Columbia Pike

[MBernier]

I live off Columbia Pike and have started biking to work downtown, but have to schlep over to N. Arlington and catch the Custis Trail, or over to the Four Mile Run trail to Mt. Vernon. Columbia Pike is simply not bike friendly, although once I get to the Pentagon, it’s fine. Anyone have suggestions on how to cut THROUGH central Arlington, without having to go around the edges? It would be great to have bike lanes on Columbia Pike….

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[PotomacCyclist]

Southgate Rd. could be removed, depending on the specifics of the land swap between Arlington and DOD/Arlington Cemetery.

Previous plans showed the addition of wide paved bike paths on both sides of Columbia Pike, from S. Joyce St. to the new Washington Blvd. bridge. This was when the County was still planning to build the Columbia Pike streetcar. The Pike would have been straightened out along the Air Force Memorial hill.

With the streetcar canceled and the land swap still in limbo, it’s anyone’s guess what the eastern section of Columbia Pike will look like. But if the Army wants to use the former Navy Annex site for an expansion of the Cemetery, they will still remove Southgate Rd. after a land swap deal is finalized.

Nothing will happen in the short term. But eventually Southgate Rd. will probably be removed or closed to through traffic.

[Author]

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