole Design Group)
The Rosslyn intersection where cyclists and pedestrians face drivers exiting I-66 has received safety modifications in the past two weeks and more changes are on the way, county officials said on a tour of the site Tuesday morning.
In advance of a $5 million overhaul slated to be complete in summer 2016, Arlington County and the Virginia Department of Transportation changed the timing of the traffic lights and walk signals at Lee Highway and N. Lynn Street last week, said Larry Marcus, the county’s head of transportation engineering.
“Pedestrians and cyclists are the priority at this location, period,” Marcus said as county officials and police watched people navigate the corner some locals call the “Intersection of Doom.”
One change is minor in cost but should be significant in impact: A no-turn-on-red sign is being installed at N. Lynn Street for those exiting I-66. That’s being done “as soon as possible,” Marcus said.
Additionally, cyclists and pedestrians crossing N. Lynn Street using the Custis Trail previously had a walk signal when all traffic lights were red — known as a “leading interval” — for just 2 seconds; the length of that signal was increased last week to 5 seconds, Marcus said. The county plans to increase the leading interval time to 15 to 20 seconds in the next six months, once new signal technology is installed.
“We’re giving more time for pedestrians and bikes to go first,” Marcus said, adding that new caution signs for drivers, pedestrians and cyclists will be added to the intersection.
Drivers headed west on Lee Highway, meanwhile, now have an additional 10 seconds of biker- and pedestrian-free time to clear the intersection.
To pair with engineering changes, the Arlington County Police Department has ramped up traffic enforcement and educational efforts at the corner where numerous car-on-bike accidents have occurred, Capt. James Wasem said.
“People can expect to see uniformed police officers out here flagging cars over, directing traffic, handing out some brochures and citing violations,” he said about the measures enacted about two weeks ago.
Police issued 228 citations at the intersection from Sept. 15, 2013 through the same date this year: 133 for failure to obey traffic signals, 32 for improper turning and 1 for failure to yield to a pedestrian. Fifteen car crashes occurred at the intersection within that period, police said; just two crashes on record involved pedestrians.
The ACPD assigns an officer to direct traffic at the intersection on weekdays from 7:00 to 9:00 a.m. but must spread officers between that corner, schools and other frequent crash sites. The department began sending an officer to the location “as often as possible” following recommendations from a traffic analyst the county hired this year, Wasem said.
ACPD is seeking funding to assign two officers to Lee Highway and N. Lynn Street every weekday morning, plus an additional two officers at Lynn Street and Wilson Boulevard, Wasem said. The latter intersection has been facing a chronic problem of drivers “blocking the box” during rush hour since construction began on the Central Place project, blocking lanes of Lynn Street.
The additional staffing would cost $180,000 through next year.
