Concrete on the road at S. Glebe and Potomac Ave.

[PotomacCyclist]

A few years ago, a concrete truck must have dropped a batch of wet concrete on Potomac Ave. This is on the east side of the northbound lane, at the intersection with S. Glebe Rd. (near the Eclipse condominiums), in Arlington, just north of Four Mile Run and Alexandria. The dried concrete patch is about two feet long and a few inches high. It’s been there for quite a while, maybe from a truck working on the Potomac Ave. construction project.

I’ve filled out the Arlington online pothole form a couple times, but no response. (I think I filled it out last year and maybe the year before.) I recently contacted VDOT since they have jurisdiction over Glebe Rd. But they explained that Arlington has responsibility for potholes and obstructions that run north-south at that intersection.

Usually Arlington is fairly quick to respond to pothole reports. With other minor road issues, the County fixes the problems within a few weeks (unlike in D.C., where I just received a reply for a pothole report I filled out… two or three years ago). Maybe the problem here is that both Arlington and VDOT think that the other organization has responsibility at that specific location.

I’ve contacted both organizations. VDOT said that they would consult with Arlington in their reply to me this summer. But the concrete patch is still there. I wouldn’t consider it a major hazard, but since it’s located just a few inches away from the bike lane, it’s possible that a beginner cyclist could swerve or tip over if a tire hits the patch. I know about the patch so I’m always careful to avoid riding over that patch, but others may not be aware of it.

Any possibility of getting this issue fixed? It shouldn’t take long at all. The County should be able to use a scraper device and get rid of that raised concrete patch in a matter of minutes. Then any damage caused by the removal could easily be fixed, the same as with a minor pothole.

Topic

[Tim Kelley]

@PotomacCyclist 61701 wrote:

I’ve contacted both organizations. VDOT said that they would consult with Arlington in their reply to me this summer.

Beyond putting in the request on the pothole form again and explaining some of this, I’d follow up with your VDOT contacts that you had a conversation with this summer.

[dasgeh]

FWIW, I reported a dangerous pothole to ArlCo a number of times earlier this summer, and it has yet to be fixed. Maybe Arlington is dropping the ball on potholes…

[Tim Kelley]

@dasgeh 61711 wrote:

FWIW, I reported a dangerous pothole to ArlCo a number of times earlier this summer, and it has yet to be fixed. Maybe Arlington is dropping the ball on potholes…

Word on the inside is that things usually get repaired quickly. If it’s been awhile, I’d suggest submitting another form and let them know that this is your second request/followup.

[consularrider]

But they publicized the cleanup of the recent concrete spill in that area. The article commented on how easy it was to clean up while it was still wet and that made me think of the spot PotomacCyclist referenced (and several others) where there is some nasty dried stuff out there.

[Author]

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