Working with the NPS GWMP on snow removal – comments by 2 March

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  • February 25, 2016 at 3:11 pm #917928
    dbb
    Participant

    Last week, BikeArlington, Arlington County staff, Alexandria City staff, WABA, the Arlington Bike Advisory Committee and the Alexandria Bike and Pedestrian Advisory Committee met with the senior leaders of the GW Memorial Parkway to discuss the challenges facing cyclists riding on NPS property operated by the GWMP. Most cyclists riding between the District and Virginia must use some of the GWMP facilities along the Mount Vernon Trail. When the Mount Vernon Trail is not passable, cyclists are not able to effectively commute.

    In the meeting, the GWMP Superintendent, Alexcy Romero, said he wanted to work with the area cycling community to help him identify strategies where essential connections between Virginia and the District could be maintained following snow. He pointed out that the Parkway wasn’t likely to get additional funding for snow removal so he asked we focus the connections identified with that understanding.

    We are excited about this opportunity and see this as an opportunity to enhance both winter cycling and our partnership with the GWMP. Please understand that this won’t reduce or eliminate our long term desires for improvements in the trail infrastructure and operation nor will it preclude advocacy for those improvements.

    We will be asking the various advocacy organizations for their input, the experiences of the folks that ride (and know) the trails frequently are critical in the effort to identify the “hot spots” that may prevent getting between the District and Virginia. Addressing these hot spots can help connect the bicycle transportation networks after a snowfall. This is your opportunity to contribute. Please let us know what the critical locations are in your commute. Please be as detailed as you can be and include photos if possible.

    If you have specific policy suggestions for the NPS GWMP, please share them as well.

    While we don’t want to dampen anybody’s enthusiasm, please remember we are working with the NPS GWMP and not the other NPS organizations. The GWMP manages (among others) the GWMP, Mount Vernon Trail, Memorial Bridge, Glen Echo Park, Great Falls Park, Teddy Roosevelt Island, Columbia Island Marina, portions of the Spout Run Parkway, Clara Barton Parkway and other locations. The Parkway’s website is at http://www.nps.gov/gwmp/index.htm if you need more information.

    We will consolidate and curate the suggestions received, adding the other suggestions received from others and will share the results with the GWMP and the cycling community.

    We are aiming to do this fairly quickly so please get your suggestions posted by 2 March 2016. Because we expect this will become part of an ongoing dialogue, ideas identified later won’t be lost.

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  • February 25, 2016 at 3:17 pm #1048334
    dbb
    Participant

    I’ll start

    Clear the path from the wooden bridge over Boundary Channel Drive through the LBJ Memorial Grove to the Columbia Island parking lot

    Clear from the Columbia Island Marina parking lot over the Humpback bridge and up the the start of the 14th Street Bridge

    February 25, 2016 at 3:33 pm #1048335
    Anonymous
    Guest

    For those of us more southern, Belle Haven Marina to Old Town Alexandria is essential to getting across the Beltway.

    February 25, 2016 at 3:38 pm #1048337
    CaseyKane50
    Participant

    Clear Trail from Washington Street (south of Woodrow Wilson Bridge) to South Royal Street.

    Clear Trail from Belle View Boulevard to Woodrow Wilson Bridge

    Pre-treat entire trail in advance of forecasted storm (this is likely to be a stretch, but might mitigate need to clear critical locations when we get 3-5″ snowfall)

    February 25, 2016 at 4:01 pm #1048342
    DismalScientist
    Participant

    Clear from the south sidewalk of Memorial Bridge to where the Pentagon stops shoveling the Washington Blvd bike path (Washington Blvd bridge over Boundary Channel?)

    IF the sidewalk of Roosevelt Bridge is cleared, clear the MVT from Lynn/Lee to Roosevelt Bridge.

