Heads Up in Parking Lots: Don’t run over people. Don’t get run over.

In 2012, there were 423 reported pedestrian collisions in Montgomery County. Of these collisions, 125, or about 30 percent, occurred in parking lots and garages – a 39 percent increase in one year and the third consecutive year that collisions in parking lots increased. What’s worse, nearly 20 percent of these collisions resulted in devastating injuries - about the same as occurred in countywide road collisions.

What Are We Doing About It?

Montgomery County is getting the word out to the public about pedestrian collisions in parking lots. Most people are very surprised to learn just how widespread these collisions are and how many of them cause severe injuries. We hope that educating both drivers and pedestrians can help change their attitudes and behaviors in parking lots.

How You Can Help

• Practice safe walking and driving in parking lots and garages – Safety Tips (English - pdf | Español - pdf).
• Use social media and ask your friends to join the conversation about ways to stay safe.
• Spread the word to your civic association, business group, school community, religious organization, etc.

To see more resources on parking lot safety, visit the Heads Up webpage.

Bicyclists Parking at Metro Urged to Register Their Bikes

Metro Transit Police offer a free online registration service for bike riders who park their bikes at Metro facilities. Providing the make, model, serial number, color and frame size of the bike will assist Transit Police in identifying and recovering a bicycle if it is stolen or lost.

Police urge riders to practice basic security measures, such as locking their bike to an authorized rack (not a sign post or fence), keeping a copy of the bike’s serial number on hand, and hiding a business or index card with the owner’s name and phone number inside the bike frame.

To register your bicycle with Metro, visit their website.

Study: More Older Drivers Distracted by Smartphones

While younger people remain the undisputed champions of distracted driving, older drivers may be catching up, according to a report issued last week. State Farm Insurance's annual distracted driving survey cites a "growing safety concern" -- a sharp increase in smartphone ownership by drivers 30 and older. And while states have focused on banning texting while driving, and in some cases have also banned hand-held cell phone use, another distractive behavior is filling the void. The percentage of drivers who said they use their phone to access the Internet while driving has nearly doubled, from 13% in 2009 to 24% in this year's survey.

The number of drivers between ages 30 and 39 who own smartphones has gone from 60% to 86% in the past two years, matching the percentage of 18- to 29-year-olds who own them, according to the survey. Big increases also are found in older age ranges: smartphone ownership among 40- to 49-year-olds grew from 47% in 2011 to 82% this year; among those 50 to 64 the percentage rose from 44% to 64%.

(Source: The Pittsburg Post-Gazette, November 13, 2013, as cited in the Network of Employers for Traffic Safety eNewsletter, 11/19/2013.)

As Seasonal Time Change Approaches, Drivers and Pedestrians Urged to Look Out for Each Other

The months of October, November and December are the scariest time of the year for pedestrians in Montgomery County because pedestrian collisions have typically spiked during these months by nearly 40 percent. With the end of daylight savings time on November 3, less daylight hours contribute to the problem. According to federal safety officials, 70 percent of pedestrian fatalities happen during the night time hours.

“Montgomery County is committed to pedestrian safety, and over the past few years, we have engaged in an aggressive program to reduce collisions through engineering efforts and enhanced enforcement and education,” said Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett. “But, we cannot do it all alone. We need drivers to slow down, pay attention and look out for pedestrians. We need pedestrians to be vigilant, on guard and undistracted. We need everyone to be engaged to make sure that crossing the street is not a death defying act.”

This week, the regional Street Smart Campaign launched its fall campaign to raise awareness in drivers, pedestrians and bicyclists. Last year in the Washington region, 72 pedestrians and bicyclists died in traffic collisions. Montgomery County averages more than 400 pedestrian collisions a year.

In 2007, Leggett introduced an aggressive pedestrian safety initiative that is investing millions of dollars in safety improvements – and these improvements are making a difference. The County is also working in partnership with the Maryland State Highway Administration to address collisions on State roads (roads in the County that are numbered), which are the busiest corridors in the County.

Drivers are urged to help improve pedestrian safety and keep in mind the following:

• Pedestrians can be nearly invisible in the dark and in bad weather.
• Pedestrians may be unpredictable. Be aware and be prepared to stop.
• Slow down and obey the posted speed limits.
• Don’t drive distracted – when in the car, focus only on driving.
• Be patient, especially when young children, seniors or persons with disabilities are present.

Pedestrians are urged to do their part by practicing the following safety tips:

• Remain vigilant when crossing the street.
• Cross the street at signals, marked crosswalks and intersections. Don’t step off the curb without looking left, right and then left again.
• Be alert for drivers who aren’t paying attention. Doing everything right – crossing with a walk signal and in the crosswalk – is not enough to guarantee safety.
• Don’t count on drivers to see you or react in time.
• Get off the cell phone and stop texting – don’t walk when distracted.
• Stay visible after dark and in bad weather.

More safety information is available on the County’s pedestrian safety website.

To view a press release from AAA on this issue, please click here.  

