In what is sadly becoming an annual occurrence, DDOT has included the intersection of M and Wisconsin in its list of most dangerous intersections for pedestrians. And it’s no surprise given the current conditions. But doesn’t make it acceptable.
Many factors contribute to the intersection being so bad. It handles an enormous volume of both pedestrian and automobile traffic (in fact, on the weekends, the pedestrian traffic far exceeds the auto traffic). The attitudes of the drivers using the roads is mostly that of entitled suburbanites who think nothing of slamming on the gas to “beat” a red, even when they still remain stuck behind a long line of cars. What that often results in is them not actually beating the red, i.e. running the red, or simply slamming on the brakes and blocking the intersection. Neither of which is safe for pedestrians at the mercy of the driver’s urgent conviction that They Need To Be Somewhere.
Recent policy changes designed to assuage this entitlement has only made the situation worse for pedestrians. Several years ago, the city began to allow left turns at Wisconsin for eastbound M St. traffic. While this might be a good idea in theory (it takes cars off 33rd and 31st) the way it was implemented is obviously dangerous to anyone who stands at that intersection at rush hour. The turning cars are given a leading green arrow. During this phase the pedestrians are not to cross Wisconsin. Fine so far. Continue reading →
The Georgetown Metropolitan 
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