    February 25, 2016 at 4:05 pm #1048343
    bobco85
    Participant

    I would prefer that the NPS did the following:

    • Pre-treat and plow:
      • Boundary Channel Bridge -> Columbia Island Marina -> MVT -> Humpback Bridge -> 14th St Bridge (about 0.9 miles)
      • Crystal City Connector -> MVT -> 14th St Bridge (about 2.0 miles)
      • Belle Haven Marina -> MVT -> Royal Street in Old Town (up to and past the Wilson Bridge, about 1.4 miles)
    • Pre-treat (there is some overlap here):
      • MVT from Memorial Bridge -> Belle Haven Marina (about 8.0 miles excluding on-road segments)
      • the rest of the MVT if possible (about 9.0 miles remaining)
    February 25, 2016 at 4:06 pm #1048344
    chawkins72
    Participant

    Please clear from the 14th St. Bridge to Crystal City.

    February 25, 2016 at 4:40 pm #1048350
    MFC
    Participant

    @bobco85 135588 wrote:

    I would prefer that the NPS did the following:

    • Pre-treat and plow:
      • Boundary Channel Bridge -> Columbia Island Marina -> MVT -> Humpback Bridge -> 14th St Bridge (about 0.9 miles)
      • Crystal City Connector -> MVT -> 14th St Bridge (about 2.0 miles)
      • Belle Haven Marina -> MVT -> Royal Street in Old Town (up to and past the Wilson Bridge, about 1.4 miles)
    • Pre-treat (there is some overlap here):
      • MVT from Memorial Bridge -> Belle Haven Marina (about 8.0 miles excluding on-road segments)
      • the rest of the MVT if possible (about 9.0 miles remaining)

    Just out of curiosity, why are you suggesting that they only pretreat the section of the MVT between Old Town/Oronoco Park and the Crystal City Connector, but pretreat and plow other sections of the MVT north and south of there? It seems like you would have a huge section that would not be plowed. Cost/feasibility?

    February 25, 2016 at 4:44 pm #1048352
    dasgeh
    Participant

    1. Downstream sidepath of the Memorial Bridge

    2. Sidewalks connecting ANC Metro/110 Trail to downstream sidepath of the Memorial Bridge

    3. LBJ bridge + connection from Marina to MVT + MVT to 14th St Bridge

    4. The block of Lynn Street just south of the Key Bridge.

    5. Belle Haven Marina to Old Town Alexandria

    6. 27 Trail to Memorial Bridge

    7. IoD to TR Bridge

    8. Upstream sidepath of Memorial Bridge & connecting sidewalks

    9. MVT from CC Connector to 14th Street Bridge

    [Probably other sections south of FMR that I’m not familiar with]

    10. Rest of MVT

    February 25, 2016 at 5:00 pm #1048358
    bentbike33
    Participant

    Let’s start with some preventive measures that should cost very little and speed access via melting to the MVT after a snow event, to wit:

    1. Remove the snow fences at the approaches to the Humpback Bridge and any other snow fences adjacent to the trail. They make things worse. Snow fences may make sense in wide-open areas of the MVT like Gravelly Point, but they need to be placed well back from the trail to be effective.

    2. Do not dump snow cleared from adjacent facilities onto the MVT.

    February 25, 2016 at 5:06 pm #1048359
    bobco85
    Participant

    @MFC 135595 wrote:

    Just out of curiosity, why are you suggesting that they only pretreat the section of the MVT between Old Town/Oronoco Park and the Crystal City Connector, but pretreat and plow other sections of the MVT north and south of there? It seems like you would have a huge section that would not be plowed. Cost/feasibility?

    I figured that the MVT is not likely to be fully treated and/or plowed due to funding, so I was prioritizing sections based on the availability of alternate routes. I figured that trying to convince the NPS to focus on treating and plowing the 3 sections I listed would be a good starting place as they total only 4.3 miles.

    The section of the MVT between Oronoco Park and the Crystal City Connector could be traveled using the alternate route of neighborhood streets -> Braddock Road access to Potomac Yard Trail -> Crystal Drive bike lane -> Crystal City Connector since Alexandria plows the PYT.

