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News & Events |
Index:The Rock Creek Trail reopens at Rock Creek Trestle.Repair project is putting trucks on Trail at Palisades. Back to the drawing board for Woodmont East. The Bethesda Tunnel will remain open during Woodmont East II Construction. Car break-ins and thefts hit trail users at the Bethesda Pool. Bethesda Tunnel to remain open - but some detour issues are still outstanding. Trail to be closed Sept. 24-28 at Dalecarlia Bridge. Trail repairs to begin Sept. 24 at Palisades; Watch for signs, trucks and a short detour. Meeting draws an outpouring of support to keep the Bethesda Tunnel open. Slip Sliding Away ... ? Rock Creek Trail closed at Rock Creek Trestle The Bethesda Tunnel could close for 2+ years. CCT Survey Volunteers honored. Councilmembers Floreen and Ervin walk the Trail with the CCCT. Interim CCT east of Jones Mill Road opens - Rock Creek Trail bridge closure planned. Annual Meeting held under a fair sky - CCCT outlines its plans for a better Trail. Interim CCT now open east of Grubb Road - use short detour via. the Rock Creek Trail. MAJOR on-road detour for Interim CCT - trail repairs underway through mid-June. CCCT gives $11,500 for fence in the Bethesda Tunnel. The tunnel closures are over. Interim CCT "Under Construction" - the trail will be closed east of the trestle. DPWT makes temporary repairs to Interim CCT. The Rock Creek Trail Reopens at Rock Creek Trestle.December 1, 2007 The Rock Creek Trail has been closed since July while the Montgomery County Parks Dept. replaced the trail bridge over Rock Creek just north of the CCT Trestle. The trail detour was described earlier here. Erosion of Rock Creek had been undermining the eastern support pier of the old trail bridge. The Parks Dept. has repaired this erosion damage and has shored up the creek bank with heavy riprap.
Return to top of page. The repair project is now putting trucks on the Trail at Palisades. Be alert in this area.November 26, 2007 A three phase repair project began this September at the Palisades section of the Trail to stabilize the slope and repair Trail erosion damage. The Park Service announcement of the project was reported in another article, in archives. Now we have received this update: The contractor is currently working on Phase I of the repair project, which consists of rebuilding the most extensively eroded section of slope downhill from the Trail. Work is now progressing inside the by-pass trail that was installed at the beginning of the contract. Material is being moved from Dalecarlia down the CCT to the site, which is a slow process due to weight restrictions on the Trail and pedestrian/cycling traffic. The Trail will remain open and flagmen will direct trail users when trucks are on the Trail. Work on Phase I will probably not be complete until after the holidays. Phase II, which consists of addressing street drainage issues, may no longer be necessary as stormwater improvements in the adjoining neighborhood are moving forward. Phase III, which consists of a buttress wall northwest of Phase I, would commence subsequent to Phase I if NPS and Arlington County are able to reach an agreement on this work. Return to top of page.Back to the drawing board for Woodmont East.November 8, 2007 The November 8 Planning Board hearing on the Woodmont East II development proposal came to a surprise ending when the development team requested that the decision on their Preliminary Plan be deferred. They acknowledged that significant changes are needed in their project plan, to address the issues brought forward during the hearing. The Planning Board had already received hundreds of emails from the public expressing concern about the loss of open space at this important location for the trail, directly across from the Barnes and Noble plaza in the heart of Bethesda. Over 30 people came out to speak at the hearing, most in opposition to the project. Planning Board commissioners mentioned the CCCT testimony several times in their concluding discussion as being especially effective at raising serious questions about the impact the proposed project would have on the CCT. Commissioners expressed the view that the proposed shared use corridor should be expanded and the building should not extend over the top of the corridor and trail. Protecting the CCT was foremost in the decision to defer this project. We welcome this decision. This allows the developer to rework the plans and come back with a plan that has a more open and pleasant trail environment. This also gives the County more time to consider alternative uses for this area, such as a park and plaza on the west side of this site as proposed by Councilmember Berliner in a November 5, 2007 letter to the Planning Board. We thank trail users for speaking up and letting the Planning Board and Council know how important the CCT is to them. They heard