The Pedestrian Comfort Map in the Silver Spring/Montgomery Hills/Four Corners area, dated November 2, 2019. Image by Montgomery County.

Earlier this fall, Montgomery County started to develop a Pedestrian Master Plan, which would provide a roadmap to improve safety and comfort for those getting around the county on foot or in wheelchairs, strollers, tricycles, or training bikes—that is, our most vulnerable road users. The next step is for county employees to survey every road and street in the county to take an inventory of pedestrian safety.

We wrote previously about the county’s #walkinghere campaign, which encourages residents to share the conditions of their walking trips on social media. Now county staff are documenting pedestrian experience throughout the county. They’re starting with major commercial areas, so your neighborhood might not have made it onto the survey yet. (Mine hasn’t). You can follow the progress of the map here.

How comfortable are these roads?

Pedestrian pathways and intersections are being evaluated on a series of metrics: width of path, width of buffer from cars, traffic speed, lanes of traffic to cross, crosswalk markings, and presence of refuge islands.

On the map, routes that feature wide sidepaths (five to eight feet or more) that are buffered from high speed traffic are colored dark blue. The types of infrastructure that meet this standard include off-road multi-use trails (like the Sligo Creek and Rock Creek trails) and wide sidewalks in urban areas such as the one located in front of the Metro Plaza building in downtown Silver Spring.

Separated hiker/biker trail marked as “very comfortable” on the Pedestrian Level of Comfort map. While walkers here are protected from cars, this may not be the most direct or fastest route to their destination. There’s usually no lighting, so these paths can be dark and spooky at night. In addition, it’s technically illegal in Montgomery County to use most of these types of trails between the hours of dusk and dawn, which often include peak commuting times. Image by the author.

Light blue on the map stands for “somewhat comfortable,” suggesting a pedestrian path/sidewalk and/or low traffic speeds outside of urbanized areas. These sidewalks can be great in ideal conditions, but people walking must be able to trust that adjacent property owners will keep these areas clear of vehicles, debris, snow, and other obstructions.

An example of a pedestrian path marked “somewhat comfortable” passing through a residential neighborhood. Image by the author.

Orange on the Level of Comfort map stands for “somewhat uncomfortable” and denotes a road with a posted speed limit of 25 mph or less with no separate sidewalk. Looking at the map, this condition seems to be the default in many of the established mid-20th Century single-family home areas surveyed thus far.

While travel along these streets isn’t bad (at least in daylight), a person walking must be constantly on alert and ready to yield to drivers. Many parents would not be comfortable with their children walking unaccompanied or after dark on these streets.

That low traffic residential roads lacking sidewalks is the default pedestrian experience in many entire neighborhoods in the county is, frankly, quite sad. This situation would inspire more outrage, if it didn’t get even worse.

The red areas on the map mark roads with “unacceptable” conditions for pedestrians. These are typically roads with less than five feet of navigable sidewalk with little or no buffer from traffic traveling at 30 mph, 40 mph, or higher. These are the places where we see the highest levels of vehicular crashes. They’re often scary to be on, especially when you’re not encased by a metal shell.

However, since these “red” roads typically correspond to the fastest driving route, they’re usually also the shortest and most direct way to get from points A to B. They are where you’d have to go to catch a high frequent bus line, or go to a store or other business.

A narrow, overgrown sidewalk along a county-owned road where many drivers routinely exceed the posted speed limit of 30 mph. Notice that there’s a school nearby. Image by the author.

Parked cars partially obstructing a narrow, unbuffered sidewalk, along a road with a posted speed limit of 30 mph. When residents feel compelled to park on the sidewalk (and block access by people with strollers or wheelchairs), it may be a sign that the traffic on this road is too aggressive and that traffic calming measures are needed. Image by the author.

White dashes on the Pedestrian Level of Comfort map mark stretches of road where vehicular traffic travels at high speeds and one or both sides of the street lack any sidewalk or separate space for people outside of motorized vehicles. Some of these roads, like Dale Drive in Silver Spring, are also the “front” yard for many residents and the only way they can leave their homes to walk to any destination.

Even more uncomfortable after dark

Note that all of the designations on the map are being made by county staff during the day. Many of the blue or orange stretches, acceptable on a sunny day, would revert to red at night or in inclement weather.

On roads without sidewalks and absent street lights (such as Sligo Creek Parkway), people on foot are unprotected and often invisible to drivers. Even walking on sidewalks can be hazardous at night, especially when these paths are directly adjacent to high speed traffic. Street lights, particularly outside urban areas, may be infrequent and shine a glow on the car lanes, leaving the sidewalk in shadow. Beams from passing cars make it hard for a person walking to notice hazards in their path. A wrong turn of a steering wheel, or a trip over a rock, could be deadly.

A narrow, poorly maintained sidewalk next to a high-speed six-lane state highway. This is definitely an “unacceptable” condition for pedestrians, but also where you’d have to go to catch a bus. Image by the author.

Montgomery County needs safer streets

Indeed, so far this year, 12 pedestrians have been killed and dozens more injured in Montgomery County. This project to document the worst conditions in the county suggests that the Planning Department intends to follow through on its Vision Zero commitment.

However, this is all merely map geekery unless and until it leads to actions. Elected officials must have the moral courage to redirect funds to pave, mark or repair sidewalks, narrow roads in line with speed limit goals, and develop more and safer road crossings. Otherwise, the next one hurt or worse could be me, or you.

Montgomery County staff will start determining priority corridors in the spring of 2020, and hope to have the plan in place in 2021. You can find more information about the Pedestrian Master Plan here, and learn how you can keep an eye on this work and get involved in the coming months.