Over the next three weeks, DDOT will be seeking on-the-ground feedback on parking and loading needs on Connecticut Avenue north of Calvert Street – from the people who know it best.
On October 3, 11 and 17, DDOT is hosting block-by-block, in-person walkthroughs along the 2.7-mile stretch between Calvert and Legation. This is for the agency’s Connecticut Avenue Reversible Lanes and Multimodal Improvement Project. The project is centered around Concept C, which was chosen by Mayor Bowser and DDOT late last year, and is in the design phase.
Concept C includes protected bike lanes on each side of Connecticut Avenue, the potential elimination of street parking on non-commercial stretches, and 24-hour parking and loading zones on one side of the avenue in the Woodley Park, Cleveland Park, Van Ness and Forest Hills business districts. (Connecticut Avenue north of Legation, which includes the Chevy Chase business district, was not part of the project study.)
The October walkthroughs will focus solely on parking and loading. Community members, the agency says, will have other opportunities to discuss concerns about pedestrian, cyclist and driver conflicts that may arise with the addition of bike lanes. Those concerns include safety for pedestrians crossing bike lanes to reach bus stops, making Connecticut Avenue crossings safer, and safety for cyclists in areas with curb cuts for cars.
Here is the walkthrough schedule, including links to DDOT’s initial concept maps:
Monday, October 3rd
8 a.m. to 9 a.m. – Calvert Street to Woodley Road
9:15 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. – Woodley Road to Hawthorne Street
11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. – Hawthorne Street to Macomb Street
12:45 p.m. to 2:45 p.m. – Macomb Street to Porter Street
Tuesday, October 11th
8 a.m. to 10 a.m. – Porter Street to Tilden Street
10:15 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. – Tilden Street to Veazey Terrace
Noon to 2 p.m. – Veazey Terrace to Albemarle Street
2:15 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. – Albemarle Street to Davenport Street
Monday, October 17th
8 a.m. to 10 a.m. – Davenport Street to Nebraska Avenue
10:15 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. – Nebraska Avenue to Jocelyn Street
11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. – Jocelyn Street to Legation Street
DDOT is asking people to register to attend here so it can communicate with participants about any time changes, and get a head count for information handouts and safety plans. Those interested can sign up for a single session, or many.
During the June 28th and 29th meetings where it revealed the first block-by-block concept designs, DDOT announced that walkthroughs like these would be among their next steps. During these walks, DDOT wants to hear concerns as well as collect and share ideas about how to address them.
Also mentioned at the public meetings: an upcoming equity report on the project by the Mayor’s Office of Racial Equity. This report is to also include equity for seniors and the disabled, and as of late June was scheduled to be completed by the end of the summer. The mayor’s office tells Forest Hills Connection that its report will not be done until the end of December. Neither the Office of Racial Equity nor DDOT could provide any information on how the report’s later completion might impact the project.