you, and a better plan for the future of this site should eventually result. Return to top of page.It's Official - the Bethesda Tunnel will remain open during Woodmont East II Construction.October 26, 2007 The development team for the Woodmont East II project informed the Planning Board at the Oct. 11 hearing that it would keep the Bethesda Tunnel open to trail traffic. This is a major victory for the CCCT and other civic groups that had met with the development team to advocate the Tunnel remain open, and the hundreds of citizens who sent emails and letters to the Planning Board protesting the impact a tunnel closure would have. As expected, the Montgomery County Planning Board granted yet another extension to the project study and comment period. See the prior articles in 2007 Archived News for the background on this development project. Now attention is turning to the temporary trail detour around the construction site and the amount of open space remaining after construction is complete. Temporary trail detour issues: The development team is considering several possible routes for the trail construction detour. Two routes would use Elm Street and Woodmont Avenue. Access to Elm Street from the tunnel would be by a ramp going through a knock out panel in the north side tunnel wall near the tunnel portal (Option 1), or by a ramp that is just outside of the tunnel portal (Option 3). Another route (Option 2) would access Bethesda Avenue from the tunnel by going directly south from the tunnel portal through an existing parking garage and along its access alley. CCCT has told the development team that it has a strong preference for the Option 2 route via. Bethesda Avenue. This route is most direct. But this route requires temporary modifications to the parking garage that is owned by a third party. This property is being sold, making it unlikely that the owners will agree to give access for the trail detour. All of the route options will require covered sidewalks along the streets where adjacent to the construction site. Further, CCCT will ask that consideration be given to modifying Woodmont Avenue to have a temporary shared use path if either Option 1 or 3 is used. The existing bike lanes on Woodmont Avenue are not safe for younger cyclists, and the sidewalks are too congested for cycling or jogging. A full width bike path which is physically separated from the traffic lanes will fit on Woodmont Avenue if the two existing bike lanes and one row of parking are temporarily removed. Open space issues:
The developer is proposing to rebuild the CCT on a direct alignment between the tunnel portal and Woodmont Avenue in a 75' wide corridor that would be dedicated for public use. Montgomery County already holds an approx. 32' easement on this alignment, but this easement has been contested and as a result the Interim CCT now follows an indirect alignment down Reed Street in front of the Thyme Square Restaurant. The project's proposed size brings problems. A hotel and street level retail would be built on the south side of the public easement and residential units would be built on the north side. This will bring increased pedestrian activity and congestion to this area. The building will be 80' high in places, and the building will "bridge" north and south over the public easement at about 35' above the trail. (If you look very closely, you can see the location of this building connection over the public easement marked in the drawing with dashed lines.) Some have predicted the proposed public easement will feel more like a "slot canyon" than an inviting open space. A group of local activists and civic groups has formed to call for Montgomery County to build a park here instead. A new website www.takebackbethesda.org has been launched to promote this effort. CCCT is undecided whether to advocate for a significant park here. We need to see some cost and park budget information before we will know if this is reasonable. We have had success convincing the development team to keep the trail open during construction and to provide a landscaping plan that gives the trail better definition and separation from local pedestrian activity through the future public use corridor. We are continuing our discussions with the development team to try to shape the best possible construction detour route for the trail. We need to learn more about whether park can be created here instead. The project may come back to the Planning Board for a decision in November or later. We will study the final proposal and M-NCPPC staff recommendations closely and will give detailed testimony to the Planning Board. We will keep you informed of developments here on this website. October 30 addendum: The Planning Board hearing on the project Preliminary Plan has been scheduled for November 8, 2007. The M-NCPPC staff recommendation is to approve the Preliminary Plan with conditions. The