poll

Morning Poll: Would a revamped Dulles sans people movers affect your airport choice?

By ARLnow.com
1/5

In a 2023 ARLnow poll, nearly two-thirds of respondents said they would pay more or compromise on schedule in order to fly out of National Airport instead of Dulles.

In the comments, several people mentioned the “super lame” and “interminable” people movers at IAD as being a key factor.

Well, those lumbering, decades-old “mobile lounges” may be on the way out, just months after airport officials said they could be in operation for another 15-20 years. Following a crash involving a people mover that injured more than a dozen people, President Trump says the federal government will be leading an effort to “rebuild” the airport, with a likely focus on eliminating the 1960s-era vehicles.

More from the Associated Press:

President Donald Trump said Tuesday that his administration will embark on a reconstruction of Dulles International Airport in northern Virginia.

“We’re also going to rebuild Dulles airport because it’s not a good airport,” Trump said during a meeting of his Cabinet members at the White House. “It should be a great airport, and it’s not a good airport at all. It’s a terrible airport.”

Dulles is one of the three Washington-area airports and its quality is a hotly-debated topic among Washingtonians.

Trump, a former real estate mogul, said the Dulles building was “incorrectly designed.” He nonetheless praised Eero Saarinen, the Finnish-American architect who designed the main terminal at Dulles.

“We’re going to turn that around and we’re going to make Dulles airport — serving Washington and Virginia, Maryland, etc. — we’re gonna make that into something really spectacular. We have an amazing plan for it.”

His motorcade took an unannounced drive through Dulles in early November. At the time, the White House said Trump wanted to take the detour to the airport to assess potential future projects.

During Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy singled out the controversial “people movers” that ferry travelers in between concourses. One of the vehicles, which are also called “mobile lounges,” crashed in November. […]

The Transportation Department announced later Tuesday that it is inviting bids for a Dulles project that would build “completely new terminals and concourses” at the airport. The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said in a statement that it will work with the Transportation Department to build upon the existing $7 billion plan to improve Dulles.

This morning we’re wondering: would significant updates to the airport, beyond those already made or under construction, make you more likely to fly out of Dulles?

Morning Poll: Are you shopping today?

By ARLnow.com
A Christmas tree at the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City (file photo)

It’s the biggest shopping day of the year. Are you going to be among the throngs?

There is a bit of a Yogi Berra “nobody goes there anymore, it’s too crowded” phenomenon where the mental images of crowded mall parking lots or swarmed big box stores keep some people away. But Black Friday’s reputation is well earned and many will end up doing some holiday shopping or discount hunting today.

We’re wondering what percentage of ARLnow readers will be Black Friday shoppers, either in person or online. Check any of the options below that apply.

Opinion

Morning Poll: Who’s having more fun, Arlington or Alexandria?

By ARLnow.com
Alexandria as seen in the distance from Arlington (file photo)

Yesterday, Arlington County Board member Maureen Coffey sparked a debate on Bluesky.

“Among my most important and treasured duties as a board member is making sure everyone knows: a) they can submit names for our snow plows and b) we are having more fun than our neighbors in Alexandria,” Coffey wrote on the social network, while linking to our article about Arlington’s snowplow naming contest.

Go to Morning Poll: Who’s having more fun, Arlington or Alexandria? Read more

Morning Poll: What are your Thanksgiving dinner plans?

By ARLnow.com
Thanksgiving turkey (file photo)

Believe it or not, Thanksgiving is just a week away.

Over the years, ARLnow has conducted morning polls on various Thanksgiving related topics:

This year we’re wondering: what are your Thanksgiving dinner plans?

Are you dining at home, somewhere else in town, or out of town? And will you be enjoying the meal with mostly family or mostly friends?

Opinion

Morning Poll: What should we do with the comment section?

By ARLnow.com
Comment button on ARLnow

The ARLnow comment section is legendary.

Over the past 16 years it has hosted a daily exchange of ideas on local topics with a volume of comments more typical of a large city newspaper than a hyperlocal website. It has been a place where a (mostly) anonymous group with usernames that became familiar over time could gather, joke and commiserate over the news of the day.

Go to Morning Poll: What should we do with the comment section? Read more

Morning Poll: Are people in Arlington generally more fit than those in other parts of the U.S.?

By ARLnow.com
Runners in Long Bridge Park in Crystal City (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

A Reddit thread has locals debating whether (and why) people in our area appear noticeably more fit than those in other parts of the country.

From a user in the Northern Virginia subreddit, in a thread titled “Why is everyone here so thin/fit?”:

Did anyone here come from deeper south and realize the disparity in the size of the average person? I looked it up and at the city level, Arlington VA was names the fittest city in the USA for eight consecutive years and DC is always second place. Now I understand places like Colorado being fit because of the mountain hiking and outdoorsy culture but this is a congested urban area with chronically busy people and career hustle culture. We also have a lot of restaurants and bars and people go out frequently, and if I’m not mistaken there are some parts of this area (DC especially) that are high poverty “food deserts” which are actually typically associated with a higher obesity rate. Does it really just come down to walkability? What’s different about here?

