November 2018 – Road & Trail Conditions

[TwoWheelsDC]

The C&O towpath was more mud puddlier (?) than usual during this morning’s rain…I wonder of the restored water levels in the canal affect drainage? Or maybe I just rode through after a particularly heavy band of rain…

[Judd]

@TwoWheelsDC 182474 wrote:

The C&O towpath was more mud puddlier (?) than usual during this morning’s rain…I wonder of the restored water levels in the canal affect drainage? Or maybe I just rode through after a particularly heavy band of rain…

From the amount of debris in my patio this morning it looked like it rained pretty good overnight.

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[LhasaCM]

As a heads up: 17th will be closed Friday 11/9 from 6a to 4p between Independence SW and Constitution NW for annual levee testing. (https://twitter.com/DCPoliceTraffic/status/1059752554882613248) Watch out for confused and ticked off drivers having to go around the closure (or having to deal with the people having to go around).

[dbb]

@LhasaCM 182520 wrote:

As a heads up: 17th will be closed Friday 11/9 from 6a to 4p between Independence SW and Constitution NW for annual levee testing. Watch out for confused and ticked off drivers having to go around the closure (or having to deal with the people having to go around).

Or take the opportunity to go look at the Park Service closing the flood barrier across 17th Street. That will be way cool.

[TwoWheelsDC]

Sometime yesterday, the RCP trail section just south of KenCen was rerouted slightly, with protective scaffolding (think NYC sidewalk) for maybe 100 feet. The trail/scaffolding seems fine enough, but the southern end of the detour involves a blind kink in the trail that seems particularly dangerous.

[Judd]

@TwoWheelsDC 182656 wrote:

Sometime yesterday, the RCP trail section just south of KenCen was rerouted slightly, with protective scaffolding (think NYC sidewalk) for maybe 100 feet. The trail/scaffolding seems fine enough, but the southern end of the detour involves a blind kink in the trail that seems particularly dangerous.

Saw the scaffolding from the window of a bus today. I’m assuming it’s the project to widen that piece of the trail and knock a hole in the underpass. Inconvenient but it will be an incredible improvement when completed.

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[Emm]

FYI for those of you who get off 4mrt and onto Glebe to head into Alexandria–the sidewalks are completely shut down in both directions on the bridge over Four Mile Run. This makes my morning commute pretty miserable, and it may last 2+ years. It also doesn’t help that Arlington decided to place a giant sign in front of the crosswalk signal at this very confusing intersection, making it even harder for the diverted pedestrians to safely cross the road. There’s really not a great alternative for those impacted by the sidewalk closure–going around it can add a few miles onto a trip, so I am really hoping the county converts some of the space into a pedestrian path.

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ARLINGTON, VA – A routine inspection of the bridge on West Glebe Road at South Four Mile Run has uncovered deterioration, which will require a vehicle weight restriction of 5-tons, and closure of the sidewalks in both directions. Because safety is the priority, the restrictions are effective immediately.

The County performs maintenance inspections of its bridges every two years; the last routine inspection was in November 2017. A recent interim check on the 62-year-old bridge prompted a more detailed inspection that showed accelerated deterioration in the structural beams, particularly underneath the sidewalks.

A weight limit restriction of vehicles that weigh more than five tons will primarily affect larger heavy vehicles such as buses and dump trucks. Because of lower southbound vehicular volume, the County is exploring options to restore pedestrian access by possibly converting a southbound lane to a pedestrian path.

The restrictions will stay in place until further notice. The County will continue to monitor the bridge on a routine basis to ensure there is no further deterioration in its condition.

[Steve O]

@Emm 182709 wrote:

… There’s really not a great alternative for those impacted by the sidewalk closure–going around it can add a few miles onto a trip,…

Not really. The next crossing over 4MR is Mt. Vernon Ave.
From Park Fairfax one can go right on Tennessee, left on Old Dominion, cross Glebe at the light, continue on Old Dominion, right on Four Mile Drive, left on Mt. Vernon, right onto the trail.

I didn’t measure, but I would guess it adds less than 1/2 mile and requires one additional traffic light.
Agreed that it’s more of a pain, but not as bad as you assert.
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I do wonder how it is that the bridge deterioration is so bad that it cannot accommodate pedestrians, but it can accommodate cars.

[Emm]

@Steve O 182714 wrote:

Not really. The next crossing over 4MR is Mt. Vernon Ave.
From Park Fairfax one can go right on Tennessee, left on Old Dominion, cross Glebe at the light, continue on Old Dominion, right on Four Mile Drive, left on Mt. Vernon, right onto the trail.

I didn’t measure, but I would guess it adds less than 1/2 mile and requires one additional traffic light.

