Alexandria Heart Loop

[kwarkentien]

Nice! At Dirt would say, “Let’s go for a bike ride!”

[Kitty]

I definitely like the idea! When I lived in Pentagon City I had as much access to Alexandria as I did Arlington for riding, but the trails down there seem to be lesser known.

I remember having a particularly rough attempt at their “bike friendly” trails when I found myself having to cross creeks on stepping stones and dragging my bike through the water…

You route doesn’t have any river fording does it? :confused:

[lordofthemark]

The river fording is scheduled to go away http://bikearlingtonforum.com/showthread.php?6100-Good-News-on-Infrastructure-thread&p=121019#post121019

The bigger problem is the segment on Braddock Road. I don’t think the city is going to put that, in its current state, on anything aimed at tourists, casual riders, etc. Though this would be a good incentive for them to put a PBL there.

[bobco85]

@Kitty 122188 wrote:

I definitely like the idea! When I lived in Pentagon City I had as much access to Alexandria as I did Arlington for riding, but the trails down there seem to be lesser known.

I remember having a particularly rough attempt at their “bike friendly” trails when I found myself having to cross creeks on stepping stones and dragging my bike through the water…

You route doesn’t have any river fording does it? :confused:

The route only features one low bridge that occasionally is partially submerged just north of Beauregard but avoids the other water crossings that require fording. At the very least, there is a detour that can be used whenever Holmes Run decide to live up to its purpose as a flood control channel (from west to east but can be reversed): Chambliss St <- -> Holmes Run Trail <- -> detour through Dora Kelley Nature Park <- -> Sanger Ave <- -> Richenbacher Ave <- -> Pegram St <- -> Holmes Run Trail

@lordofthemark 122193 wrote:

The bigger problem is the segment on Braddock Road. I don’t think the city is going to put that, in its current state, on anything aimed at tourists, casual riders, etc. Though this would be a good incentive for them to put a PBL there.

Regarding Braddock Rd, I agree that it is the most difficult portion. There are currently sharrows, but that road could really use climbing lanes at the very least (I mentioned this when I took the VDOT bike survey). If this problem of hill climbs with no separation can be solved, I think it will help make the route a lot more friendly to less-experienced riders.

[CaseyKane50]

@bobco85 122172 wrote:

I’ve been living in Alexandria now for 16 days after having lived in Arlington (and used its Arlington Loop) almost my whole life, and I felt inspired to create a loop around Alexandria, so here’s my idea:

The Alexandria Heart Loop

The route is here: https://www.strava.com/routes/3026965

After looking at the Alexandria Heritage Trail, I noticed that it is missing a couple of trails around the north part of Alexandria. I wanted to create a loop that allows cyclists (and pedestrians, too) to experience more of the trails and bike routes available in the city that they can use to also connect to other trails/places, so I added a detour using the MVT and Potomac Yard Trail. After looking at the route, it looked somewhat like a heart, so I decided to go with it. Almost all of the loop is on bike-friendly infrastructure (trails, side paths, bike lanes, sharrows, bike routes, wide sidewalks).

This is a first draft, but I want to share it with everyone and get some feedback.

the route
[IMG]http://bikearlingtonforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=9344&stc=1[/IMG]

the route with heart overlay (artistic license was used)
[IMG]http://bikearlingtonforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=9345&stc=1[/IMG]

initial attempt at adding points of interest, major roads, metro lines, and extra information
[IMG]http://bikearlingtonforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=9346&stc=1[/IMG]

Two suggestions on the points of interest map:

1. Change Ft. Hunt to Ft. Ward
2. Add to Jones Point – restrooms and drinking fountains

[chris_s]

The route with flying elephant overlay (in-artistic license was used and abused)

[dasgeh]

@chris_s 122241 wrote:

The route with flying elephant overlay (in-artistic license was used and abused)

The Alexandria Dumbo Loop has a nice ring to it

[komorebi]

Nice! Referring to both the original heart and the flying elephant variation.

