Bike lanes – Page 3 – bikeSpecific

DDOT Proposes its 2017 Bike Projects – Well – Some of Them

Planning for More
Image: Author

The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) unveiled its 2017 proposed bike projects for this calendar year. The plan includes the creation of approximately seven miles of new bicycle lanes that could be installed in 2017. These include extensions of the 1st and M Street, NE, cycle tracks, filling gaps in existing lanes and a neighborhood bikeway in Ward 4.

The plan does not include all proposed DDOT certain trail improvements like the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail or DDOT’s current studies like a potential new north-south cycle track in the eastern downtown area or projects in the early planning stages like the NoMa bicycle study.

The map below and the accompanying list shows the those projects that are most likely to occur at this time but is not an exhaustive list and doesn’t include all current facilities or the re-stripping of current lanes. If you have questions or would like DDOT to consider additional facility improvements contact Mike Goodno, the DDOT Bicycle Program Manager.

The Wheels Keep Turning on the Long Bridge

Long Bridge Project Scope
Image: DDOT

At the most recent public meeting for the Long Bridge Study, the bazillion alternatives for the replacement of the two track span were reduced to seven. Of those seven options, a bicycle connection is included in three.

The Long Bridge project replaces, well, you guessed it, an aging long bridge. This bridge serves as primarily as a freight rail connector but also as a growing transportation corridor for Amtrak’s intercity passengers rail system and, the Maryland Area Regional Commuter Rail (MARC) and the Virginia Railway Express (VRE) commuter rail services.

According to the Long Bridge Project site, District Department of Transportation (DDOT), in coordination with the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) are working cooperatively to complete a comprehensive study for the rehabilitation or replacement of the Long Bridge over the Potomac River, owned by CSX Transportation. The 3.2-mile study area begins in Arlington, Virginia and extends northeast, along the existing rail alignment in the District of Columbia, east of L’Enfant.

The Long Bridge
Image: Author

Specifically, the project corridor begins just past the I-395/Center-Leg Freeway, along the Virginia Avenue, SW viaduct past L’Enfant Plaza, and across the Potomac River at Long Bridge Park near Roaches Run. The project seeks to build rail capacity for 2040, when freight and passenger rail traffic would likely doubled from the current average of 76 weekday trains. This is the only Potomac River rail bridge that connects the District with Virginia, with the next closest crossing of the Potomac between Maryland and Harper’s Ferry, WV.

Long Bridge ‘Level 1 Concept Screening’
Image: Author

The objective of the May 16th “Level 1 Concept Screening” meeting was to receive public comment on the resulting concepts based on three screening criteria. The three criteria are Railroad Capacity, Network Connectivity, and resiliency and redundancy and contain several steps, conditions, and requirements. The criteria excluded tunnel options as they would be too costly or technical infeasible, options that included roads or street cars as those options do not appear on jurisdictional plans, or the selection of another crossing location as that would be impractical and wouldn’t serve the needs of passenger rail users and lacks connections for other modes.

The project considered 19 alternatives,
those highlighted in Green are the “Retained Concepts”
Image: Author

After the implementation of the criteria recommendations, the twelve alternatives were reduced to seven, with one being the required ‘no build’ alternative. The remaining six alternatives contain 3, 4 or 5 track-only options. Of those options, 3 included bike facilities. While there were no renderings at this presentation, crossing options for bikes could include spans that are connected or directly adjacent to the rail bridges or is an unconnected span several feet away. Bike infrastructure may exists beyond just the span over the Potomac. Planners state that bike connections and facilities could be included as part of the rebuilding of the viaduct and the L’Enfant VRE (potentially MARC) station; connections near the Tidal Basin and East Potomac Park; and direct bike connections to Crystal City or the Mount Vernon Trail.