    February 25, 2016 at 8:00 pm #1048391
    dragonflycrk
    Participant

    Mt. Vernon Trail from 14th St. Bridge to Crystal City

    February 25, 2016 at 8:13 pm #1048393
    Oldtowner
    Participant

    It wasn’t a problem this year, but in previous years there has been a problem with ice on the MVT overpasses that kept refreezing everyday. Some kind of treatment on those would be helpful.

    As for plowing, my backup to the MVT is the PYT and through LBJ. The LBJ connector should be a priority.

    February 25, 2016 at 8:16 pm #1048394
    PBS
    Participant

    Pretty much the entire Arlington Loop needs to be cleared. For the MVT, that means the entire section from Four Mile Run to the Custice needs to be available to regular commuters.

    If we can’t get that, I at least need excellent updates on what’s clear. Once I start on the Four Mile Run section of my commute, I’m committed. Finding a wall of snow at a random part of the trail doesn’t mean I get to turn down a nearby street like the cars do, it means I have nowhere to go but back. Unless I have a reliable indication of what’s clear and what’s not, I can’t risk it.

    BTW, I know this is NPS territory, but it’s also Arlington. Any way Arlington could fork over some cash to help with the plowing?

    (I picked the Arlington loop because I’m an Arlington resident, who works in Arlington and I’m posting on Bike Arlington. It’s not that I don’t care about everyone else. IMHO, the whole thing should be plowed.)

    February 25, 2016 at 8:23 pm #1048395
    lordofthemark
    Participant

    I am a City of Alexandria resident, but the only parts of the MVT I rely on for commuting are the Arlington parts, from the 4MRT to the 14th Street bridge. If clearing all of that is not possible, I would want from the Crystal City underpass to the 14th Street bridge. I would also especially appreciate the part over the Humpback through the marina to the wooden bridge to the Pentagon for three reasons A If the two options I mention above are not possible, that would provide a route to Crystal City and Eads Street B. If the two options above were not possible, I could use that to access the buses at Pentagon metro station C. In some conditions I would go the Pentagon metro station anyway.

    February 25, 2016 at 8:50 pm #1048396
    DismalScientist
    Participant

    @PBS 135640 wrote:

    Pretty much the entire Arlington Loop needs to be cleared. For the MVT, that means the entire section from Four Mile Run to the Custis needs to be available to regular commuters.

    If we can’t get that, I at least need excellent updates on what’s clear. Once I start on the Four Mile Run section of my commute, I’m committed. Finding a wall of snow at a random part of the trail doesn’t mean I get to turn down a nearby street like the cars do, it means I have nowhere to go but back. Unless I have a reliable indication of what’s clear and what’s not, I can’t risk it.

    BTW, I know this is NPS territory, but it’s also Arlington. Any way Arlington could fork over some cash to help with the plowing?

    (I picked the Arlington loop because I’m an Arlington resident, who works in Arlington and I’m posting on Bike Arlington. It’s not that I don’t care about everyone else. IMHO, the whole thing should be plowed.)

    The W&OD between Shirlington and Custis is controlled by NVRPA, not NPS. It is my understanding that they refused Arlington’s offer to clear it for free.

    Here’s the street route to avoid that part of the W&OD between Shirlington and the Custis (you really only have to worry about the part between Columbia Pike and the Custis.):
    https://www.google.com/maps/dir/38.8440616,-77.0857817/38.8789501,-77.127792/@38.857256,-77.1115997,14.25z/data=!4m29!4m28!1m25!3m4!1m2!1d-77.113138!2d38.8653747!3s0x89b7b41a602cb61d:0x499df087d7c0f1af!3m4!1m2!1d-77.1121595!2d38.8702318!3s0x89b7b419b1845da9:0xcb6848de0f6fab4e!3m4!1m2!1d-77.1135669!2d38.8726265!3s0x89b7b4181ba40549:0xe1ec93fb7c4dc919!3m4!1m2!1d-77.1191383!2d38.8752519!3s0x89b7b43de5af9e13:0xbdf293d8d8c6fae9!3m4!1m2!1d-77.1239223!2d38.877647!3s0x89b7b43f731bcea1:0xee9c87b658c33998!1m0!3e0

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