Park Department is recommending against purchasing this site to build a park here instead. The staff report and the Planning Board schedule are available at www.mc-mncppc.org. Return to top of page.Car break-ins and thefts hit trail users at the Bethesda Pool.October 12, 2007 There is an ongoing rash of thefts from cars at the Bethesda Pool parking lot at Little Falls Parkway. In a theft on Oct. 11, a trail user parked at the lot at mid-morning and returned in about an hour to find the passenger door window smashed and a bag stolen. A wallet was reported stolen from another car just the day before. Park Police are aware of the problem, but the thefts continue whenever the police are not present. If you use the Bethesda Pool parking lot, be aware that anything you leave in the car will invite theft. Be alert and report any suspicious behavior to police. Return to top of page.Bethesda Tunnel to remain open - but some detour issues are still outstanding.October 9, 2007 The strong public outcry against closing the Bethesda Tunnel is having an impact. Representatives of the Woodmont East development team informed CCCT Board Members at an October 8, 2007 meeting that they had found alternatives to closing the Bethesda Tunnel, and they will accept keeping the tunnel open during construction as a condition of project approval. The development team is now proposing diverting the trail around the construction site at the west end of the tunnel during the 2-3 year long construction period. CCCT has some concerns with how each of several proposed routes would skirt around the construction site between the west end of the tunnel and Woodmont Avenue. We are presenting some ideas to the development team on how they can improve on these proposed detour routes, to make the impact on trail users as minimal as possible. On Thursday, October 11, CCCT will testify to the Planning Board to support another extension to the study and comment period. This additional time can be used to address these remaining issues. It now appears that the critical Planning Board Mandatory Referral hearing and vote will take place in early November. We will present more information here on the outstanding issues soon, as the development team responds to our suggestions. But we can say now that it appears our biggest single issue - the proposal to close the tunnel entirely for a long period - is now off the table. Return to top of page.Trail to be closed Sept. 24-28 at Dalecarlia bridge.September 2007 Sept. 27 ADDENDUM: Good news - the work has been completed one day early, and the bridge will be open all day on Friday, Sept. 28!
It is possible to bypass the closed bridge by using the Little Falls Trail/MacArthur Blvd./Norton Road. But this bypass is not pleasant because of the steep grade on Little Falls Trail and traffic conditions on MacArthur Blvd. We have not been able to find a practical alternative to propose and regret that this inconvenience appears to be necessary. The Parks Department is limiting the closure to the mid-day period to minimize the impact on trail users. Return to top of page. Trail repairs to begin Sept. 24 at Palisades;
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The work will be done to prevent further deterioration to this portion of the Capital Crescent Trail and to a 48-inch diameter water main that extends beneath a portion of the Trail.
Arlington County will undertake Phase One of the three-phase project. Phase One includes installation of new underground storm drainage pipes as well as stabilizing, restoring and rebuilding the portion of the slope most severely impacted by erosion. While the majority of Phase One will be completed from the base of the slope which adjoins the Clara Barton Parkway, additional work will also be completed from the Trail itself. A temporary Trail bypass will be constructed in the immediate area of the project site for use during Phase One, which is expected to last approximately 90 days.
The portion of the Trail between the construction area and the Dalecarlia Reservoir will be used by trucks to bring materials into the construction site. Warning signs to inform Trail users approaching the construction site will be posted throughout the length of the project. Trail users are warned that they will be stopped while trucks are on the Trail. Some construction employees will serve as flaggers to halt Trail users when trucks must access the construction site. Traffic warning and variable message signs will also be placed along the Clara Barton Parkway to properly warn motorists of construction activity.
The NPS will begin Phase Two and Three of the project in early 2008. These two phases will include additional slope stabilization and the installation of new, additional underground storm drainage pipes.
The history behind the start of this project was outlined in an earlier article here, at Slip sliding away....