Local Officials Urge Drivers, Pedestrians, and Cyclists To Look Out for Each Other

Montgomery County Pedestrian Safety
Coordinator, Jeff Dunckel, introduced the
Fall 2013 StreetSmart campaign

Street Smart Campaign Aims to Reduce Injuries and Deaths During Dark Fall Months

With Daylight Savings Time ending on November 3, school back in session, and Halloween around the corner, regional safety officials came together today to remind drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists to pay extra attention to one another on area roadways.  

An hour less of daylight during evening commutes means reduced visibility, which typically leads to an increase in crashes involving pedestrians and cyclists during the darker autumn months. To reduce pedestrian and cyclist injuries and fatalities, the annual Street Smart public education campaign is encouraging area residents to be more alert. Last year, in November and December there were more than 400 crashes involving pedestrians in the Washington metro region.

A lone trumpeter remains after
other members of the Roaring Bengal
Marching Band have left the park,
in recognition of the 72 pedestrians
killed in the region in 2012.

Representatives from the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, as well as state and local officials from the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia, gathered today at Upper Senate Park in Washington, DC to kick off the fall Street Smart campaign. Special guest Gwendolyn Ward shared the story of her 15-year-old daughter, Christina Morris-Ward, who was struck by a car and killed one year ago this month while crossing the street in Germantown on her way to school in the dark. Also attending was the Roaring Bengal Marching Band from James Hubert Blake High School in Montgomery County, which played a mournful dirge in recognition of the 72 pedestrians and cyclists killed in the region last year.

Gwendolyn Ward shares the
story of her daughter, Christina, who
was killed while crossing Germantown
Road on Halloween morning, 2012.

As the band played, a bell tolled in recognition of each pedestrian killed in 2012. With each ringing of the bell, a single band member ceased playing his or her instrument and left the instrument on the ground. The song ended with a lone trumpeter playing amid a sea of abandoned instruments.

“We all have to work together to improve safety in our region particularly now that it’s getting dark by the time many people are making their evening commutes,” said Chuck Bean, Executive Director of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments. “Drivers, bicyclists, and pedestrians need to follow traffic laws, be aware of their surroundings, and avoid distractions, such as cell phones.” Among other safety tips, the Street Smart campaign reminds drivers to be alert and yield to those on foot or on bicycles at intersections, and encourages pedestrians and cyclists to wear light colors or reflective clothing to be more visible.

Bean announced that law enforcement in the District of Columbia, suburban Maryland and Northern Virginia will conduct increased enforcement October 28 through November 24, ticketing drivers, cyclists and pedestrians who violate traffic safety laws.

For Safety Tips and More Information on the StreetSmart campaign, visit bestreetsmart.net.  

Click on the links below for media coverage of the event:

Belvoir Eagle
Bethesda Now
FOX DC    
The Gazette (1)          The Gazette (2)
GO Montgomery!
Washington Hispanic
WJLA (1)          WJLA (2)  
WTOP (1)         WTOP (2)          WTOP (3)          WTOP (audio)

MCDOT to construct dual bikeway on Woodglen Drive

Beginning this fall, MCDOT will start construction of a dual bikeway along a portion of Woodglen Drive that includes: 

• An eight-foot, off-road, shared use bikepath on the west side of Woodglen Drive between Edson and Nicholson lanes in North Bethesda; 
• An on-road, six-foot-wide bike lane on the east side of Woodglen Drive (in the northbound travel lane); and 
• An on-road shared lane, or “sharrow” on the west side of Woodglen Drive (in the southbound travel lane). 

Sharrows are pavement markings that alert motorists to the presence of bicyclists and encourage safer passing practices. 

The Woodglen dual bikeway will provide an important link to the Bethesda Trolley Trail and access to Metro stations, retail and neighborhood activity centers in the Rockville and North Bethesda areas. 

In Maryland, bicycles are classified as vehicles and are permitted on any road where the speed limit is posted at 50 mph or below. The on-road bicycle lanes will require the removal of six metered parking spaces along Woodglen Drive. Travel lanes will be narrowed for the sharrow. 

To enhance safety, discourage speeding and alert motorists to those using the path, curb extenders will be built at the intersection of Executive Boulevard and Woodglen Drive.


For more information on bicycle infrastructure projects, visit MCDOT's bikeways website. For information on Bikesharing in Montgomery County, visit MCDOT's bikesharing website.

National Transportation Safety Board Uses Local Site to Promote Safety Tips

Recently National Transportation Safety Board Acting Chair Deborah Hersman joined County safety officials to highlight important rules of the road and safety tips for motorists, bikers, and walkers. Here’s a few to remember. 

For drivers, stay alert and slow down.  Eliminate any distractions inside your car so you can concentrate on the road and your surroundings. It is against the law to text or hold your phone while driving. Looking away from the roadway for just two seconds doubles the chance of being involved in a crash. Scan between parked cars and other objects along the roadway for children and pedestrians. Take extra time when making a right turn on red, so you can be on the lookout for walkers and bicyclists.

For pedestrians, cross the street at corners, use traffic signals and crosswalks, and look left, right and left again before crossing.

If traveling by bike, obey the rules of the road and wear a helmet. Not only is it the smart thing to do, it’s the law in Maryland.

For more information, visit MCDOT's pedestrian and bicycle websites. For a video of this message, visit our blog.