A clearer path to a bike path on Broad Branch Road? And other news from a DC Council DDOT oversight hearing

Movement at last on the Broad Branch Road project?

For almost two decades, DDOT has been working on plans to rehabilitate and potentially add pedestrian and bike lanes to Broad Branch between Linnean Avenue and Beach Drive. The last major update on where things stand was in 2016, when DDOT revealed it was getting State Department assistance in negotiations with three sovereign nations which have embassy properties adjoining the road. DDOT had also hoped to complete the environmental assessment on the four options for roadway reconstruction in 2016.

Perhaps the wheels of diplomacy are finally turning. At a January 27th DC Council performance oversight hearing, DDOT revealed plans for a public meeting on the project this spring, and expectations for the necessary environmental approvals this fall for work that would begin in 2023. Stay tuned.

A tip of the hat to WTOP’s Max Smith, whose article on the 6.5-hour hearing DC Council Committee on Transportation and the Environment tipped us off. Check out his story for updates on the Cleveland Park stormwater and streetscape project, the Tenleytown Metro plaza and the Connecticut Avenue reversible lane study.

More on the study, from DDOT’s written responses to the Council committee:

If anyone is curious, here's a status update from @DDOTDC on a study of possibly putting a protected bike lane on Connecticut Avenue NW: pic.twitter.com/MmHcyclo2E

— Martin Austermuhle (@maustermuhle) February 7, 2020