Return to top of page.September, 2007
Councilmember Roger Berliner hosted a Roundtable Discussion on the proposed Woodmont East Development Project on Saturday, September 15, 2007 at the Bethesda Chevy Chase Regional Services Center. Over 100 people spent two hours on a beautiful Saturday morning to hear the development team and to express their strong opposition to closing the Bethesda Tunnel. This issue is drawing increasing public interest, with a recent Bethesda Gazette article and WJLA Channel 7 News story.
As we previously reported on this page below the project plans are to build a hotel, residential units, and an underground parking garage at the northeast corner of Woodmont and Bethesda Avenues. The developer is proposing closing the Bethesda Trail Tunnel for over two years during project construction.
The project must get approvals from the Montgomery County Planning Board and the County Council. The project has already been submitted to the Planning Board, and the Planning Board hearing and decision is expected to come in mid-October. The developer must also submit a request to the County Council to abandon the small public street, Reed Street, that is now in the center of the site. That request has not been submitted yet so that critical decision will come later.
The developer is still exploring some options to keep the Bethesda Tunnel open during construction. The Planning Board hearing date and the M-NCPPC staff recommendations to the Planning Board will be published soon. We will post information here as we receive it.
September 28 addendum: We have received word that the developer is requesting another 90 day extension from the Planning Board. This extension would push the release of the M-NCPPC staff recommendations and the date of the Planning Board hearing off to as late as January, 2008.
Return to top of page.August 2007
Concern has been growing for several years that a section of the CCT is becoming unstable and might slide down the hill. The section of concern is at mile 7.0, approx. one mile north of Fletcher's Cove. The Trail is built into the steep slope there with Clara Barton Parkway below and Potomac Avenue above. Part of the slope has been slowly falling away below the Trail, and a safety fence had been erected there to protect trail users from a drop off that had grown to be immediately against the trail edge.
The responsible agencies have been slow dancing all the while that this slope has been failing. The National Park Service (C&O Canal Historic Park) owns the trail r.o.w. and maintains the Trail there, and started to consider what repairs were needed several years ago. But then D.C. DOT learned of the problem and had some issues it wanted addressed, since they maintain Potomac Avenue and part of the slope above. About when NPS and DOT were ready to move forward, the Army Corps of Engineers and another National Park Service division, GW Memorial Park, decided they wanted to join the dance, since they had responsibility for the slope below and for Clara Barton Parkway. After more delay all of the agencies finally appeared to be sorting things out. D.C. DOT was willing to pay for repairs designed by NPS. Repairs could have been underway within a few months. But apparently the dance card was not yet full, because Arlington County belatedly realized it had a large diameter water pipe from the water treatment plant that runs directly under the Trail and provides 1/2 of the county's drinking water. Arlington County insisted it was entitled to join the dance to protect its interests, and the project was recently thrown into yet more delay.
But mother nature did not read the memo that everything was on hold again while the agencies sort out their issues. Last week's heavy rains caused more erosion on the slope, and a fissure appears to be developing across the trail itself. There is concern the slope may be becoming even more unstable and that another heavy rain could cause the entire slope to give way. NPS has now blocked half the width of the trail for safety. The Army Corps of Engineers has sent a survey crew to the location to measure and take photos.
If the slope gives way, we may have to scrape the CCT off of Clara Barton Parkway below. The Trail would be closed for months until it could be rebuilt. Bypass options may be very limited.
We hope the various agencies will take this recent damaging rain as the "wake up" call to stop focusing on their jurisdictional issues and start moving on repairs to stabilize this slope. CCCT and WABA have been urging the NPS and the D.C. Bike Coordinator to get things moving for several years, and we have become very frustrated as we have seen these years be lost. If the CCT slides down the hill, all of the agencies will have a lot of explaining to do when the public learns that they knew about this problem for years and did nothing.
