To the editor:
Landmark Mall’s redevelopment will be an incredible addition to Duke Street’s west end. And the vast majority of visitors from around the region will arrive there by car – even if the proposed $100 million center running bus lanes realize their full potential of ushering buses along this segment of Duke Street two minutes faster than they move today. The city should better understand how these two major projects will affect one another by taking them in sequence rather than simultaneously.
It’s not clear to residents where the urgency is coming from. We appear to be rushing to erect permanent barricades down the middle of Duke Street, remove vehicle lanes, create a new network of destinations only accessible by u-turn and force thousands more pedestrians into crosswalks to access bus stops – all in the same area where we can soon expect a mass influx of new cars.
The good news is that there is little downside to thoughtfully postponing this project. The work that has already been completed can be revisited after the ribbon is cut for WestEnd Alexandria. Let’s take a breath and wait for actual, rather than estimated, data on the needs of the corridor so that we don’t make Duke Street worse than it already is.
-Jason Muller, Alexandria
