Update to a study of crashes 2017-2023 published 5/2024, by Andrew Olesen, former CACT Vice Chair (2021-24)
Findings from 2024 Traffic Records Electronic Data System (TREDS) Crash Map, VDOT, State Police data as of 1/15/25
Each blue dot is where one or more neighbors was injured in a car, on a bike, or on foot in 2024
- Per the Virginia TREDS database, 2024 saw 175 injuries on our roads, the third-worst year in the last 8 (’23: 251, ’17: 177) and was 17% above the ~150/yr in 2018-19 and 21-22. From data in other cities we know that affordable tools exist to save 80+ people each year from getting injured on Falls Church roads.
- An elderly woman was killed in a crash this year, our first fatality since 2010. While she was not wearing a seatbelt and may have had a medical issue that contributed to the crash, the event was predictable:
- It occurred on our highest-speed road in a place where injuries happen every year
- It involved a vulnerable road user (senior, child, or person outside a car/bus)
- It was overdue: our rate of injuries suggests we should see a fatality on average every 10 years
- Almost all injuries occur on our 25-30mph cut-through roads: Broad, Washington, Hillwood, Wilson, Roosevelt, Great Falls, West, and Haycock. This includes injuries of pedestrians and bicyclists.
- Since 2017, over 80% of the injuries occur on these roads – busy commercial and residential streets that also function as through-roads. This is predictable and there are tools to address it.
- Much of the City’s traffic safety time and money has been spent in places where injuries are rare or nonexistent – on neighborhood streets and where bike/walk paths cross low-volume streets. At times, some Council members have expressed a preference for making our most dangerous roads as fast and convenient to drive on as reasonably possible, which guarantees continued injuries.
- We had 4 reported injuries in crashes with bicycles this year, at the low end of our usual range. However, both could have been prevented if the City had the safe bicycle infrastructure that is being planned now.
- One crash involved senior citizens riding on the W&OD at N West St, one involved school children biking home by Giant. The people most likely to get sent to the hospital (or worse) in bicycle crashes are our oldest and youngest neighbors.
- This was likely a lower-injury year due to construction on the W&OD. The new stop signs at 3 crossings and pending improvements at N West St should help in 2025. However, it is very likely that Great Falls St will see injuries next year as it is historically the most dangerous road crossing on the entire W&OD trail, has seen fatalities, and has no legally binding stop signs.
- We had 15 reported injuries in crashes with pedestrians which is the second-worst year since 2017 though down from the 20 injuries in 2023. All but one crash was on a 25-30mph cut-through road.
- In many cases, incidents of cars hitting pedestrians or bicyclist go unreported if the injuries are not serious or the police don’t arrive. The reported injuries data here is the tip of the iceberg, with many unreported crashes and near-misses lurking beneath the surface.
I’m encouraged by the Broad St crossing signals, planned sidewalk improvement plans on Broad and Washington, speed limit reductions, no turn on red signs, new W&OD crosswalks and more. We know where people get hurt and can address it. We’re also seeing our City become a place where more people walk to shop, more kids bike to school, and so on. I hope we can use the full, proven toolbox of traffic safety improvements in the highest ROI locations to make our city better for all. Finally, I hope to not publish this report in a year’s time because the City adopts Vision Zero and it becomes the role of our Police Department and Public Works to analyze crash data, share it with the public, and take action on it as is done in DC, Arlington, Alexandria, Fairfax County, and Fairfax City.