August 28 addendum: D.C. DOT and NPS are preparing to begin emergency repairs here in a few weeks. They are planning on opening a temporary gravel bypass immediately adjacent to the trail. Cyclists will be required to dismount and walk through the short bypass. Watch for warning signs announcing the detour.
Return to top of page.August, 2007
Trail detour signs are on the Interim CCT on either end of the Rock Creek Trestle, at Jones Mill Road and at the Grubb Road access path. The signs give directions for a Rock Creek Trail detour.
The Montgomery County Dept. of Parks is replacing a Rock Creek Trail bridge and repaving a portion of the Rock Creek Trail in the stream valley under the CCT Trestle. The Rock Creek Trail is now closed to all trail traffic in this area. The Rock Creek Trail may be closed until December. The trail detour signs direct Rock Creek Trail users onto the Interim CCT to bypass the construction area.
The detour signs do not specify they are for the Rock Creek Trail, and appeared barely a month after the Interim CCT was reopened after extensive repairs. These detour signs are causing some confusion among Interim CCT users. The Interim CCT is open - trail users going through on the Interim CCT should ignore these detour signs.
The red line on the map at right shows the signed Rock Creek Trail detour route. The Rock Creek Trail is closed under the trestle.
Access between the Interim CCT and the Rock Creek Trail to points north is by Jones Mill Road/Susanna Lane.
Access between the Interim CCT and the Rock Creek Trail to points south is from the east end of the Rock Creek Trestle, by using the Grubb Road access path/Freyman Drive.
July, 2007
Development plans have been filed with the Montgomery County Planning Board to build underground parking, a hotel and residential units at the northeast corner of Woodmont and Bethesda Avenues. Construction would require closing the CCT Tunnel for over two years.
Federal Realty and JBG have filed plans for development on a site at the west end of the Bethesda Tunnel. The site includes the Thyme Square restaurant, Reed Street, and the vacant land in front of the Bethesda Row Cinema. Under the plans that have been submitted excavation for an underground parking garage would extend to the west portal of the CCT Tunnel. The Bethesda tunnel under Wisconsin Avenue would be closed during a 2+ year construction period. Trail users would be required to follow a detour route along Bethesda Avenue and across Wisconsin Avenue.
CCCT Board Members met with the development team twice during the winter and spring of 2007 to discuss the development proposal. CCCT pressed for changes in the plans, and did succeed in getting significant improvements in the plans for how the CCT would pass through the completed project. But CCCT was not able to get the plans changed to allow the Bethesda tunnel to remain open to trail traffic during construction. The development team indicated during both meetings with CCCT that the tunnel would be closed for 18 to 36 months.
This spring the developer submitted the plans to M-NCPPC for a mandatory review. On July 26, 2007 the Planning Board considered a request from M-NCPPC staff for a 90 day extension to allow more time to study issues related to the impact of the project upon the Trail and upon future Purple Line transit. CCCT Board Member Pat Baptiste spoke for the CCCT to support the time extension and to alert the Planning Board that closure of the tunnel was going to be a very major issue for the CCCT and for the community. The Planning Board granted the extension, and the critical hearing is now expected to come on or after September 20, 2007.
CCCT has scheduled separate meetings with M-NCPPC staff and the development team in late July and early August. CCCT will press upon all parties the importance of keeping the CCT in the Bethesda Tunnel and of keeping the tunnel open.
Please follow this website to see how this develops. Depending upon the outcome of CCCT's upcoming meetings with the parties, CCCT will be calling upon its members and supporters to submit letters and emails to the Planning Board to help influence their decision.
Return to top of page.July 2007
The Montgomery County Department of Parks presented its report of the CCT traffic survey to the Planning Board on July 19, 2007. The CCT Survey Report summarizes trail traffic counted at five locations along the Trail by 92 CCCT volunteers in September 2006. The Parks Department and Planning Board thanked the volunteers for their work and gave a framed certificate of appreciation to the CCCT for recruiting and coordinating the volunteers. See the M-NCPPC press release.
