The Northern Virginia Regional Commission recently announced a competition call for qualifications for the design of the new bike/ped bridge over Four Mile Run from the trail near Eads Street in Arlington to the trail near Commonwealth Avenue in Alexandria.
According to the Master Plan, the stream corridor, instead of being a barrier, will actually connect the two communities through a series of new cyclist-pedestrian bridges. The design process for the first of these bridges, which connects the trail near Eads Street in Arlington to the trail near Commonwealth Avenue in Alexandria, will soon begin through an open competition. The signature pedestrian bridge will span and unite the two communities both symbolically and physically in the lower reach of Four Mile Run before it makes its way to the Potomac River.
“This pedestrian bridge will be much more than a means to get people across the Run by foot or bike without getting wet. It must be a structure that can function also as the keystone in creating a sense of place, uniting two communities that now live separately on each side into a whole with the restored stream as its special and celebrated center,” remarked by Judy Guse-Noritake.
An internationally renowned panel of jurors will choose the three most qualified design teams and select the winning design team on a public presentation given by three finalists.
The competition was paid for with Transportation Enhancement money. Deadline for this phase is December 7th.
You can see more at the competition website. In a sense this is a bridge restoration project since there used to be a streetcar bridge there.
I bike this area regularly but don't see the point of this- The route one bridge is only 800 feet away from eads and commonwealth. The new bridge would turn a 2000 foot journey between Eads and Commonwealth into a 400 foot journey for a net savings of less than 1/3 of a mile. Seems like a waste of money- Isn't there a better place to put a bridge?
Posted by: a | October 21, 2009 at 01:55 AM
a--I totally agree. I bike this every day and don't see the problem with using the route 1 bridge. It seems like an awfully expensive endeavor for something that will save me maybe 30 seconds each way.
Posted by: Ian | October 21, 2009 at 10:19 AM
It removes a 0.3 mile detour. If you consider that most people will only walk about 0.5 miles or bike 3 miles to do errands, that's a big percentage of your distance so it increases the walk/bike shed a good amount.
Additionally the bridge is designed to be a public space. Somewhere people will linger to look at the river or listen to music etc.. The route 1 bridge just isn't going to do that.
Posted by: Washcycle | October 21, 2009 at 10:25 AM
I don't see the point either. This is my regular commute. The money should go to better use like painting bike lanes on more parts of Commonwealth Ave.
Where can we give feedback on this project?
Posted by: Stan | October 21, 2009 at 12:17 PM
By the way, this will connect a nice baseball field with a water treatment facility. Not much shopping done around there. They can make a little pier if they want a public space for gazing at the river (but seriously, this is not a very nice river anyway).
Posted by: Stan | October 21, 2009 at 12:20 PM
Guys, stop the knee-jerking, seriously.
Read the Master Plan (see washcycle's link). This is about more than saving you 30 seconds on your commute (How fast are you going? 40mph, you are an animal!)
Four Mile run is ugly, it is a barrier and it keeps people apart. I think this bridge makes sense in the overall attempt to make this area look less like a toxic waste dump and more like a liveable place. The fact that it makes commuting easier is nice and certainly intended but not the main impetus behind this.
I bike this every workday and I really dislike the Route 1 bridge; it is terrible. I usually avoid it by taking a .9 mile detour and taking the Mount Vernon Avenue bridge to access the Four Mile run trail.
Let's give these guys a chance to implement their vision for a better Alexandria/ Arlington. (Oh, think about how many bike lanes they could ahve painted instead of spending the mopney on the new path that goes under Glebe Road and I-395 just a little bit upstream!)
Posted by: Eric_W. | October 21, 2009 at 12:36 PM
As I recall, the '60s-era plans were for a regular vehicle bridge at that location, also tying into a partial interchange with the then-planned "Four Mile Run Expressway".
Understand the concerns about spending the money on the bridge given needs elsewhere, but I have no problem with building a bridge here. IMO, though, it should carry 2 vehicle lanes in addition to the bike/ped lanes.
Posted by: Froggie | October 21, 2009 at 01:06 PM
Trust me, the people don't want to be linked in this part. Would you like to be linked to a water treatment facility and a bus parking lot?
The folks on the north side of Glebe already have a nice park so no argument that they want to access green area.
I agree with Froggie that a full two-lane road would be better b/c then the bridge would have an actual purpose. Right now it's just an excuse for creating jobs.
The path under 395 and Glebe is a completely different story...in no way even close to this.
Posted by: Stan | October 21, 2009 at 01:25 PM
The bridge will be a nice way for Alexandrians to ride bikes 1/2 mile up Eads to that cute little restaurant strip on 23rd St in Arlandria. And a nice route for Arlandrians to bike a similar distance to the shops on Mt Vernon Ave.
