December 2007 Recreational trails committee notes

News from the Committee (which meets with the BAC's facilities committee) meeting

Bike Lanes. There is a need to get a portfolio of bike lane plans and designs ready for implementation during striping season which probably begins in April. In order to reach the Master Plan goal of 50 miles by 2009, the district needs to get 10 miles installed in 2008. Currently, DDOT has identified 5.2 miles of bike lanes that could be restriped by a contractor and 2.07 miles of bike lanes that could be included in larger resurfacing projects.

Trails. The Master Plan calls for the completion of the Met Branch and Anacostia Trails by the end of this year. Both projects have very small amounts of asphalt on the ground. It was suggested that the benchmarks on trails projects that rely on National Park Service cooperation be reconsidered, given the performance of that agency in trail partnerships.

Rec Trails Discussion

Funding. DDOT provided an update on the available Rec Trails funds:

      Received (called apportioned) FY 2008:   $776,078

      Available in FY 2008:  $2,075,276.47

      Possible lapse at the end of FY 2009: $572,139.47

A general discussion ensued regarding DDOT's restrictions on how the funds are disbursed. DDOT requires a competitive process to award the funds, unless the amounts are very small, perhaps under $5,000. The management of several small grants could be a net loss of productivity for the program.

Capital Space. Jeffrey Hinckle presented the work of the National Capital Planning Commission on open spaces in DC. It is a comprehensive look at all open space regardless of ownership. Six big ideas have emerged from this work. NCPC will be adding some flesh to the big ideas over the next several months. It was recommended that this effort factor in the Urban Canopy initiative as well as more details from the Casey Tree Foundation's research. Ultimately, this work will inform NCPC's Comprehensive Plan element on open spaces and parks.

Met Branch Update. DDOT reported that the work on 2^nd Street, L, M, and K was bundled and will be completed by June. This segment will incorporate temporary stairs to access the trail at L Street. A trough will parallel the stairs for bicyclist to place their wheels on as they climb the stairs.

DDOT also reported that work is not progressing on the segment from New York to Franklin.

Crescent Trail Update. DDOT reported that the 3 stages of rehabilitation in the vicinity of Potomac Avenue have been collapsed into 2 stages - repair of the slope above the trail and repair of the slope beneath the trail. Arlington County is in charge of the work with permission of National Park Service who owns that part of the trail.  Arlington is involved because their water main runs from the Dalecarlia Reservoir underneath that section of the trail. DDOT will be putting in curb and gutter at the street level to address the run-off that is the cause of the erosion that is destroying the trail in that section.

Comments

[silverspringtrails]

Metbranch Update: "DDOT also reported that work is not progressing on the segment from New York to Franklin."

Is this news as bad as it looks? Is this just a temporary glitch, or have the project plans collapsed?