Tuesday, October 5, 2010

excellence in road marking

Every organization falls short of perfection.  Excellent organizations continually strive to do better.  The changes in the road markings on the 15th St. hill show that the Arlington County Department of Transportation is an excellent organization.


As reported in Ode Street's finest news source, the Department of Transportation recently added bike lanes on both sides of 15'th street between N. Rolfe St. and N. Rhodes Street.  The bike lane heading uphill represents a huge improvement.  Cyclists are already regularly using this bike lane.  The bike lane on the downhill side would not attract smart cyclists.  A cyclist going down the hill can easily ride in the middle of the road lane in the flow of traffic.  That position on the road lessens the risk of collision with an opening car door and makes it easier for drivers pulling into the road to see the cyclist.  While the bike lane on the downhill side was nice for pedestrians walking up the hill, it risked attracting inexperienced cyclists.


Apparently to mitigate that risk, the Department of Transportation has erased the bike lane on the downhill side.  That action shows outstanding organizational capacity for change.  The Ode Street Tribune applauds the Arlington County Department of Transportation for continually striving to do better.

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