At Bike Falls Church, we value an active two-way dialouge with our City leaders. We're here to advocate for better bicycling, walking, and other transportation in the City but also to listen, learn, and advise. Candidates for City Council are invited to join Bike Falls Church events and to submit answers to questions relevant to our mission. You can find answers from this year's candidates below. We'll also do a sit down exploratory discussion with each candidate as a way to hear what they've learned on the campaign trail and share some of the hopes, history, and data behind our mission.
John Murphy murphy4fcc.com
1) Do you ride a bike in the City? If so, why, where and how often? If not, why not? No wrong answers here! :-)
I myself am not much of a cyclist any more. When I was younger, I did century and half-century rides with a group in North Arlington. I have an old TREK in the shed and do help neighbors tune their bikes, change tires etc. I guess that doesn't really answer why or why not but I don't really know why I've drifted away except possibly age and laziness. I rode bikes with my sons in the City for years when they were younger and love to see families out doing the same.
2) What percent of people going to restaurants, parks, schools, and neighborhood services (doctors, grocery, shops, gyms) in the City do you think walk, bike, or take transit? What percent should it be?
I can't really hazard a guess as to the percentage of patrons at CIty businesses that bike to get there. Anecdotal evidence (lack of bikes parked outside at least during weekdays) seems to indicate that not too many. One of the best things I've seen in the CIty is far more people walking. In my entire time here, I've never seen the sidewalks so heavily used. Again, hard to guess destinations (except clearly the Little CIty Creamery) but more people walking means less cars on the roads.
3) How can we decrease carbon emissions from transportation in the City and reduce the number of injuries on our streets, while population increases?
I have listed one of my priorities as creating a Pedestrian Master Plan to partner with the Bike Master Plan. Many of our heavily used sidewalks are narrow, blocked by utility poles, have poor or nonexistent crosswalks, etc. I think the CIty can and should do better. Frankly, to reduce accidents and injuries, everyone needs to pay attention to their surroundings and try to follow rules. The greatest danger to everyone is when something unexpected happens. Running red lights and stop signs is endemic in the CIty.
4) One of the City's biggest assets is the public right of way that forms our streets. What are your goals and priorities for this space? How should we manage competing demands?
My goals for our rights-of-way are all about safety and use. 20 mph is plenty in our residential neighborhoods. That facilitates safety for drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians. About 15 years ago, I created a listing of all of the unimproved rights-of-way (paper streets) in the CIty with the hope that connections could be made for pedestrians and cyclists. I researched maps from the 1800s on and went out and took photos of the current conditions. Many were blocked off with fences and had essentially been turned into someone's yard. Not much has come of that but those paper streets and possible connections still provide an opportunity.
Laura Downs votelauradowns.com
1) Do you ride a bike in the City? If so, why, where, and how often? If not, why not? No wrong answers here! :-)
I don't ride a bike in the city for two reasons. As a teenager, I was hit by a car while riding my bike. Despite not wearing a helmet, I was incredibly lucky and did not sustain any serious injuries, but that incident has stuck with me and is one of the reasons I am vigilant about bike safety with my own children. We live on the East side of town which means having to ride on Broad or Columbia and crossing Washington Street- all busy streets. This makes me more hesitant to ride a bike and more hesitant to have my kids ride their bikes.
2) What percent of people going to restaurants, parks, schools, and neighborhood services (doctors, grocery, shops, gyms) in the City do you think walk, bike, or take transit? What percent should it be?
In 2014, about 14% of trips in the city were made without cars. Ten years later, about 70% of city residents live within a 10-minute walk from the grocery store. I'm personally excited to have a Whole Foods that is within walking distance of our house! With improvements made to the W&OD trail, new shops and restaurants scattered throughout the city, and biking advocacy groups such as yours, I believe non-car trips will increase. It's my understanding that the City Council's goal is by 2030, 20% of trips made by residents, be made without a car. I think that is a reachable goal, especially if we make improvements to our sidewalks, intersections, and bike lanes, as residents will feel more comfortable biking, using motorized scooters, and walking, which will free up parking for people who really need it.
3) How can we decrease carbon emissions from transportation in the City and reduce the number of injuries on our streets while the population increases?
2) What percent of people going to restaurants, parks, schools, and neighborhood services (doctors, grocery, shops, gyms) in the City do you think walk, bike, or take transit? What percent should it be?
In 2014, about 14% of trips in the city were made without cars. Ten years later, about 70% of city residents live within a 10-minute walk from the grocery store. I'm personally excited to have a Whole Foods that is within walking distance of our house! With improvements made to the W&OD trail, new shops and restaurants scattered throughout the city, and biking advocacy groups such as yours, I believe non-car trips will increase. It's my understanding that the City Council's goal is by 2030, 20% of trips made by residents, be made without a car. I think that is a reachable goal, especially if we make improvements to our sidewalks, intersections, and bike lanes, as residents will feel more comfortable biking, using motorized scooters, and walking, which will free up parking for people who really need it.
3) How can we decrease carbon emissions from transportation in the City and reduce the number of injuries on our streets while the population increases?
As our population increases, we must focus on finding ways for residents with physical disabilities and young children, all the way to senior citizens, to be able to get around town safely and hopefully have it be an enjoyable trip. With better pedestrian and bike infrastructure and creative solutions such as scooter and electric bike ordinances and Bus Rapid Transit, it's a win-win- fewer cars, less emissions, and more safety. Currently, there is a discussion before the City Council regarding Lincoln Avenue, and part of that discussion revolves around pedestrian safety. Utilizing approaches, such as Vision Zero and Complete Streets, will help the city design and redesign roads to encourage biking, walking, and scootering, thereby lowering emissions and pedestrian injuries.
4) One of the City's biggest assets is the public right of way that forms our streets. What are your goals and priorities for this space? How should we manage competing demands?
The public right of way does have many competing demands, and it is especially challenging when streets are more narrow. Parking, bike lanes, trees, car lanes, and more all need to coexist. What is sometimes hard for residents to embrace is the fact that the street in front of their house is a public space. That said, with a city our size, we have the ability and time to look at streets block by block. On some blocks, that may mean adding a bike line, and on others, it may mean preserving parking. Making sidewalks ADA accessible and adding landscaping and trees are additional ways to improve the experience for everyone.
4) One of the City's biggest assets is the public right of way that forms our streets. What are your goals and priorities for this space? How should we manage competing demands?
The public right of way does have many competing demands, and it is especially challenging when streets are more narrow. Parking, bike lanes, trees, car lanes, and more all need to coexist. What is sometimes hard for residents to embrace is the fact that the street in front of their house is a public space. That said, with a city our size, we have the ability and time to look at streets block by block. On some blocks, that may mean adding a bike line, and on others, it may mean preserving parking. Making sidewalks ADA accessible and adding landscaping and trees are additional ways to improve the experience for everyone.