Ever since the 2005 Bicycle Master plan, there have been about 7 bike trail projects out there either making no progress (Rock Creek) or very slow progress (Met Branch) - as well as a couple others, like Watts Branch and the Anacostia trails, that have progressed nicely. I kept saying that this was going to be the year (well the fiscal year at least) that the logjam breaks and so it seems to be.
A review:
In late September, work began on the federal government's portion of the Rock Creek Park Trail as part of the rehab of Beach Drive. And in a rare turn of events, part of that trail rehabilitation was moved up on the schedule, not back.
The first segment was originally supposed to re-open this spring, but Barnum said it will take two more months to finish the work. Once crews started ripping things up, project managers decided to fix the walking and biking trail now instead of later.
“But in the long run, we are preventing future inconveniences down the road, so to speak, by taking care of the trail work now, rather than delaying it into the future, having to come back and re-close the road that’s already been rehabilitated,” Barnum said.
Phase I will wrap up this summer, but the whole project will last into 2019.
A few weeks later, in early October, work began on the rehabilitation and expansion of the Oxon Run Trail. That project will modernize the section of trail from South Capitol Street, S.E. to 13th Street, S.E. and add something around a half mile of new trail sections.
The Oxon Run Trail runs through a Districtowned park in Southeast, Washington, DC. The project is designed to improve access within Oxon Run Park and the non-motorized network connections to surrounding destinations by rehabilitating the existing trail, as well as extending the trail network. The project will also be installing new trail lights, wheelchair and bicycle ramps, benches, tables and bicycle racks
The four phase project is now into phase 3 and it's expected to complete around mid-July.
And that project now has its own website. Hooray!
By the end of October 2016, the Anacostia Trail's Kenilworth section was opened.
In addition to Oxon Run and phase I of the Rock Creek Park Trail rehab, this summer will likely see the opening of the Klingle Valley Trail (a little behind schedule).
And, if that isn't enough, it looks like work on the Metropolitan Branch Trail's next section could begin this year.
That's five major projects that either started, ended or will run their course in a 12 month period. That's a pretty big year for trails in DC.
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