Arlington to Adjust Pedestrian Signal Phase in Urban Corridors

Published on August 18, 2021

Update 02/02/22: Beginning the week of Feb. 7, 2022, Transportation Engineering & Operations staff will begin converting pedestrian phases at three intersections along the Langston Boulevard corridor to “pedestrian recall” mode. This means the walk sign will come on automatically when the vehicle traffic light turns green -- no push button needed.

The three intersections are:

• Langton Boulevard and N. Cleveland Street
• Langston Boulevard and N. Adams Street
• N. Sycamore Street and Washington Boulevard

The conversions are based on additional staff review conducted in response to community feedback we received during the transition back to pre-pandemic signal operations for pedestrian phases.

All signalized intersections are monitored continuously, and operational adjustment may be recommended/implemented based on updated data and analysis results.

Update 11/23/21: Beginning the week of Nov. 29, Transportation Engineering & Operations staff will begin converting pedestrian phases at 20 traffic signals along Columbia Pike to “pedestrian recall” mode. This means the walk sign will come on automatically when the vehicle traffic light turns green – no push button needed.

The conversions are based on additional staff review conducted in response to community feedback received during the transition back to pre-pandemic signal operations for pedestrian phases. (map(PDF, 2MB))

Further adjustments may be required once the results of the ongoing Transit Signal Priority study are received. Upcoming Columbia Pike construction projects may require additional adjustments to the pedestrian timings along the corridor to accommodate the Maintenance of Traffic plans for those projects.

The County will be rolling back automatic pedestrian phase activations at several signalized intersections across Arlington.

This measure was enacted in 2020 in response to low traffic volumes due to the COVID-19 pandemic and to minimize the need to press push buttons to trigger the pedestrian phase at a signal. This initiative was accompanied by "Do Not Push" signage posted at various intersections. 

With school starting at the end of August, motor traffic will increase throughout the region. To best respond to this situation and improve walkway safety, the County has identified intersections, mostly vehicular traffic corridors where pedestrian activities are less frequent, that will return to their pre-pandemic settings after Labor Day.

At major Metro corridors, including Rosslyn-Ballston and Crystal City where pedestrian activity level is high, the pedestrian signals will remain auto-triggered in every cycle.

Ninety-three intersections had their settings adjusted for the pandemic and will be returned to their pre-pandemic condition over several weeks. County crews will attend to each intersection, remove signage and restore the signals' original settings.