2006 CWL #1 - RDF Secure Access Lane project completion

As part of the on-going Pentagon Renovation, a new Remote Delivery Facility was built. To increase the security for this facility, a Secure Access Lane was built along Washington Boulevard and just outside of that lane, a nice wide new section of the Washington Boulevard Trail. Traffic on Washington Boulevard, which has narrow lanes and several merge points, is heavy enough and fast enough that biking on a side path is desirable. The path is wide (10 feet I think) and tree lined (though several trees have died and been removed without being replaced). It forms part of the connection from Columbia Pike to Arlington Memorial Bridge and the Mt. Vernon Trail.

A part of the Secure Access Lane project was the removal of two driveways just beyond the NW corner of the Pentagon (in the picture to the left, of the two corners visible, it's the one on the left). If you look at the proposed design (the larger picture), these two driveways should be completely removed and a nice straight bikeway installed. But that isn't what happened. Instead one stub of a driveway remained, and cyclists using the bikeway have to make two 90 degree turns to safely cross a road that isn't a road anymore.

It's a small inconvenience, but it's also a simple problem to fix. A few hours with a backhoe, some soil, a small asphalt or concrete pour and some sod. A day's worth of work? And from the proposal photo (I couldn't find much more than this) it looks like the construction company was supposed to do this. I'm not sure if the picture is wrong, if the project design changed or if the construction company failed to do the work properly, but regardless this should be fixed.

If someone knows who to contact at the Pentagon, let me know. It's possible this could be done under the 9-11 Memorial Construction contract.  I feel like a handful of volunteers with $1000 of supplies could do this - though liability laws, union rules and the like would probably make that impossible.

[The connection from the end of the WBT to the Mt. Vernon trail needs work along its entire length. It narrows down - in parts to as little as 3 feet - and has four grade crossings that vary in their level of badness]

Comments

[Roy]

Getting from Columbia Pike (no shoulder or bike lane) to DC on a bike seems like a huge pain, unless you want to head up to the Key Bridge. I'll have to check this out.

[washcycle]

This is how I do it...

http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=586499

The satellite photos on Google are pre-Pentagon work. After passing under Wash Blvd, the trail is on the immediate left. You'll either need to junp the median or go down about 30 feet and do a U-turn.

[Lori]

Biking on Columbia Pike is not great, but I've been doing it for 2 years, and I'm still doing it. I think most drivers are somewhat polite.

I do one thing that is different than what washcycle posted. When going east, if there is traffic, I turn right onto S Quinn St., then use the light to cross Columbia Pike, then go on the sidewalk for one block (encountering a person maybe once a month), then turn left on S Orme. Then I just go by the Navy Annex. I do this to avoid the turn onto Washington Blvd since in the morning, the right lane is a turning lane only and I am not comfortable changing lanes with cars that are going 40-50 mph, if there is traffic. I have changed lanes there, but I think it is risky.

Riding around the Pentagon is fun in the mornings. While some may decry the lack of a wall, I actually like the fact that for a brief period, I am right next to the cars stopped in traffic. It reminds me how great my commute is.

[Roy]

Thanks folks. I commute from DC to work in Arlington so the auto traffic isn't as bad as Lori would see going the other way. I used to take the Key Bridge but have moved so now I like the 14th St. bridge. I'm still sorting out the details of the route but I think I will try this Pentagon path to get there from Columbia Pike (right now I'm going Pike/Pentagon City/Crystal City).

[Roy]

"For the record" I finally did this route this morning. It cut my bike commute time from about 45 minutes to about 35 minutes, despite a bunch of grade crossings (I need to figure out another way to tackle the bike-unfriendly Memorial Bridge). Thanks again.