A description of the CCCT survey and results is available on this website at Traffic Survey. The final draft of the Parks Department CCT Survey Report is on the M-NCPPC website at http://www.mc-mncppc.org/board/agenda/2007/documents/20070719_Capitaltrail.pdf
July 2007
On July 5, 2007 Councilmember Nancy Floreen (At-large), Councilmember Valerie Ervin (District 5), and Valerie Ervin's Legislative Aide Benjamin Stutz met with CCCT Chair Peter Gray and Treasurer Wayne Phyillaier to walk the newly repaired section of the Interim CCT east of Rock Creek. Councilmembers Floreen and Ervin had both supported the trail repair project, and they wanted to see how the project had turned out. CCCT Chair Peter Gray thanked them on behalf of the CCCT for their strong support for the Trail, and outlined remaining CCT issues that the Montgomery County Council can address. Councilmembers Floreen and Ervin both expressed their support for the CCT, and in particular their support to move two efforts forward this year - repair of the eroded section of the Interim CCT near the Bethesda Tunnel and completion of a DPWT assessment of safety improvements the CCCT has recommended for the Trail between Bethesda and D.C.
June 2007
On June 18 Keith Compton of DPWT emailed CCCT Chair Peter Gray with the news that the substantive repairs to the Interim CCT east of Rock Creek had been completed that day. Any remaining work will not interfere with trail use. The barrier blocking trail traffic at Jones Mill Road is being removed.
Also on June 18 DPWT Bikeways Coordinator Gail Tait-Nouri informed Peter Gray that repairs are planned for the Rock Creek Trail bridge near the end of Susanna Lane, just north of where the Rock Creek Trail passes below the trestle. That trail bridge will be closed soon - the closure had been delayed until the trestle could be reopened so that both bridges over Rock Creek would not be out at the same time.
The Interim CCT is now in very good condition east of Rock Creek. If you have avoided this part of the trail in the past because of its badly eroded condition, you should give it another try. This part of the trail is quiet and free from the crowding sometimes experienced on the rest of the Trail. The traffic survey showed trail traffic east of Rock Creek is barely 1/10 that elsewhere on the CCT.
While it is a pleasure to experience the trail where it is free from trail traffic, that freedom from traffic is largely due to the trail being incomplete and ending abruptly at Stewart Avenue, without an effective or safe trail connection into downtown Silver Spring. CCCT will continue to advocate that the CCT be completed into Silver Spring - as described on our Action Page.
Kieth Compton also indicated that the trail maintenance funds are now depleted for this fiscal year, and DPWT is not planning any repairs to the Interim CCT near the Bethesda Tunnel. The Interim CCT between the Bethesda tunnel and the East-West Highway overpass has been eroding and is beginning to be unsafe for cyclists. But DPWT does have $100K available in the budget for trail repairs countywide in the next fiscal year. The next fiscal year begins this July. Much of this $100K is programmed for repairs to the North Bethesda Trolley Trail, but CCCT will advocate to DPWT that repairs to the Interim CCT near the Bethesda tunnel be completed as well. The repairs needed near the Bethesda tunnel are much less extensive than were needed east of Rock Creek.
June 2007
The annual CCCT meeting was held on June 11 in Elm Street Park. The "weather gods" favored the CCCT with mild temperatures and a fair sky. Members and guests enjoyed free food and drink, and used the opportunity to discuss their issues and concerns for the Trail with each other and with CCCT Board Members.
June 11, 2007
Members and guests gather at Elm Street Park for the CCCT Annual Meeting.
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Most of the evening was spent socializing and sharing ideas informally. A public Google photo album of the event is at
http://picasaweb.google.com/CCCTalbums/AnnualMeetingOfTheCoalitionForTheCapitalCrescentTrail.
CCCT Chair Peter Gray presented a brief summary of our activities over the last year and described goals for the coming year. Some highlights of CCCT activities and goals:
Many of these issues are described in detail elsewhere in this website in our "News", "Action", and "Safety" webpages.