I do wonder how it is that the bridge deterioration is so bad that it cannot accommodate pedestrians, but it can accommodate cars.

You’re just using my commute as an example, which yes, isn’t impacted that bad. It’s a PITA mostly because biking on Glebe during rush hour is not comfortable at all, but it’s doable. My main source of misery is that I am always running late, and this is going to add an uncomfortable road to bike on, and ~5 min to my ride in. But I’m not sure a less confident rider would feel the same willingness to ride on Glebe during rush hour. There’s a reason most people take the sidewalk from the Glebe/Glebe intersection to Valley Drive…

I’m actually much more concerned with the many people who walk across that bridge to get to the businesses over on the Arlington side (Giant, Kovi, etc), or vice versa with people using it to come from Arlington over the Alexandria side for the businesses on Glebe. The Mt. Vernon Ave route can add a mile or so to the walk depending on where someone is coming from. There’s also the issue that Alexandria routes school buses through that area which can no longer use that bridge–the local school sent out a pretty unhappy note. So I’m curious on how they’re going to handle it all.

The reason the bridge can’t handle pedestrians is the worst deterioration was under the sidewalks.

[bobco85]

@Steve O 182714 wrote:

Not really. The next crossing over 4MR is Mt. Vernon Ave.
From Park Fairfax one can go right on Tennessee, left on Old Dominion, cross Glebe at the light, continue on Old Dominion, right on Four Mile Drive, left on Mt. Vernon, right onto the trail.

I didn’t measure, but I would guess it adds less than 1/2 mile and requires one additional traffic light.
Agreed that it’s more of a pain, but not as bad as you assert.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]18578[/ATTACH]
I do wonder how it is that the bridge deterioration is so bad that it cannot accommodate pedestrians, but it can accommodate cars.

Slight correction: going eastbound, after one crosses Glebe Rd on Old Dominion Blvd, they would have to turn left onto Notabene Dr (which becomes Four Mile Rd) because Old Dominion Blvd is one-way in the other direction. Also, IIRC the intersection of Old Dominion Blvd/Glebe Rd does not detect bicycles, so folks will have to use the pedestrian beg buttons to cross.

Hopefully they will actually convert one of the lanes on the bridge to ped/bike use.

[zsionakides]

@bobco85 182716 wrote:

Slight correction: going eastbound, after one crosses Glebe Rd on Old Dominion Blvd, they would have to turn left onto Notabene Dr (which becomes Four Mile Rd) because Old Dominion Blvd is one-way in the other direction. Also, IIRC the intersection of Old Dominion Blvd/Glebe Rd does not detect bicycles, so folks will have to use the pedestrian beg buttons to cross.

Hopefully they will actually convert one of the lanes on the bridge to ped/bike use.

I drove over this today and one of the eastbound lanes has been blocked off for peds/bikes. The bigger issue is I saw three trucks, including a semi, go over the bridge the other direction. The signage is just the temporary construction message boards which aren’t clear about weight limits.

[Steve O]

@Emm 182715 wrote:

and this is going to add an uncomfortable road to bike on, and ~5 min to my ride in. But I’m not sure a less confident rider would feel the same willingness to ride on Glebe during rush hour. There’s a reason most people take the sidewalk from the Glebe/Glebe intersection to Valley Drive…

My route avoids riding on Glebe, even with the correction Bobco points out.

[Emm]

@Steve O 182727 wrote:

My route avoids riding on Glebe, even with the correction Bobco points out.

True, I didn’t catch that in your original post.

I tried the route today. As expected, it added time and distance to my commute, so I am still not pleased with it. I am hoping Arlington switches one lane on the overpass to be bikes and pedestrians like they indicated they might. I see zsionakides post above saying it might be, so I’ll check it out tonight on my ride home. Heading home is easier since I can just take the lane on Glebe and don’t need the sidewalk.

Bobco–good advice on the beg button. I remembered that after 1 light cycle, and it worked pretty quick.

[Judd]

@Emm 182730 wrote:

True, I didn’t catch that in your original post.

I tried the route today. As expected, it added time and distance to my commute, so I am still not pleased with it. I am hoping Arlington switches one lane on the overpass to be bikes and pedestrians like they indicated they might. I see zsionakides post above saying it might be, so I’ll check it out tonight on my ride home. Heading home is easier since I can just take the lane on Glebe and don’t need the sidewalk.

Bobco–good advice on the beg button. I remembered that after 1 light cycle, and it worked pretty quick.

I think the updates from Twitter on this were that Arlington moves the sign so it’s not blocking the Pedestrian signal.

[Emm]

@Judd 182769 wrote:

I think the updates from Twitter on this were that Arlington moves the sign so it’s not blocking the Pedestrian signal.

Yep, as of last night the sign is definitely moved. It was a big improvement.

[Author]

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