Author | Lightnews

David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 11h

On the same token, the folks who say they get tickets all the time when they go to the city are being whiny, demonstrably bad drivers. But for normies, they want to drive safely and the speed limit. A DOT shouldn't then encourage them to break the law with bad design.

David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 11h

The difference is that roads, in my mind, do communicate, sometimes in very obvious, "loud" ways, which I'd describe as yelling.

It is annoying when a city designs a system that says two contradictory things: speed, but don't speed. It's bad, unsafe, and makes people feel manipulated. And annoyed.

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 12h

The psychology of roadway design is well documented. Wider lanes means people tend to go faster, for instance, while chicanes or vertical elements nearer the lanes do the opposite.

A road's speed and expectations should be self-enforcing and clear to the driver even if they missed the signs.

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 12h

Oh shit this is interesting. Most folks I talk to complain about the 1% or 5% fastest cars on their roads, so this would be very helpful there.

JackTatt 🇨🇦 @jacktatttran.bsky.social · 12h

If I understand correctly, that contrasts strongly with New South Wales where there must be sufficient existing speed compliance before speed cameras are activated (they operate in a warning mode until sufficient compliance is achieved). This minimizes the fight between road design and speed limit.

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 12h

Also: these sorts of speed traps sour everyone on speed cameras so they can't be deployed like they should be, which is everywhere.

DC is particularly egregious, with some freeway-style roads having outrageously low limits, like 40mph on a 60mph design.

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 13h

Automated speed enforcement in a lot of states requires the 85th Percentile speeds to be at least 12 mph over the limit already.

And a speed camera there is really annoying and punishing bc the road is yelling at you one speed and then you get punished for it bc the sign says something else.

Dr Aunt Tara Goddard @drtaragoddard.com · 13h

Not very hot take (?): "Speed traps" are tacit acknowledgement by law enforcement and the public that road design encourages higher speeds.

That's why these law enforcement actions are usually done at certain locations, not randomly.

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 8d

(And we all outsource our thinking, it's a necessary part of living in society.)

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 8d

Not the first time this very specific critique has surfaced.

But the failure isn't idiocy; it's what happens when the people you outsource your thinking to are deliberately gaslighting you.

Don't hate the player, hate the game.

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 9d

J’examine le corridor d’University Boulevard au Montgomery County, MD, et sa refonte proposé est nul. Le 16 pieds du terre-plein central a l’intention de fournir les voies pour tourner à gauche, mais ils sont des gâches.

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 9d

I'm looking at the University Boulevard corridor in Montgomery County, MD, and its proposed redesign is bad y'all. The 16-foot median is intended to support left-turn lanes but that's such a waste.

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 14d

I have been around people who talk like this in private and they are not comfortable to be around.

Are they 100% serious? No, duh. Are they still bigoted? Yes, duh. You can be edgy and memelordy without the bigotry, but they choose lazy and hateful edginess on purpose.

jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 14d

last i checked these young republicans were like 25 years old. but this is a classic case of infantilization to diminish the significance of the offense. www.yahoo.com/news/article...

Vance downplays group chat messages: ‘Kids do stupid things, especially young boys.’

The vice president called the texts "edgy, offensive jokes."

www.yahoo.com

David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 14d

Well, yes. Shitty signalization practices are shitty.

But given that they generally look the same, one risks rewarding inaccessible design and punishing accessible design.

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 14d

I realize there's good reason to hate the button, but spare a thought for the blind and deaf-blind pedestrians who need one whether it's required to change the signal or not.

𝚃𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚜 𝙶𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚌𝚘𝚎 🚇 @taras-grescoe.com · 14d

The fact that the "Beg Button" exists in so many cities is messed up.

For the privilege of crossing the street, pedestrians are required to press a button, wait, and then scurry across while cars + trucks give them a few seconds of grace.

Here's one I'd press in a second...

🧵

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 15d

:( They really need to read my GGWash series on induced demand :(

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Reposted by David Edmondson

Warren Wells, AICP @warrenjwells.bsky.social · 15d

Several schools see a majority of students walking and rolling.

It's clear what those schools have in common:
-Nearby relatively dense housing (9+ DU/acre)
-Adjacent protected bike infrastructure
-Very little parking/auto circulation

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 15d

Ehhh... local engineers have a lot of freedom to apply those standards, and having a model at the state level will force the district offices and locals to adopt better practices.

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 15d

No but really MDOT and VDOT both need to have an air-tight set of standards that relentlessly centers pedestrian and bicyclist safety and accessibility.

As long as there is a hint of an option it'll be taken.

Sustainable Safety is my newest standards toy. sustainablesafety.nl

Sustainable Road Safety | Sustainable Road Safety

sustainablesafety.nl

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 15d

STANDARDS STANDARDS STANDARDS STANDARDS

a group of men are sitting around a table with a bowl of ashes on it

Alt: a group of men are sitting around a table with a bowl of ashes on it

media.tenor.com

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 15d

Ew.

I've got a blog post I'm drafting in my head about boulevards and retrofits. I'm mostly thinking about stroads like New Hampshire Ave or Rockville Pike, but this is a good example of another kind of retrofit: how to make a true through road work well for all users.

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 16d

That's certainly what it looks like! Is the design being done by the county itself or by developers along its route? If the former, then it could be changed; if the latter, then it's probably way too late.

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 16d

The Columbus minivan was found guilty of crimes against God and the natural order but was pardoned by the King of Spain because omg look at it!

The Cask of Ozmantillado @ozmaracc.bsky.social · 16d

The 1992 Columbus minivan, which I think is more of a maxivan and looks malformed, but it's Italian

A photo of a very odd 2 chamber minivan with a separate, upper chamber for just the driver seat

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 16d

I don't think you can fix the intersection without fixing the roads, which would probably mean much better shared-use path designs and extreme traffic calming on both.

A signalized roundabout is my guessed-at interim solution here, but the main thing is taming the roads themselves.

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 16d

It's too big because the roads are too big. That isn't the fault of the intersection design; it's the fault of the road designs it needs to accommodate. You have a 6-lane surface highway and 4-lane highway, with a design for Observation Dr intended for future extension.

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 16d

This spot has a lot wrong with it, but the primary issues are:
- Wide curve radii at the corners and in the middle
- The curb ramps don't point towards the crosswalks but towards the middle of the intersection
- Right-turn lanes facilitate unsafe turns

Action Committee for Transit @actfortransit.bsky.social · Dec 20

On Sun 12/8/24 6:10 pm
the driver (21/F) of a 2004 BMW X3
who was turning right from Observation Dr to Ridge Rd/28
hit & injured a pedestrian (56/F)
crossing properly in a marked crosswalk.
Police (MCP3037006R) found the driver at fault: failed to yield ROW.

Satellite image of a ridiculously big four-way signalized intersection with four marked crosswalks. There is a red X on the north side of the west leg marked crosswalk, indicating the possible location of the crash. There is a blue arrow pointing north in the marked crosswalk toward the red X, indicating the possible path of the pedestrian. There is a red arrow pointing south and west toward the red X, indicating the possible right turn path of the driver.

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David Edmondson @thegreatermarin.bsky.social · 16d

(The latest crash date you report is from the future, December 31 of this year.)

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