Peter Gray finished his remarks by thanking the CCCT Board Members for their service. He noted that the Board Members continue to be willing to serve but we do need to bring new energy into the Board. We encourage anyone who can take the long view of the Trail, who has ideas on how to advance the Trail, who has a sense of humor needed to persevere, and who can attend ten meetings a year to consider joining us.
Retiring Vice Chair Ernie Brooks concluded the presentation by thanking Peter Gray for serving so ably as our Chair over the last year, and for agreeing to continue as our Chair for the next Board Year. Ernie observed that Peter had done an outstanding job as Chair - a remarkable achievement while also holding down a full time job.
mid-May 2007
DPWT has expanded the storm drain system and resurfaced the Trail at the Silver Spring end of the Trail from Stewart Avenue to the Grubb Road/Terrace Drive access path. The barriers blocking access to this end of the trail have been removed. The Rock Creek Trestle is still blocked because work has not been finished between the east end of the trestle and the Grubb Road access. Trail users must still detour at Jones Mill Road, but can use the much shorter and safer detour route via. Sussanna Lane, the Rock Creek Trail, and Freyman Drive, see our Trail detail map. Note the old East-West Highway detour route signs were still up on Memorial Day weekend - ignore them.
The repair work at the east end of the Trail is now estimated to be finished around the end of June. A DPWT on-site supervisor indicated that they intend to move on to the west end of the Interim CCT (at the east end of the Bethesda Tunnel) to do some erosion repair after they complete the Silver Spring repairs. If true, that will be a most welcome development!
If you have any questions about the work, you can contact the DPWT Highway Maintenance Customer Service Section at 240-777-6000.
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early May 2007
In mid April DPWT released this statement:
"Due to safety during construction process of the drainage repair to the Georgetown Branch Interim Trail, it will be necessary to close a portion of the trail and provide a temporary detour beginning on approximately April 24th. "
"The detour will follow the Freyman Drive, to the Rock Creek Trail to Susanna Lane....."
There has been a change in plans at DPWT since this statement was released. The Interim CCT has been closed between Jones Mill Road and Stewart Avenue. The detour that has been signed by DPWT is not via. Freyman Drive to the Rock Creek Trail, but is a much longer and more "challenging" detour via. Brookville Road/Grubb Road/East-West Highway. CCCT has also recently learned the work is now expected to last until mid-June.
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This detour is not a safe or practical alternative to using the trail. It is on-road on busy roads. The East-West Highway section is especially difficult if going east. Traffic is fast and heavy in the main traffic lanes. Sidewalks are narrow and partially obstructed by shrubs. There are access roads on either side of East-West Highway that are quiet. But the north side access road is one-way westbound. The south side access road is one way eastbound but is hard to access. Neither access road is continuous over the length of this section of East-West Highway.
May 2, 2007
Trail construction as seen from the Lyttonsville Place bridge.
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We regret that the trail repairs are causing such a serious disruption to the trail at the start of the peak season. DPWT now estimates that the repair work will be finished about mid-June. The work is progressing from Stewart Avenue to the Rock Creek Trestle. CCCT will be urging DPWT to open the trail from Stewart Avenue to the Grubb Road access path as soon as the work is completed on this section. This would allow a detour route on Freyman Drive/Rock Creek Trail/Sussana Lane to then be used until DPWT has completed the remainder of the repair work to the trestle.
DPWT appears to be doing the work in a fairly limited area at one time. It is not difficult to walk around the construction area on weekends and evenings when the work crews are gone. But DPWT is operating trucks and heavy equipment on the trail starting early most workdays and trail users should avoid the work area when the crews are active.
We believe that when this is over you will agree that this work is worth the inconvenience. We have endured over 10 years of frequent trail washouts that have left this part of the trail very difficult to use. The drainage system repairs and trail resurfacing will make a much better trail.
