For Immediate Release: Thursday, February 6, 2020
Councilmembers continue working with residents, pedestrian and bicycle advocates and planning and transportation experts to prioritize safety
ROCKVILLE, Md., Feb. 6, 2020—The Montgomery County Council will host a pedestrian, bicycle and traffic safety town hall meeting on Sunday, February 9 at 2 p.m. at Wheaton High School (12401 Dalewood Drive in Silver Spring) to hear directly from residents about the safety issues they are encountering on roadways and sidewalks and in crosswalks located in Montgomery County. Residents are encouraged to attend the meeting to talk with Councilmembers about areas of concern in the community and to learn more about the County’s ongoing efforts to meet the goals of Vision Zero.
“Crossing the street shouldn’t be a death-defying act,” said Council President Sidney Katz. “One of the Council’s top priorities is creating safe, walkable communities in our County, and we need to ensure that the needs of pedestrians and bicyclists are addressed.
“As a Council, we will continue to work with our residents, advocacy groups and planning and transportation experts to find new ways to expand our pedestrian safety measures and revamp and enhance our public education campaigns to truly make our community a safe place to walk, bike and commute using multimodal transportation.”
Councilmembers have held individual community meetings on pedestrian and bicycle safety and continue to advocate for safety improvements throughout the County. They also have secured speed limit reductions on some state roads. So far in 2020, there have been three pedestrian deaths in the County, and two of these deaths occurred on Maryland Route 355 (Rockville Pike). In 2019, 13 pedestrians and one bicyclist were killed in crashes.
Representatives from the Maryland State Highway Administration, the Montgomery County Department of Transportation, the Vision Zero Initiative, the Pedestrian, Bicycle, and Traffic Safety Advisory Committee, Montgomery County Park and Planning and Montgomery County Public Schools are also expected to attend the town hall meeting which will take place in Wheaton High School’s auditorium.
Simultaneous interpretation services will be provided for Spanish speakers. Other language assistance is available upon request with at least three working days’ notice by calling 240-777-7931.
The Glenmont Metro Station is located 1.4 miles from Wheaton High School, and Ride On Route 10 provides bus service to the school. Parking is also available on site.
For additional information, contact Juan Jovel at Juan.Jovel@montgomerycountymd.gov or call 240-777-7931. If you need services to participate in this meeting or in any Council activity, please call the Council as far in advance as possible at 240-777-7900 or send an email to County.Council@montgomerycountymd.gov .
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