Met Branch Trail's Fort Totten section ready for design-build

Last week, DDOT issued a Request For Proposals (RFP) for the design-build construction of the Fort Totten section of the Metropolitan Branch Trail. That section connects John McCormack Drive in Brookland (at the foot of Big Stinky), to the Fort Totten Metro Station.

The trail will include LED lighting, security cameras, and wayfinding signage. The design-build process will allow for a streamlined final design and construction process. The extension is expected to be complete within 18 months of awarding the contract.

Looking at the 30% design plans, the trail will continue north along the east side of John McCormack Drive, sometimes right up against the retaining wall until that road turns west. Then the trail will squeeze between the railroad tracks and the trash transfer center, but it will still be 12' wide.

Once it gets just east of the Silver Hill Concrete building the trail will turn away from the tracks.

Then it will swing around the metro station and connect to Fort Tottten Station Road via a set of stairs (the thick black lines in the center of the image). A new sidewalk and crosswalk will also be added to Ft. Totten Station Rd.

The trail will continue north, connecting to a triangle junction that will give access to the existing trail west to Gallatin St and to a continued trail north along 1st Place. There will also be two more connections to the sidewalk, one via stairs just south of the junction and one (or really two) farther north.

 

The trail west to Gallatin will also be rebuilt as a 12' wide trail.

Along the way there will be several plantings and couple of bioretention facilities.

Depending on when the contract is awarded, it's not unreasonable to think that this section could open in 2019.

But wait, there's more.

This initiative complements other investments DDOT is making for the Met Branch Trail. In 2016, DDOT completed 30% design for the Fort Totten to Takoma section of the trail and will soon initiate final design on the final segment of the trail connecting Fort Totten to Takoma and the Maryland border.

In 2017, DDOT will replace lighting on the Met Branch Trail between Florida Ave and Franklin Street with new hard-wired LED lights. The NoMa Business Improvement District, in partnership with DDOT, recently added signage on the trail bridge over Florida Avenue to raise awareness of the trail.

Comments

[Purple Eagle]

Are they still planning to built a connector trail east from Ft Totten along the Gallatin St corridor to the MD line?

[washcycle]

I don't know if it will be a "trail" but they're still planning on a connector.