That original post from last week sparked what is now a nearly 400-post-long discussion. Redditors pointed to several factors that might explain why folks here are fitter than elsewhere, including:

  • Wealth and education giving people access to better food, gyms, and healthcare
  • The area’s career-driven, Type-A culture that extends to fitness
  • Walkability and Metro use that naturally builds in thousands of extra steps per day (unlike car-dependent areas)
  • Extensive trail networks and parks
  • Corporate gyms and flexible work schedules;
  • Fewer high-sugar staples, like Southern-style sweet tea, in people’s everyday consumption

What we’re wondering in today’s poll, however, is not what’s causing this phenomenon — but whether you’ve noticed it specifically in Arlington.

Are Arlingtonians actually fitter than people in most other parts of the country, based on your observations?

Opinion

Morning Poll: Daylight Saving Time dread

By ARLnow.com
Rain collects on a windshield in Westover during a dark evening drive (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

It’s that time of year again. This Sunday at 2 a.m., we’ll “fall back” as Daylight Saving Time comes to an end for 2025.

While gaining an extra hour of sleep sounds nice in theory, the reality of earlier sunsets and darker evenings can be a tough adjustment for many. By the end of next week, the sun will be setting before 5 p.m. in Arlington, leaving many commuters heading home in the dark.

Go to Morning Poll: Daylight Saving Time dread Read more

Poll: When do you put out your Halloween decorations?

By ARLnow.com
Halloween decorations along N. Jackson Street in October 2022 (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

It’s now officially fall, and Halloween decorations are just starting to proliferate across Arlington.

While the Halloween displays in stores may start in August, pumpkins and other decor typically don’t start appearing in yards, front entrances and balconies until well into September.

But there is wide variance in when those Halloween decorations go up. Some people might get started early in September, while others wait until just before the big day in late October.

What’s the most common time to put out the spooky decorations in Arlington? Let’s find out.

Opinion

Poll: Should the number of flights at DCA be reduced?

By ARLnow.com
An airplane takes off from Reagan National Airport (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Maybe it seemed like a good idea at the time.

In 2023, amid debate about a bill adding 28 daily flights and easing restrictions on long distance flights at Reagan National Airport, ARLnow ran an unscientific poll asking readers what they thought.

Go to Poll: Should the number of flights at DCA be reduced? Read more

Poll: Is this streak of nice weather making you less productive?

By ARLnow.com
Runners in Rosslyn near the Netherlands Carillon (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

For much of August and September so far, the weather has been great.

With the exception of a couple of rainy days, we’ve been enjoying dry weather with comfortable temperatures for nearly a month.

The biggest downside of this streak of nice weather is a worsening drought in the region.

Another potential downside, at least in the eyes of some? Decreased productivity.

This late August/early September weather pattern is familiar to many who’ve lived in the area for awhile, and we often associate it with the lazy last days of pre-Labor Day summer.

But with the good times extending into mid-September, there may be some out there who have yet to shake off summer vacation mode and kick into the usual higher fall gear. And why not — maybe staying in summer mode helps some delay the full onset of seasonal affective disorder.

Admittedly, this is a highly vibes-based theory, and probably doesn’t apply to many. But there’s also some research behind why one might be less productive when rainy days are few and far between.

Does any of this describe you? Are you not getting as much done — at home, at work, or both — as usual, perhaps as a result of the temptation to be outside and active instead? Or are you unaffected by the sunny September bliss outside and staying as productive as usual? Let’s find out.

Poll: Are you buying a Powerball ticket for tonight’s $1.4 billion jackpot?

By ARLnow.com and The Associated Press
Roslyn Jefferson makes her lottery ticket selections on a self-serve terminal inside a gas station ahead of Saturday's Powerball drawing offering of $1 billion, Friday, Aug. 29, 2025, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

Summer is ending but lottery fever is heating up.

The Powerball jackpot is now well above the $1 billion mark, with another drawing set for tonight.

From the Associated Press:

An estimated $1.4 billion lottery jackpot will be up for grabs Wednesday night thanks to dozens of drawings without a big winner.

The massive Powerball prize is the sixth-largest U.S. lottery jackpot. It’s a result of 40 consecutive drawings stretching over the summer without anyone matching all of the game’s six numbers.

No one has won the grand prize since May 31, and the 41st drawing on Wednesday will be just one fewer than the record set last year.

All of that losing stems from Powerball’s abysmal odds of 1 in 292.2 million, though lottery officials note that the odds are far better for the game’s many smaller prizes. There are three drawings each week.

The $1.4 billion jackpot is for a winner who opts to receive 30 payments over 29 years through an annuity. Winners almost always choose the game’s cash option, which for this drawing would be an estimated $634.3 million.

Powerball tickets cost $2, and the game is offered in 45 states plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

ARLnow has conducted (unscientific) polls for previous billion-dollar plus jackpots, finding…

Today we’re simply wondering whether you’ve bought or are planning to buy a ticket for tonight’s big drawing.

Poll: It’s mid-August. How checked out are you?

By ARLnow.com
"Summer time" flag in the Old Glebe neighborhood (staff photo)

With a week and a half to go before the start of school in Arlington, we’re decidedly in the waning days of summer.

Nights are cooler. Pre-season football is on TV. Fall plans are being made. And office parking lots have plenty of open spaces thanks to people getting their final beach vacations in.

In all, the mid-August vibes are strong and that leads to another thing: a general pre-Labor Day malaise.

As the dog days drag on, an August inertia sets in for some, making it ever more excruciating to wake up in the morning and put in a full day’s work. A lucky few may have the flexibility to unilaterally slash their working hours and output, while the rest of us just have to muddle through.

How prevalent is this late summer lethargy in Arlington? Let’s find out.

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