I noted in this post that at the last ANC 5A meeting, I mentioned the pedestrian fatality that occurred near South Dakota Avenue and Ingraham Street NE in February. I should have added that in response, Laisha Dougherty, chief of staff to Ward 5 Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie, stated that the CM’s office is aware of and is trying to address the need for traffic calming on South Dakota Avenue.
I do know that the CM’s office has been in touch with the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) about the difficulty that a blind resident has crossing at South Dakota Avenue at 8th Street NE (I mentioned this issue in a couple of my ANC meeting recaps). In response to the efforts of residents in that area over the past few years and recent intervention from the CM’s office, DDOT recently decided that a rectangular rapid flashing beacon (RRFB) will be installed at that intersection.
For those unfamiliar with rapid flashing beacons, here’s a video from the federal highway administration explaining their purpose. Here is a one pager from DDOT. As noted in the video, rapid flashing beacons work best in conjunction with other traffic calming measures. There are rapid flashing beacons on Sherman Avenue NW that I am pretty familiar with (see dated image of Sherman Avenue below). Edit: There is a rapid flashing beacon on South Dakota Avenue at Decatur Street NE that I always forget about.
Some may confuse the rapid flashing beacon with a hawk signal (which is also known as a hybrid pedestrian beacon). They are two different things. There is a hawk signal installed at South Dakota Avenue and Ingraham Street NE. With a hawk signal, motorists actually get a red signal to stop for pedestrians. With a rapid flashing beacon, motorists see just that, rapid flashing yellow lights indicating that a pedestrian is waiting to cross the road.
It is not clear when DDOT will install the rapid flashing beacon on South Dakota Avenue at 8th Street. I do not know how DDOT determined that this is the best option there, but hopefully it will help to slow down drivers a bit and get drivers to yield to pedestrians at crosswalks.
Next Stop...Riggs Park 
I cross South Dakota at 8th street every single day and have, a few times, crossed at the same time as the blind resident. I also see several people crossing while I wait for the bus every morning.
Personally, I always wait however long it takes until there are no cars, because the drivers on South Dakota are so reckless it just doesn’t feel safe. But most of the other people I see cross will more actively advertise their intentions until cars eventually stop for them. I think those people will appreciate the flashing lights.
I wonder why they do not put a street light at the intersection, though. In addition to the pedestrian crossings, there are also long queues of cars waiting to make turns onto South Dakota.
As I was looking in the archives for a post about something else, I came across this 2016 post regarding SDA & Decatur.
https://nextstopriggs.wordpress.com/2016/02/26/anc-5a-february-24-2016-meeting-recap/
The recently recorded videos below demonstrate how dangerous South Dakota has become —- to some it is considered an extension of Route 50
The speed limit is 25 mph, but most cars are doing close to 40 mph
The first 2 videos demonstrate my frustration trying to cross the intersection at South Dakota & Decatur., where currently the flashing yellow light apparatus is in place —- which DDOT intends to install,, to assist a blind resident (and others), at 8th & South Dakota
1…. https://youtu.be/-91jDobxQy8
2…. https://youtu.be/jAmRnnn3P6w
3…. https://youtu.be/NMtk2gqrPZs
4…. https://youtu.be/6SQQBIkb2sk
It should be noted that apparently, subsequent to the recent traffic fatality, DDOT quietly changed the timing on the lights at South Dakota & Delafield.
Now, for 2-seconds the intersection is a full four-way red light stop. No longer do pedestrians have to play “chicken” with motorists.
Regarding the yellow flashing light at South Dakota & Decatur,, residents in the immediate vicinity do not use that intersection to cross the street. There are two bus stops there — one on each side of the street.
For their safety, residents opt to walk 1 to 2 blocks, out of their way, to an intersection with a proper traffic signal, to catch or when disembarking from a bus.
Bottom Line — DDOT should reevaluate their decision. The yellow flashing light is NOT an appropriate traffic calming solution for South Dakota — for a pedestrian it’s unsafe, dangerous and deadly
What does it really take to implement the most meager of traffic control measures on South Dakota Avenue between Delafield and Gallatin Streets NE? A Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon (RRFB) is being proposed to assist a vision impaired citizen cross at 8th and South Dakota Avenue NE.
This intersection is challenging because drivers who make the light at Decatur Street NE do not face another traffic light for 4 blocks (Gallatin Street NE). Most drivers achieve speeds of 40 mph regularly on this strip.
On March 18, 2022, DDOT proudly announced the installation of a RRFB at the intersection of 8th and South Dakota Avenue NE. However, this very same system was denied over a year earlier on March 11, 2021.
The reason follows: “So the RRFB warrant report came back. The traffic study shows less than five (5) pedestrians in north crosswalk and south crosswalk during both AM peak-hour and PM peak-hour. Further, we conducted separate gap studies at the study intersection. The gap studies show pedestrians overall had adequate crossing opportunities for crossing South Dakota Ave NE. Further, review of 3-year crash data did not show any occurrence of pedestrian or bike crashes at the study intersection. As such, we do not recommend RRFB at this location, especially with such low peak pedestrian volumes.”
So, what has changed? I can assure you that it was not redistricting. Well, two things did change. First, a traffic fatality occurred at the Hawk Signal on the 5300 Block of South Dakota Avenue NE – just mere blocks from 8th and South Dakota Avenue NE. Second, an enterprising citizen provided video showing how dangerous South Dakota Avenue has become and how useless the existing RRFB system at Decatur Street NE is.
The rationale for the recent approval of the RRFB is clear. What is also clear is that a more robust traffic solution is needed. Cost should not be a consideration since the Biden Administration is providing millions to rebuild American infrastructure.
The only question for our leadership is, whether any infrastructure funds will be earmarked for safety along South Dakota Avenue NE?