The Hatchet has retracted a story that was published on an inaccurate premise.

The story – which was titled “Students to propose closing H Street to motor traffic, cite ‘dangerous’ pedestrian conditions” and printed in Monday’s edition – incorrectly reported that a student research group is proposing the closure of H Street between 21st and 22nd streets to motorized vehicles. The students are trying to make the portion of H Street more welcoming to pedestrians, not close it off from motorized vehicles.

The article has since been removed from our website, per The Hatchet’s retractions policy. The story does not meet the standards of accuracy that The Hatchet strives to achieve. From the pitch to the reporting to the editing to the final publication of the story, the article was based on an incorrect assumption about the goals of the student researchers.

The Hatchet’s reporting assumed the researchers’ plan to re-center H Street toward “pedestrian use and away from automobiles” meant entirely closing the portion of the street to motor traffic. That is not correct. Members of the GW Undergraduate Sustainability Research Fellows said in an interview that they want to redesign the portion of H Street as a Woonerf, a style of street design implemented in the Netherlands and Belgium that forces cars to drive at a slower pace and facilitates pedestrian safety.

Every print Hatchet story undergoes several stages of editing and a round of fact-checking, each of which failed to catch the inaccuracy. The inaccuracy affected other interviews and reporting, meaning the story’s premise was wholly based on a falsehood.

The Hatchet has a responsibility to not just tell the stories of Foggy Bottom community members, but to tell them fairly and accurately. As student journalists who constantly strive to improve The Hatchet’s coverage, we will learn from this mistake and continue serving the GW community.