January 2013 Kennedy Center Path Closure

[Mikey]

what I find interesting is not that we should dismount our bikes, but apparently we need to let them roll away and chase them down on foot. (see detour sign for graphic).

[Dirt]

@essigmw 40515 wrote:

what I find interesting is not that we should dismount our bikes, but apparently we need to let them roll away and chase them down on foot. (see detour sign for graphic).

Brought me back to my childhood when “ghost riding” my BMX bike off some HUGE jump or cliff was cool. Not sure I’m really ready to do that with my commuter bike…. especially since it is, in theory, launching out into traffic on its own. Fun to think about though.

[bobco85]

I just saw an article for a Kennedy Center expansion on the south side of the building. If the plans go through, it looks like that beloved (by some) steep hill currently being used for the detour may be gone forever.

Here’s the Kennedy Center Expansion Building Project site: http://www.kennedy-center.org/explorer/interactives/expansion/

[ShawnoftheDread]

@bobco85 42504 wrote:

I just saw an article for a Kennedy Center expansion on the south side of the building. If the plans go through, it looks like that beloved (by some) steep hill currently being used for the detour may be gone forever.

Here’s the Kennedy Center Expansion Building Project site: http://www.kennedy-center.org/explorer/interactives/expansion/

They say it will include an outdoor performance space on the river. Aren’t the jets coming into DCA going to interfere with that?

[dasgeh]

So I biked to work today. Yay!

Unfortunately, I had forgotten about this sill detour. Boo. A few notes: (1) there isn’t any forewarning, if you’re going fast, you have to pound the brakes pretty hard to stop by the barrier (it’s around a curve).

(2) The paved detour is STEEP. So steep, I didn’t feel comfortable navigating my heavy bike down it (dismounted). Luckily, there’s a great alternative — staying up in the grass along the wall. There’s a clear desire line there. Why don’t they just pave that (and give us a curb cut)?

(3) With the current detour, someone in a wheelchair who crossed the bridge would be SOL. There is no curb cut at the end of the current detour, and there’s no indication that it’s missing. So if someone were to wheel all the way down, they’d have to wheel back up and back to VA. Of course, I imagine you wouldn’t want to go down that hill on a wheelchair, so they’d probably turn around and head to VA at the top of the hill. Still, not ADA compliant.

(4) WHY IS IT CLOSED? I went by this morning, and again at lunch, and nothing was going on. There was some equipment stored on the path, but it was easy to navigate around. It seemed like they were doing work on the wall, but that it would be easy to open the path when, like today, they’re not actually doing work. Has anyone actually seen evidence that the path needs to be closed?

[TwoWheelsDC]

@dasgeh 43785 wrote:

So I biked to work today. Yay!

Unfortunately, I had forgotten about this sill detour. Boo. A few notes: (1) there isn’t any forewarning, if you’re going fast, you have to pound the brakes pretty hard to stop by the barrier (it’s around a curve).

(2) The paved detour is STEEP. So steep, I didn’t feel comfortable navigating my heavy bike down it (dismounted). Luckily, there’s a great alternative — staying up in the grass along the wall. There’s a clear desire line there. Why don’t they just pave that (and give us a curb cut)?

(3) With the current detour, someone in a wheelchair who crossed the bridge would be SOL. There is no curb cut at the end of the current detour, and there’s no indication that it’s missing. So if someone were to wheel all the way down, they’d have to wheel back up and back to VA. Of course, I imagine you wouldn’t want to go down that hill on a wheelchair, so they’d probably turn around and head to VA at the top of the hill. Still, not ADA compliant.

(4) WHY IS IT CLOSED? I went by this morning, and again at lunch, and nothing was going on. There was some equipment stored on the path, but it was easy to navigate around. It seemed like they were doing work on the wall, but that it would be easy to open the path when, like today, they’re not actually doing work. Has anyone actually seen evidence that the path needs to be closed?

Looks like we’ll be on close to the same route…I’m on a cream Bianchi and usually wearing a bright yellow jacket. I usually roll through the KenCen at about 7:50am and then again around 5:45pm if I decide to take the direct way home. Being an extreme risk non-taker, I also dismount and walk down the grass. Why the paved path to the parking lot runs AWAY from the typical direction of travel is beyond me. I do see workers on the trail occasionally and it sometimes look like they’re doing pavement work, so I guess it’s better to just close it rather than try and deal with potential liabilities. I’m ready to have the trail back though, but I suspect that as the weather warms and the days get longer, I’ll start taking 4MRT to the MVT instead of the Custis and TR bridge. But right now, I have a hard time getting up while it’s still kinda dark out, so I take the direct route in the AM.

[consularrider]

@TwoWheelsDC 43789 wrote:

… I’m ready to have the trail back though, but I suspect that as the weather warms and the days get longer, I’ll start taking 4MRT to the MVT instead of the Custis and TR bridge. But right now, I have a hard time getting up while it’s still kinda dark out, so I take the direct route in the AM.

But don’t forget that daylight savings time will soon (March 10) set us back in terms of getting earlier light.

[TwoWheelsDC]

@consularrider 43796 wrote:

But don’t forget that daylight savings time will soon (March 10) set us back in terms of getting earlier light.

[dasgeh]

@consularrider 43796 wrote:

But don’t forget that daylight savings time will soon (March 10) set us back in terms of getting earlier light.

Ugh. You meant set _us_ back, not set the clocks back. Too bad there’s no unlike…

[consularrider]

@dasgeh 43801 wrote:

Ugh. You meant set _us_ back, not set the clocks back. Too bad there’s no unlike…

What, you don’t like springing forward?

[dasgeh]

@consularrider 43803 wrote:

What, you don’t like springing forward?

One less hour of sleep. I have a 2 year old and a 3 month old. I don’t have an hour to spare

[dasgeh]

So… it looks like they’re done (at least with the tops of the wall). Last night, the detour things were pulled back, and you could roll right through (though it was a little tight beside the little scaffolding thing).

Can we get our path back already? PLEASE?

[vvill]

@dasgeh 46500 wrote:

So… it looks like they’re done (at least with the tops of the wall). Last night, the detour things were pulled back, and you could roll right through (though it was a little tight beside the little scaffolding thing).

Like!

[vvill]

It was all clear on my way home this afternoon (~4pm)

[Dirt]

It was clear and cleaned up when I rode through at lunch, but they’re not done yet. The stone work still has spacers and unsealed joints on it. I honestly don’t think the project is completed yet. There may be some event going through that requires that the path be open. The detour signs are still in place. My guess is that they’ve still got a few weeks of work left.

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