In an effort to reduce accidents and injuries among drivers and pedestrians, Alexandria officials have lowered the speed limit on Seminary Road west of I-395.
The speed limit was 35 mph through the residential and commercial area from the highway west to the city's limits at George Mason (0.8 miles) and has been reduced to 25 mph.
The area will be increasingly residential in the coming years with the opening of The Blake at the intersection of Beauregard Street and the development of townhomes, called Upland Park, along Fairbanks Avenue north of Seminary Road.
City officials explained that the move is part of the Vision Zero initiative, which seeks to eliminate traffic fatalities and serious injuries in the coming years. In an online release explaining the move, city officials wrote:
"Speed is a critical factor in the severity and frequency of crashes. This section of Seminary Road has the highest number of injury crashes per mile per year, compared to similar streets in Alexandria. Between January 2016 and June 2021, there were 239 reportable crashes on this section of Seminary Road. Of those crashes, two were fatal, eight involved severe injury and 59 involved non-life-threatening injuries. A third person was killed on Seminary Road at Fairbanks Avenue in September 2021. ... The likelihood of a person being killed or seriously injured when struck at 35 miles per hour is significantly higher than if that person is struck at 25 miles per hour. After the speed limit was reduced on Quaker Lane and on Seminary Road east of I-395, both speeds and average annual number of crashes declined. "
