Dear Friends, Neighbors, and Petition Supporters,
Yesterday, we took a significant step forward in our campaign for safer streets around the Twin Hickory intersection. In a community meeting held on March 4, 2024, at Twin Hickory Elementary School, Misty Whitehead, our Board of Supervisors representative, Steven Yob, the Deputy County Manager, the traffic engineers from the Department of Public Works (DPW), and engaged community members, including myself, convened to address our shared concerns and outline next steps for further action.
Despite the meeting's late announcement and the challenge of reaching all interested parties, we made our voices heard. The discussion opened with concerns about the meeting's visibility, acknowledging that the meeting’s advertising through a temporary sign by the Elementary school missed many in our community. We proposed more inclusive notification methods for future meetings, such as direct mail and leveraging online platforms like the community’s HOA mailing list and the Henrico County Board of Supervisors website. As a result, Misty Whitehead committed to improving communication, ensuring broader community involvement moving forward.
The heart of the meeting focused on the alarming increase in accidents at the intersection and discrepancies between reported data and community observations. Personal stories from neighbors highlighted the intersection's dangers, reinforcing our call for action. In response, we explored immediate and future safety interventions, from temporary warning signs to potential traffic signals, roundabouts, and left-turn restrictions.
Excitingly, Misty's office and DPW agreed to install a camera to conduct a comprehensive traffic and pedestrian study at the intersection. This study aims to capture the real traffic patterns, especially during school sessions, laying the groundwork for effective safety improvements. As mentioned by the DPW engineers, the traffic study is the first step in determining whether a traffic signal is possible to be installed in this intersection, as a certain volume of traffic threshold is required by federal law to justify this measure. In the event that traffic volumes from the study do not meet the threshold, we will focus on other possible solutions, such as roundabouts or no left turn restrictions.
Overall, this meeting is a testament to the power of community action. Your support of our petition has been vital, and we are heading on a path to safer streets. Let's maintain our momentum, stay informed, and be ready to contribute our voices to the upcoming next stages of this initiative. Together, we are making a tangible difference in our community’s safety.
If you are wondering “what can I do to help?” please help us collect photo evidence of the traffic and incidents in the intersection:
- If you see an accident/fender bender in this intersection, please notify me and send a photo of the crash (with the time and date) so that we have a photographic record of all the known accidents this year.
- If you’re out walking and the intersection looks busy, please take a photo, record the date and time, and share it with me.
- If you are a current or former traffic engineer and would like to volunteer to represent our community in our discussions with DPW or recommend solutions that have worked in your experience, please let me know.
- If you have any examples or knowledge of how intersections with similar traffic patterns have been resolved in Henrico, please let me know.
- Share this update with friends, neighbors and family and get them to sign our petition and share the reason why you’re signing in the comments of the petition
Finally, as the representative of this petition, I am committed to keeping you updated on our progress and any new developments. Thank you for standing with us.
Warmly,
Janna Kiseeva
804-709-7705
jkiseeva@nyu.edu