Yes, the Rt 1 bridge is OK for hardcore commuters, but an easy-looking bike route that avoids both Rt. 1 and Glebe will be great for normal humans.
Posted by: Jonathan Krall | October 21, 2009 at 02:18 PM
The route 1 bridge is about 300 feet away from the proposed location of this new crossing...hardly a drop of sweat to any bike rider. If you're out for a leisurely stroll then why would you mind about four additional minutes of a beautiful ride?
It's not about hard-core versus non...it's just about the cost of a bridge versus the benefits of the bridge. I think that the costs far outweigh the benefits when there are other projects that should get the money.
Posted by: Stan | October 21, 2009 at 03:37 PM
What if your on foot, but not for a leisurely stroll. As in, you're trying to get somewhere? Besides, as pointed out, it's more than a transportation project.
Posted by: Washcycle | October 21, 2009 at 04:46 PM
Jonathan Krall, you twice say "Arlandria(ns)" when I think you mean "Arlington(ians)". Eads and the restaurant row on 23rd are in Arlington.
Posted by: Scott | October 21, 2009 at 09:02 PM
Yes, this project is a poor use of roughly $7 million of bike-ped transportation funds, considering the many higher priority bike-ped crossings that are not being built elsewhere.
As just one nearby example, direct connections on the east side of US-1 are needed between both sides of Potomac Yard and the Four Mile Run Trail.
Meanwhile, Froggie's desire for a road bridge was rejected by Arlington and Alexandria officials decades ago.
Posted by: Allen Muchnick | October 21, 2009 at 11:27 PM
Am I the only one who's noticed that Four Mile Run smells like POOP? Spend $7 million towards fixing that, and maybe you'll see more walkers/pedestrians in the area. Until then, this is pretty much a bridge to nowhere.
Posted by: Simon | October 22, 2009 at 09:23 AM
Allen: so WHY was it rejected?
Posted by: Froggie | October 22, 2009 at 09:59 AM
@ Scott: No offense intended.
@ Stan: I used to ride from Eads to Commonwealth often. While not difficult for a casual cyclist, this connection between Arlington and Alexandria is not at all clear and not at all welcoming. For example, bike lanes on Eads on disappear south of S Glebe and the ramp to 4 Mile run trail is ill-marked and very rough. Nearby connections (Rt 1, Ridge Rd/Mt Vernon Ave, W Glebe) are not at all bike-friendly. The Mt Vernon Trail is bike friendly of course but is located out of the way of nearby shopping and residences.
Yes, a knowledgeable cyclist can get through by detouring to that short (relatively) bike-friendly bit of Rt 1, but the result does not lend itself to helpful way-finding signage and certainly not to a nice outing for a tourist who wants to ride to nice places instead of having an adventure. For a bike network to work, it must be everywhere visible, welcoming and connected.
I am aware that I am not a normal commuter--I ride because I don't mind that my bike commute is more adventurous, longer, and more time-consuming than my car commute. As an advocate for accessible active transportation, I am (surprise) coming out in favor of accessible active transportation. I sincerely wish that more of you would do the same.
Posted by: Jonathan Krall | October 22, 2009 at 01:49 PM
A bridge competition of this sort will provide a sculpture or monument to a wonderful area. The multiuse bridges that will appear before the public in February will make it obvious to the naysayers in the bunch that either the monuments in DC are all a waste of money or that this bridge will be a welcome addition.
Posted by: bohemian | November 24, 2009 at 12:56 PM
I live nearby. Knowing the Arlington County Board and its ultra-pro-development stance, my guess is to make it as easy as possible for the low wage workers on the Alexandria side to walk/bike to their jobs in Crystal City Hotels and restaurants.
Posted by: Robert | March 18, 2010 at 05:11 PM
I'm not that excited about this bridge either but no big deal. I try to spend as little time as possible around Four Mile Run. Kind of depressing just being near that... canal? Large ditch?
Posted by: Michael H. | March 18, 2010 at 05:42 PM
Why no car bridge? Because parallelish Mt Vernon Ave is rarely at capacity, and from Comm Ave to Glebe, it's pretty much car-centric. No need for redundant car connectivity, unless they want to whack that stretch of Mt. Vernon Ave with a complete-streets stick.
Also, Comm Ave is a nice low traffic street with lots of pedestrians, cyclists, that big school at the end, connectivity for bikers/peds. Why give that over to cars?
i'll never turn down more bike/ped facilities, and a nicely done bridge could become the centerpiece of an underutilized park. But in the zero-sum game of bike/ped funding, i'd first spend the cash on safety enhancements at the Eads/WMATA depot/Glebe interchange, or further away, coming up with a better connection between 4 Mile Run Trail and the Shirlington underpass.
Posted by: darren | March 18, 2010 at 09:55 PM