Now in phase 3, the next steps include a Detailed Alternatives Screening from now until Winter 2018; a Draft EIS – Spring 2018 – Fall 2018; a Draft EIS Public Hearing – Fall 2018 – Winter 2019 (Public Comment) followed by a Record of Decision in the Spring of 2019. If you have comments on the alternatives use the comment form or email info@longbridgeproject.com.

Public Meeting for Chestnut Street Concept Design Study Findings

Impediments
Image: Author

The District Department of Transportation’s (DDOT) will have a public meeting to discuss the Concept Design Study findings for Chestnut Street NW, from Oregon Avenue to Western Avenue. The meeting will be Wednesday, May 10, 2017, at the Chevy Chase Baptist Church, 5671 Western Avenue and from 6:45 pm through 8:15 pm with a brief presentation about the project to start at 7:15 pm.

This could be a great opportunity to add pedestrian and bike infrastructure to the Hawthorne area, which has a walkscore of 19 out of infinity and a bikescore of 35. The Hawthorne bikescore is basically lower than just about every other community in the District. If you can attend, please advocate for walking and biking. However, adding infrastructure in this upper, upper Northwest DC community isn’t easy.

If you feel strongly about adding bike or pedestrian safety infrastructure on this street, you should first read Sarah Stodder’s article from the June 2016 Washingtonian, “Everyone in This DC Neighborhood Is Freaking Out Over Sidewalks“. One of the unique factors of Chestnut Street, and many streets is the Hawthorne community, is that it has no sidewalks. In a disagreement more like the cold war than a “sidewalk war”, the neighborhood is fighting with itself, and with DDOT about fixing what should have been fixed years ago but more recently, to comply with the Vision Zero initiative, District, and federal laws.

According to DDOT, the purpose of this project is to “develop design solutions for a streetscape that targets multimodal, safety and aesthetic improvements along Chestnut Street NW”. With the word “multimodal” in the project description, one would assume that bicycling and walking are included – one could hope.

One of the easier bits of infrastructure to add would be wayfinding signage. DDOT hopes to hear from the public regarding this street, which provides a connector for bicyclists who travel from Rock Creek Park along Wise Road. The street connects with other roads to lead to Bradley Lane in Chevy Chase, Maryland, allowing cyclists to reach Wisconsin Avenue and points west in Montgomery County.

No Sidewalks. No Bike lanes.
Image: Google

This meeting on the Chestnut Street project should also be related to the design and reconstruction of Oregon Avenue NW. As reported by the Washcycle, on May 17 DDOT will also have a public meeting on the rehabilitation of Oregon Avenue from Military Road to Western Avenue. The meeting will be at 5601 Connecticut Avenue NW (Chevy Chase Community Center), but according to the most recent plans, Oregon Avenue plans will probably exclude bicycling facilities. This is doubly disappointing as the National Park Service supports including a trail along this section of road.

Having a safe connection along Oregon Avenue and Chestnut Street is important. If you can make it, you should, as it could be interesting. Let me know how it goes. If I get a hold of some plans, I’ll post them.

NoMa Bicycle Network Workshop Hopes to Connect the City

At least 95 Theses were posted describing the
problems and potential of the NoMa corridor
Image: Author

The NoMa Bicycle Network Study workshop allowed the public to determine how the cyclists (and pedestrians) will cross the NoMa corridor, which includes several major intersections, a railway viaduct, and an interstate freeway. The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) would like public input from now until May 31, 2017 on its interactive website.

As interest in the NoMa section of the District has increased over the last dozen or so years, as has bicycling to and through it. From the installation of the First Street to M Street to the Metropolitan Branch Trail cycle track to the new REI Flagship store, the area has drawn cyclists of all types and abilities.

