Central Nova News

The City of Alexandria is proposing to install No Turn on Red (NTOR) restrictions at several intersections on Duke Street between North Ripley Street and Jordan Street:

• Duke Street and North Ripley Street
• Duke Street and South Reynolds Street
• Duke Street and North Paxton Street
• Duke Street and South Pickett Street
• Duke Street and Shoppes of Foxchase entrance

No Turn on Red restrictions are already in place at the following intersections:

• Duke Street and North Pickett Street/Cameron Station Boulevard
• Duke Street and Jordan Street

The proposal is part of the Duke Street Turn Calming project to implement near-term safety improvements on Duke Street, which is one of the City’s high-crash corridors. Since 2017, there have been over 150 crashes on Duke Street between Jordan Street and Ripley Street, over a third of which resulted in a fatality or an injury. All 14 crashes involving people walking resulted in injury or death. Improving safety on the City’s high-injury network is key to meeting its adopted Vision Zero goal of eliminating fatal and severe crashes by 2028.

No Turn on Red restrictions are a common treatment nationwide to improve safety for people walking. NTORs also increase safety for people in cars by reducing the risk of angle crashes from drivers attempting to turn right on red. In Alexandria, over 20% of the City’s approximately 250 signalized intersections feature No Turn on Red restrictions, including on similarly busy corridors like Richmond Highway, Washington Street, North Beauregard Street, and other parts of Duke Street.

The proposed No Turn on Reds would be accompanied by Leading Pedestrian Intervals (LPIs), a traffic signal treatment that improves safety by giving people walking a head start into the intersection, before motorists receive the green light. This project also includes the addition of left-turn arrows at select locations as well as turn-calming treatments to slow turning speeds, reduce crossing distances, and improve safety for drivers making left turns.

This Vision Zero initiative is one of many projects all working together to achieve the vision that Duke Street “become a become a safe, efficient, and desirable community connector for people riding the bus, walking, biking, and driving.” See the Duke Street Projects website to learn more about the other initiatives.

The proposed No Turn on Red restrictions will be presented to the City’s Traffic & Parking Board for a public hearing on January 22, 2024. Additional information is available on the project webpage.

Original source can be found here.