Transportation Improvement Program

I went to the TIP meeting. I'm not sure how useful it was. The presenters definitely seemed to be going through the motions. Like they were legally required to do this, so they were doing it. I had to ask about six questions to even determine what the point was.

Basically the TIP is a list of everything the Washington Metropolitan region is thinking about doing for the next six years. This was a DC meeting so the list was only of DC programs. The list they gave me isn't available online, this is because - they said - it changes too often. We're all familiar with how the internet is incapable of handling a dynamic system.

Anyway the point of the meeting was to allow us to express opinions about things we thought were left off, included that shouldn't be, or planned too soon or too late. I made a few comments (mostly things they need to add), but here, from the copy I was given, is a list of transportation items that could impact cyclists. They're listed by the year in which they begin funding.

Presently Funded (includes areas outside of DC)

• Great Streets (Benning Road, Georgia Ave, H St, MLK Ave, Minnesota Ave, Nannie Helen Burroughs, Pennsylvania Ave SE) - redesign and rebuild of streets includes bike lanes
• Klingle Road Reconstruction - Not sure if this is old, or now it applies to the trail
• Middle Anacostia River Crossing Study - includes bike improvements
• SmartBike
• Garfield Park-Canal Park Connector
• 14th Street Bridge Rehab - There's no detail on this, so it may not improve the bike facility at all
• BRAC intersections near Naval Medical Branch - Bicycle facilities where appropriate
• MD-97, Georgia Ave - wide curb lanes to accommodate bicycles
• Silver Spring Green Trail

Starting in 2009 - Note: most items stretch over many years, I'm only including their first mention

• Anacostia Riverwalk Trail
• Kenilworth Avenue bike improvements
• Water Coach - if bikes are allowed
• Metropolitan Branch Trail
• Oxen Run Trail restoration
• Rock Creek Park Trail restoration - widen trail, new trail along P Street
• Upper Rock Creek Trail study - study extending trail from Broad Branch Rd to Maryland
• 11th Street Bridge Reconstruction
• South Capitol Street Corridor - includes a 12' path along MLK and bicycle improvements
• Study feasibility of trail through Congressional Cemetery to ART
• Safe Routes to School
• Bicycling and Walking Encouragement Campaign

Starting in 2011

• Theodore Roosevelt Bridge Rehabilitation - includes bike lanes

Two big things I learned that have nothing/little to do with biking

1. WMATA built 600 feet of a pedestrian tunnel from near the kiosk at the 1st street Union Station Metrorail Station entrance toward H Street. The tunnel was never completed. DDOT has $2 million set aside to complete the tunnel but needs to work out indemnification agreements with Amtrak first. This is scheduled for 2012.

2. The railroad bridge over Kenilworth Avenue to the PEPCO plant is scheduled for demolition in 2012. It's listed here as abandoned - though I've seen CSX railroad cars parked on it before. I wonder if it can be recycled as a bike/ped bridge somewhere a. la the old Sauvie Island Bridge? And if so, where?

Photo by Joe in DC

Comments

[think a little]

Really, wide curb lanes on Georgia Ave?
Where? Cause I bike Glenmont to downtown and the death slalom from Randolph to Spring St. has nothing resembling a wide curb lane.

[Washcycle]

Not yet. These are projects that haven't been done but for which money is available.

[think a little]

Good to know, but since the rebuilt all the sidewalks and repaved Georgia over the past 2 years, Im not sure where they can fit the expanded lane in....do you have any links to the project?

[Jack]

Widening Georgia Avenue between Randolph and Spring Street would be next to impossible. Maybe they're talking about a different section. I scouted that corridor recently and there are options using residential streets on the west side. Not as fast, but it avoids Georgia Ave. Does anyone have any experience with that?

[think a little]

There is a bit of a route, but its not the best
Your better bet is the east side-you can take Amherst from Arcola all the way down to Dayton, then you have to push through some bush to connect past Evans park to Amherst on the other side, cut through the medical center parking lot and continue on Woodland to Forest Glen
Crossing the beltway you are pretty much stuck using the pedestrian bridge which is great for inbound traffic, but Ive been hit using it as an outbound lane (you end up crossing all the driveways by staples the wrong way and everyone is looking to the left)
The real dangerous crossing is where 16th rolls off. The best you can do is wait in the parking lot by Silver Cycles for the light to turn and then book like hell to get across 16th and onto Georgia.

On the West side, the roads dont connect they way you think they do and its all dead ends below university. Grandview is great from Randolph down to the triangle though as an alternative.

The only other thing I think might work, but have never tried is taking sligo creek down and staying on the trail (not the road) after forest glen. you should be able to cut up to Crosby to Dale and pick up Georgia below the 16th st split.

Good luck, if you have other questions about best routes downtown from Glenmont, feel free to drop me a line at adspam at mindspring dot com

[Jack]

'Think a little' - oops, can't get that email address for you. Washcycle moderator knows me as Mr. MoBike if you want to drop me a line (www.mobike.org). I'd love to talk about Ga. Ave.