When discussing anything having to do with deficiencies in the Tysons with officials or stakeholders the common response we always hear is “This is going to take time”. I think everyone can agree that a complete reversal of the suburban office park on steroids into a habitable and functioning city is, of course, going to take a very long time. Unfortunately this response has become an excuse for allowing gaps and deficiencies linger longer than they need to.
While new developments will create street grids, pedestrian friendly facilities, and other urban improvements (as we have already seen), there are many simple decisions that can be made in the meanwhile to help the nearly 20,000 residents that already live here.
One such example is the lack of any guidelines or requirements regarding construction activity interruption of existing pedestrian pathways. Once these projects are completed the walkways and public spaces surrounding them will be vastly improved. Until that time however the projects act as obstacles in an already dangerous and tough to traverse landscape in Tysons.
Most jurisdictions, including Fairfax in locations such as Merrifield and Reston, require developers to provide shielded and protected walkways while construction is underway. This is an absolute must have as without these interim facilities pedestrians are forced to walk in roadways causing unsafe conditions for drivers and the pedestrians.
There are two notable locations, in highly traversed regions of Tysons, which exemplify this need. The first has existed for nearly a year at the intersection of Jones Branch Drive and Westpark Drive at the new Nouvelle high rise project. The construction of the building has created a gap in two existing sections of sidewalk. Because there is no way to get to metro safely from the east side of Westpark Drive, this gap means many near by office workers have to chose between walking in the street or crossing a dangerous intersection without any pedestrian controls to get to metro. A simple solution would be a standard covered walkway but unfortunately there are no requirements currently to provide one.
Another such case is the corner of Anderson Road and Chain Bridge Road where construction of a new apartment has torn up much of the roadway and blocked parts of the adjacent sidewalk. This path is used by many McLean and Tysons residents living in East Tysons to get to metro. In this case what is lacking is proper signage and traffic control to provide safe crossings for pedestrians. The unfinished roadway also is creating unsafe conditions for cyclists as well. While it seems wasteful to keep the roadway and sidewalks in good condition only to tear them back up for the final state, it is needed in order to maintain the connection in what will be more than two years of construction at this location.
These interim deficiencies reflect the complexity that is involved in what is being undertaken in Tysons. Most residents are happy that new buildings and infrastructure improvements in the future will make it easier to get around town and more habitable to live in Tysons, but in the meanwhile there needs to be some controls and requirements imposed on projects under construction to make sure current residents are not detrimentally affected.