Hostile Territory for Travel by Foot

"It's a classic setup for this kind of problem," said Chris Wells, pedestrian program manager for the county's Department of Transportation.

The county says it has tried to bridge gaps of language and culture by printing a series of fliers in Spanish, Korean and other languages and having police distribute them. It has also given out thousands of yellow reflecting wristbands to improve pedestrians' visibility after dark.

Critics say education efforts have been skewed toward pedestrians, and that motorists in the county need more reminders of their legal obligations: to yield, to be prepared for unpredictable pedestrian actions, to look for walkers at right-turn-on-red intersections.

Sometimes careful motorist behavior comes as a surprise.

Capt. Jesse Bowman, commander of the Fairfax police traffic division and a five-mile-a-day, six-times-a-week jogger, said there is one uncontrolled intersection near his home where he runs in place until traffic in both directions clears.

He recalled his astonishment one day when a car came to a complete stop to let him cross.

"I felt like I wanted to buy him dinner," Bowman said.

The primacy of cars in suburban culture is also a major obstacle. In mature urban areas with a grid system of streets and heavy pedestrian traffic, drivers are more attentive.

"There is a different mentality," Bowman said. "It's a city, with lots of pedestrians. Out here, you're in the minority." It means that some motorists are less attuned to the sudden appearance of an errant pedestrian.

The most practical solution for Seven Corners -- a pedestrian bridge -- has been under discussion for at least 20 years, said Supervisor Penelope A. Gross (D-Mason). "Nothing, nothing was done," she said.

This fall, finally, bids will be taken for construction of a $5 million bridge to span Route 50 where Isidoro Rivas-Funes died, just west of Patrick Henry. Construction is scheduled to begin in spring 2007. A major element of the project will be vinyl fencing up and down both sides of the road, to bar mid-block crossings and funnel pedestrians toward the bridge.

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