A Forest Estates resident told Crossing Georgia the following story:
Wednesday, June 20, 2007 - This evening at about 5:20pm, a group of four pedestrians was crossing the north side of Georgia Avenue at Forest Glen. It was a bright sunny afternoon, not too hot, so many cars had their windows open. The four of us started in a group, crossing in the crosswalk with the pedestrian walk signal. After crossing the southbound lands, two of us were ahead of the others as we crossed the northbound lanes. As we crossed the last lane before the curb, the driver of a compact car making a right turn from Forest Glen to head north on Georgia Avenue started to yell at us of his window to hurry. It looked like he was going to try to drive between the two of us crossing a little faster and those crossing a little slower. We weren't that far apart - maybe ten feet. When it became obvious to the driver he wasn't going to be able to cut between us, he honked his horn and swore at us, and sped through his turn as soon as the lane closest to the median was clear. I understand drivers' frustration with the heavy traffic through the intersection. However, it was scary to be in that exposed and threatened position as a pedestrian.
The State Highway Administration and WMATA arestudying whether to close the row of bushes on the south side of Forest Glen Road near the entrance to the Metro station. The stated goal is to reduce jaywalking, but since people jaywalk in order to stay alive in a dangerous intersection, this plan deserves more scrutiny.
The following is a letter written by Crossing Georgia chairman Adam Pagnucco and FECA president Paul Gordon to SHA and WMATA:
Councilmember Valerie Ervin writes about pedestrian safety at our intersection on her website:
"Forest Glen Pedestrian Safety
As the Council representative to the Pedestrian Safety Advisory Committee, I am very concerned about the serious pedestrian safety issues surrounding the Forest Glen Metro Station and the intersection of Georgia Avenue and Forest Glen Road. I worked on these issues with my colleagues on the Council's Transportation and Environment Committee and the full Council agreed to rank the east side entrance to the Forest Glen Metro station as the number two priority among transit projects that should be funded by the State of Maryland. Furthermore, the Council and Executive have ranked the reconstruction of Georgia Avenue between 16th Street and Forest Glen Road as the top priority for detailed study. For additional information about this issue visit the Crossing Georgia web site at www.crossinggeorgia.com."
This document lays out the Maryland State Highway Administration's plans and options for what it intends to do at and near the intersection. Special thanks to SHA's Stephanie Yanovitz for sharing it with us.
Recently, the Maryland State Highway Administration drew new lane lines near the Georgia Avenue underpass at the Beltway. These new lanes have led to confusion, traffic backups, and many near-accidents.
The Forest Estates community spoke up, and several citizens wrote letters to our representatives in Annapolis asking for help. In a matter of hours, State Senator Richard Madaleno and Delegate Jeff Waldstreicher responded to our call for help by contacting SHA and demanding answers.
SHA has responded by saying that the lanes will be redrawn to their original state. You may view Jeff Waldstreicher's letter here.
How can we expect pedestrians to feel safe crossing the dangerous intersection of Georgia Avenue and Forest Glen Road when even Metrobuses are blatantly endangering their lives?
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