Frederick Douglass Bridge to close for two months

I'd heard about this a couple of months ago, but I was waiting for it to become official.

The Frederick Douglass Bridge, an important commuter route that carries South Capitol Street traffic over the Anacostia River will be shut down for July and August for a big reconstruction job. Drivers will be detoured north to the 11th Street Bridge.

It will also be closed to cyclists. It won't be closed to cyclists for several upcoming weekend closings to replace bridge expansion joints. During the two months the bridge is closed, for now, cyclists will have to detour to the 11th Street Bridge - which could be more than a two mile detour, depending on where you're going.

WABA and DDOT, last I heard, were planning to approach WMATA to see if they would allow bikes on Metro's Green Line during rush hour during the closure. Even if only for a limited set of stations (Anacostia, Navy Yard, Waterfront and Archives for example) this would help cyclists who depend on the bridge. It would also allow WMATA to experiment with bikes on metro during rush hour without it seeming they were changing policy (and since the ban is baseless). They would look like the good guys. It's a win-win really. So if you use the Douglas, it's time to start contacting your city council member and WMATA.

There was an article about this after the chat.

When the bridge reopens, there will be a new intersection at Potomac Avenue and South Capitol Street, pedestrian and bicycle walkways, and improved roadway access throughout the area.

This is probably a good project for cyclists in general - providing a chance to connect to Potomac Avenue, P Street and Q Street earlier.

Comments

[Douglas Willinger]

See:

http://wwwsouthcapitolstreet.blogspot.com/2006_06_01_wwwsouthcapitolstreet_archive.html