After months of activism over the much-maligned Seminary Road Diet, the Facebook group dedicated to opposing the lane reduction has rebranded itself and broadened its focus.
On Sunday, the Alexandria Residents Against the Seminary Road Diet Facebook group was renamed “Bring Integrity Back to Alexandria! End Seminary Rd Diet & Other Bad Ideas.”
Seminary Road has experienced some delays since the city implemented the contentious “road diet” last fall, Alexandria officials acknowledged at a Tuesday night city council meeting.
After months of pressure from an extremely vocal group of city residents on Facebook, council members peppered staff with questions about the road diet — a reduction of a 0.9 mile stretch of Seminary Road between N. Quaker Lane and Howard Street from four to two lanes, plus the addition of bike lanes on both sides, a center turn lane, crosswalks and medians.
Don’t worry. Even though Hal Hardaway just closed on a house in Williamsburg, he’ll still be around half the time.
If you don’t know the 70-year-old Hardaway by sight, you might know his famous garage, or the emails the Old Town resident sends to more than 1,000 people on a daily basis railing about the Alexandria waterfront or videos he shares of electric scooter violators.
Nicole Radshaw is all in favor of the much-maligned Seminary Road diet.
Three years ago on Halloween, the Seminary Valley resident was hit by a driver as she biked to work at a preschool on Seminary Road. Radshaw didn’t break any bones, but her bike was totaled, she spent a year in physical therapy, and saw a counselor to help deal with the trauma and anxiety of being hit by a car.
Big things have small beginnings, and on Wednesday night a number of Alexandria residents critical of the Seminary Road Diet — including a former mayor — took their concerns to Ramparts Tavern and Grill.
Architect Tom Hoffman has lived near the affected area for 20 years, during which time he has taken Seminary Road to get on I-395 northbound to the District. That routine has changed, he said, since the implementation of the road diet — reducing the four through lanes of the roadway to two and adding bike lanes and a turn lane in the center.
Even while the debate still rages on over the Seminary Road diet, the City of Alexandria is looking at other locations that could be altered to be more bicycle and pedestrian-friendly.
Several streets are scheduled for repaving, which the city uses as an opportunity to look at which ones could benefit the most from being redesigned with safety in mind, to align with the city’s Vision Zero plan — though some have questioned whether the redesigns make the streets safer.
Seminary Road Saga Continues — Despite suggestions “that the Alexandria Fire Department had significant input into the Complete Streets Design Guidelines and whether to narrow Seminary Road, documents obtained by city residents under the Freedom of Information Act reveal this was not the case.” [Alexandria Times]
Sushi Restaurant Coming to ‘West Alex’ — “Sushi Jin Next Door, which opened its first restaurant in Silver Spring in 2006 and now has a second location in Woodbridge, is opening a third location in Alexandria, Virginia. The new location will be part of the West Alex mixed-use development at King Street and North Beauregard Street.” [WTOP]
Three months after a portion of Seminary Road was re-paved and re-striped to reduce it from two vehicular lanes in each direction to one lane, a turn lane and bike lanes, the debate over the “road diet” still rages on.
On the now-private Alexandria Residents Against the Seminary Road Diet Facebook group, numerous posts per day bemoan the state of rush hour traffic along Seminary Road, report on cut-through traffic on nearby roads, and rip Mayor Justin Wilson for his support of the project. (Wilson, a member of the group, often politely replies to the invective.)
There have been no complaints or transportation issues with fire and emergency personnel along the stretch of Seminary Road that has undergone the controversial road diet, according to Alexandria Fire Chief Corey Smedley.
“The measures needed for us to safely travel on Seminary Road before, during, and after an emergency call have been put into place,” Smedley told ALXnow. “At this point, we haven’t received any complaints from our drivers or battalion chiefs regarding travel issues. Our priority will always be the safety of the community and the members of the Alexandria Fire Department. When we receive an emergency call, we will do everything within our power to respond and navigate the City no matter the circumstance or conditions.”
It was quite a year in Alexandria. It’s safe to say that 202o will be just as busy, but in the meantime let’s take a look at the top stories from the last year.
1. The Seminary Road Diet
In a letter to Mayor Justin Wilson, the Virginia Theological Seminary has weighed in on the clong-running argument over the road diet happening at the school’s doorstep.
A letter from Ian Markham, Dean and President of the Virginia Theological Seminary, included support for the reduction in vehicle travel lanes and hints about future expansion plans for the school. The letter was shared in the exceptionally active Facebook group Alexandria Residents Against the Seminary Road Diet.
