For Immediate Release: Tuesday, October 16, 2018
Letter stresses the need for speed reduction and a more proactive approach to pedestrian safety on state roads in the County
ROCKVILLE, Md., October 16, 2018—Today, in a letter spearheaded by Council Vice President Nancy Navarro, the Council requests that Governor Larry Hogan and Maryland Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Pete Rahn provide immediate pedestrian safety relief along Georgia Ave. The letter requests that the speed limit, which is currently 45 miles per hour, on Georgia Ave. be reduced. The letter also calls on the Maryland State Highway Administration (SHA) to take a more proactive approach to protecting pedestrians along state highways to reduce accidents.
The Council letter comes on the heels of the Oct. 9 motor vehicle accident where four young students were struck by a vehicle while walking to a school bus stop on northbound Georgia Ave. (MD 97) in the Aspen Hill community.
On Nov. 13 the Council will hold a meeting on pedestrian safety issues along state highways that will include representatives from SHA, the Police Department, the County’s Department of Transportation, Montgomery County Public Schools and CountyStat.
The text of the letter follows and is attached.
Dear Governor Hogan and Secretary Rahn:
On October 9th a motor vehicle struck four young students approaching a school bus stop on northbound Georgia Avenue (MD 97) in Montgomery County’s Aspen Hill neighborhood. As of this writing, one of the students has life-threatening injuries. A police investigation is underway.
We have seen a steady climb in vehicle collisions with pedestrians during the past year. To date in 2018 we have had 11 pedestrians perish along roadways in Montgomery County, compared to 11 all last year and 8 in 2016. Of the 11 who died this year, 9 were along State highways. While we do not have the police report on this incident yet, this section of MD 97 has always been considered hostile to pedestrians and bicyclists. As with similar incidents during the past couple of years on River Road (MD 190) and Veirs Mill Road (MD 586), we want immediate action to make this section of upper Georgia Avenue safe for all.
While we are grateful for the safety improvements at the River Road and Veirs Mill Road accident sites, we think it took much too long to identify the solutions and implement them. We want much more immediate safety relief along upper Georgia Avenue, including, but not limited to, reducing the speed limit: 45 mph is much too high for this suburban area. Furthermore, we expect the State Highway Administration (SHA) to be much more proactive on other State highways to reduce the chance of further severe accidents.
Very soon we will hold a Council session when we expect SHA to present the steps it will take in the short term to address this issue on its highways. We need a much streamlined (i.e., faster) process at SHA to implement pedestrian safety improvements. We all espouse the objectives of Vision Zero; now is the time to see those objectives translate into action.
Sincerely,
Nancy Navarro
Council Vice President
Hans Riemer
Council President
Roger Berliner
Councilmember
Marc Elrich
Councilmember
Nancy Floreen
Councilmember
Tom Hucker
Councilmember
Sidney Katz
Councilmember
George Leventhal
Councilmember
Craig Rice
Councilmember