Posts by Canaan Merchant — Elections Committee
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Fairfax is getting 22 new bike lanes in 2015
When Fairfax County repaves roads this summer as part of routine maintenance, it’s going to add bike lanes and other features to some of them. Here’s the complete list of Fairfax streets that will get new bike facilities in 2015: Keep reading…
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Fairfax trades a parking lot for a new park
Old Town Square in Fairfax used to be a park that nobody used because it was wedged between two parking lots in the middle of the city’s small, historic core. Now it’s bigger and more inviting, and it’s helping Fairfax embrace its urban roots. Keep reading…
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To replace Columbia Pike streetcar, Vihstadt proposes Circulator bus
Arlington County Board member John Vihstadt, whose opposition to the Columbia Pike streetcar proved decisive in Arlington’s decision to cancel that project, now proposes “Circulator-type buses” instead. Only one problem: Bus service on Columbia Pike is already better than DC Circulator. Keep reading…
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See the beginnings of the Purple Line in Silver Spring
The Purple Line may still face some hurdles in Annapolis, but Montgomery County is already planning for its arrival. This construction project at the Silver Spring Library is making room for the light rail: Keep reading…
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An interactive map will help make Fairfax more bike-friendly
Fairfax County wants to know how people bike to the county’s transit stations. A new crowdsourced map lets cyclists tell them. Keep reading…
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Commuter rail could extend all the way to Haymarket
Northern Virginia’s commuter rail service, VRE, is taking the first steps to extend its Manassas Line 11 miles farther west, to Haymarket. Keep reading…
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Proposal to slash Arlington’s bike program would be a huge mistake
Officials in Arlington are considering deep cuts to the county’s bike and pedestrian program. If the cuts go through, many fewer bike lane or trail projects in Arlington would be able to move forward. What’s at stake The cuts are one of the options county manager Barbara Donnellan presented to the county board last month, as part of the board’s planning… Keep reading…
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Virginia takes the politics out of transportation spending
A newly-passed General Assembly bill will make transportation spending in Virginia more practical and less political, by replacing ad-hoc funding decisions with more transparent performance measures. HB1887, the “omnibus transportation bill” which the General Assembly passed this session, makes dozens of changes to the complicated web of formulas and… Keep reading…
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In Chicago, you can charter your own L train
A ride on the ‘L’ Train in Chicago normally costs $2.25, but what if you don’t want to wait or share a car with strangers, or you really want to have a party on a moving train? For a cool $1,800, an ‘L’ train is all yours. Keep reading…
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SNL and Parks and Rec take on urbanism
Modern urban planning issues have had a good recent stretch in TV comedy. Below, check out clips of both Saturday Night Live and Parks and Rec talking about how cities and our attitudes about them have changed. Keep reading…