If you have any questions about the work, you can contact the DPWT Highway Maintenance Customer Service Section at 240-777-6000.
April 2007
The tunnel under Wisconsin Avenue had been closed for several days starting April 18 so a fence could be erected to stop graffiti. Trail users were directed to the signed on-road bypass during this period.
Graffiti has been a serious problem in the Bethesda tunnel. Heavy, unsightly graffiti regularly appeared on the building walls on the east end of the tunnel. The building owner and the Bethesda Urban Partnership had been removing the graffiti almost weekly, but this failed to discourage the vandals.
Now a fence has been erected in the east end of the tunnel to block access to the walls. This should provide a permanent solution to this costly and persistent graffiti problem. The CCCT and the Town of Chevy Chase have each given $11,500 to fund this fence.
April 2007
DPWT has released this statement:
"Due to safety during construction process of the drainage repair to the Georgetown Branch Interim Trail, it will be necessary to close a portion of the trail and provide a temporary detour beginning on approximately April 24th. "
"The detour will follow the Freyman Drive, to the Rock Creek Trail to Susanna Lane and Jones Mill Road. Temporary signs will be installed for the detour. All efforts will be made to maximize safety and minimize the duration of time for the detour."
"Construction began on April 17th and may extend into June."
"Thank you for your cooperation in this matter. If you have any questions about the work, please contact the Highway Maintenance Customer Service Section at 240-777-6000."
April 19, 2007
A work crew removing brush to make room for the trail repairs.
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The work of the CCCT last spring to get the County Council to fund this project is finally bearing fruit. We thank Councilmembers Nancy Floreen and George Leventhal for being especially helpful to us in this effort. We also thank our new Councilmember for District 5, Councilmember Valerie Ervin, for contacting DPWT this winter and spring to help keep this project on schedule. Councilmember Ervin has sent CCCT a letter to assure us that the work will be completed by June 1, and has asked CCCT to tour the trail with her after June 1. Her letter is at Ervin letter (in pdf format).
If the DPWT work to repair the drainage facilities is successful, then the storm water washouts that have frequently made this section of the trail unusable over the past 10 years will be history. We regret that it will be necessary to close a portion of the trail for the work at times during this period. The detour on Freyman Drive described in the DPWT statement above is the same route that the trail took through Rock Creek Park for many years before the trestle was opened.**
**Note: As of May 1 it appears that plans for the detour route have changed. DPWT has closed all of the trail from Jones Mill Road to Stewart Avenue, and detour signs mark a route from Jones Mill Road to East-West Highway to Grubb Road to Brookville Road. This is a very challenging detour. CCCT is contacting DPWT to get an update - stay tuned here for more.
February 3, 2007
Newly graded Interim CCT at the approach to the Grubb Road access.
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February 2007
DPWT has graded the Interim CCT east of the Rock Creek Trestle and has taken the barriers away that had marked the trail as closed. The newly graded surface is minimally compacted crushed stone, with some course gravel or bare earth in places. The deep ruts are gone, and the trail is once again passable for bicycles except those with narrow profile road tires. For now.
But the underlying storm water drainage problem has not been addressed. We remain only one bad storm away from having this trail repair be washed away.
The CCCT worked hard last spring to get funding in the FY07 Operating Budget to address this storm drainage problem. As a result DPWT was tasked to do a drainage study of this area and to perform trail repairs. $200k was allocated in the DPWT Operating Budget for this purpose. DPWT has just completed the drainage study, and is now deciding what corrective measures will be taken. Cleaning the large storm drain at milepost 0.5, fitting that drain with better trash screens, restoring the side ditches along the trail, and paving several hundred feet of the worst trail sections are options being considered. DPWT representative Dan Sheridan has indicated to CCCT Chair Peter Gray that DPWT expects it can complete some of these actions this spring. We will continue to urge DPWT to move forward as quickly as possible.