A couple of suggestions:
— I personally don’t like dealing with the traffic on Eisenhower Ave., so when heading west on Jamieson St. past the cemetery, I tend to continue straight across Holland Lane (instead of turning left there). I then stay on Jamieson when it becomes Mill Rd. and goes under Telegraph Rd. At the end of Mill Rd., it’s relatively easy to cross Eisenhower Ave. with the traffic light and join the Cameron Run trail.
— Right above the “Grab some food on Slaters Lane” dot on the heart map, you might consider adding a dot indicating “Access to Del Ray.” If you’re already on the Potomac Avenue trail, a turn onto Monroe Ave. gets you to Mt. Vernon Ave.
— You might consider adding the bike shops that are along the way: Spokes, Wheel Nuts, Big Wheel Bikes, and probably at least one other shop that I’m forgetting.

[bobco85]

Thank you, everyone, for the constructive criticism (and maybe abuse of artistic license, although I’m tempted to call it the Babar route )! I’ll get to working on an improved version with better information on alternative routes, wayfinding for neighborhoods, correct location names, and bike shops. I figure by the end of next week I’ll have a new version. Haha, I am realizing how much I underestimated the amount of information that could be displayed!

@komorebi 122322 wrote:

— I personally don’t like dealing with the traffic on Eisenhower Ave., so when heading west on Jamieson St. past the cemetery, I tend to continue straight across Holland Lane (instead of turning left there). I then stay on Jamieson when it becomes Mill Rd. and goes under Telegraph Rd. At the end of Mill Rd., it’s relatively easy to cross Eisenhower Ave. with the traffic light and join the Cameron Run trail.

I can empathize with you that traffic on Eisenhower Ave in that area is not always bike-friendly. At the very least, there are wide sidewalks especially on the less-developed south side of Eisenhower Ave that can be used for less comfortable riders.

I also sometimes use the Jamieson St <- -> Mill Rd <- -> Eisenhower Ave Trail route, although traffic can be unfriendly when riding on the hill under the metro tracks and heading under the Telegraph Rd bridge. You can actually skip the Mill/Eisenhower stoplight entirely by continuing under the Eisenhower Ave bridge and using the hotel parking lot to access the trail. There are a few annoying speed bumps, but you can ride around most of them.

[bentbike33]

@dasgeh 122247 wrote:

The Alexandria Dumbo Loop has a nice ring to it

Maybe we can negotiate naming rights with Disney and get some money for maintenance.

[JustinW]

Overall this is a great idea and a fun route. Have you considered taking it to the entity in Alexandria (I am naively assuming there is one) that is the Bike Arlington equivalent for the Alexandria? (I found this…but don’t they have anything more evolved?) There’s a good amount of official Arlington support for the Arlington Loop, as there should be in Alexandria for their iteration.

In so doing you might (a) elevate the profile of cyclists in the community, (b) possibly effect some beneficial changes along the route of the newly recognized loop, and (c) be able to trademark the name you’ve coined and make millions (not really, tho you may earn bragging rights).

[bobco85]

@JustinW 122429 wrote:

Overall this is a great idea and a fun route. Have you considered taking it to the entity in Alexandria (I am naively assuming there is one) that is the Bike Arlington equivalent for the Alexandria? (I found this…but don’t they have anything more evolved?) There’s a good amount of official Arlington support for the Arlington Loop, as there should be in Alexandria for their iteration.

In so doing you might (a) elevate the profile of cyclists in the community, (b) possibly effect some beneficial changes along the route of the newly recognized loop, and (c) be able to trademark the name you’ve coined and make millions (not really, tho you may earn bragging rights).

Dreaming of wealth and fame aside, I would like to eventually present this to the city and hopefully get official support. Right now, my focus is on making sure it is accurate, refined, and presentable before I consider bringing it to official attention. For now, I will use the forum (you could call it the “peanut gallery,” eh, eh, because some were calling it the “Dumbo Loop”) for feedback.

My plan right now is to 1) finish another draft by the end of next week, 2) have a more formalized version by mid-September, and 3) have a finalized version to present by October.

[lordofthemark]

@bobco85 122440 wrote:

Dreaming of wealth and fame aside, I would like to eventually present this to the city and hopefully get official support. Right now, my focus is on making sure it is accurate, refined, and presentable before I consider bringing it to official attention. For now, I will use the forum (you could call it the “peanut gallery,” eh, eh, because some were calling it the “Dumbo Loop”) for feedback.

My plan right now is to 1) finish another draft by the end of next week, 2) have a more formalized version by mid-September, and 3) have a finalized version to present by October.

BPAC has an open to the public Google group, which would be a good place to discuss it.

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/alexandriabpac

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