In its first public workshop focusing exclusively on this corridor, DDOT planners, along with consultants, allowed the public to pitch ideas about what future of cycling should look like based on its pre-existing condition. DDOT presented initial concept board of the corridor showing the current bike infrastructure conditions and comparing it concepts and long-term plans discussed in the MoveDC Bicycle Element and other DDOT plans currently in design or under consideration. This included the long-planned New Jersey Avenue protected bike lanes, a potential New York Avenue trail that extend from the west of Sixth Street NE to infinity and beyond also known as the Arboretum, and an apparent bike / pedestrian bridge over the Center Leg Freeway at L Street.


That blue diagonal line is a “New York Avenue Trail”. Image: Author

While the MoveDC initiative proposed expansive, it did appear to leave a gap in the bicycling network in NoMa. Part of the problem was that few people envisioned that the area would be a destination, a travel corridor and one of the District’s fastest growing neighborhoods. Containing New York Avenue, which sees an average of at least 80,000 vehicles per day, bicycling across this area isn’t great for young families, experienced bicyclists, plant life, or most carbon-based lifeforms.

According to the study website, DDOT’s objectives include developing recommendations for a bicycle network to connect NoMA to Downtown DC, Eckington, Truxton Circle, and the H Street Corridor, with an emphasis on separated facilities. Darren Buck, Bicycle Program Specialist and manager of this project hopes for a “low-stress and direct east-west cycling connection”. BikeSpecific made a nifty interactive map pointing out some of the current connections.

If stickies aren’t your thing, DDOT also has an interactive map that you may use to post your ideas.
Image: Author

DDOT has developed an online map that allows users to input preferred cycling routes through the study area. Site visitors can also help identify existing barriers or locations that limit safe and convenient bicycle mobility across the study area. The map is open to public input from May 1 through May 31, 2017. DDOT would like residents, cyclists, and employees of the NoMa area to participate. DDOT also has a Mobile Interactive Map for those who refuse to be tied to a desk.

DDOT will use this information to identify potential routes for bicycle travel in the NoMa study area. This information will also help identify which roads and intersections may need to be improved for bicyclist and pedestrian safety and how these changes could affect the overall bike network outside the study area.

DCBAC Sees Preliminary Design for the Georgetown Protected Bike Lane

Image: Author

At the May 3 D.C. Bicycle Advisory Council meeting, the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) Bicycle Program Manager and the Georgetown Business Improvement District (BID) Transportation Director discussed the Georgetown K and Water Street Corridor Bicycle – Pedestrian Connectivity Enhancements plan and displayed the concept design to BAC members.

As part of the Georgetown 2028 Plan, which hopes to bring more people to Georgetown through improvements to the neighborhood’s infrastructure, the protected lane would create a connection between the Capital Crescent and Rock Creek Parkway trails along the K and Water Street corridor beneath the Whitehurst Freeway. As reported in April, DDOT and the BID met with the Georgetown ANC, which approved the draft concept.

The concept plan shown below and with permission from DDOT, is at 30 percent of full design. It illustrates the general outline of the lanes and contains basic measurements and location of certain structures. The plan identifies how the lanes could interact with vehicle travel lanes, vehicle parking, and pedestrian structures. The plan also shows new bicycle lanes at the foot of Wisconsin Avenue. The lanes provide protection for cyclists climbing this hill and end at the Wisconsin Avenue bridge over the C&O Canal, one of the oldest bridges in the District.

Construction of the lanes could start as early as this year along much of the corridor after Pepco utility work in the area is completed. Temporary work would include the addition of bollards and lane striping. More permanent structures, which could include protective planters and sidewalk modifications, would happen over the next few years.

The plans presented do not show a specific connection to the Capitol Crescent Trail. The National Park Service is currently rehabilitating the Key Bridge, which repairs will not be completed until 2018 or 2019. The BID and DDOT will workThe plans also do not show connections to the Rock Creek Parkway trail, the L or M Street protected bike lanes, or to the K Street ramp that leads to 27th Street as that area lies outside of the project scope. The presenters also discussed potential connections to the Rock Creek Trail that could include changes to the sidewalk or bridges, although they could be funded through some other means.