September 2018 – Road and Trail conditions

[dasgeh]

@bentbike33 181186 wrote:

My concern is mainly the afternoon commute. I work in southwest DC and live near Tysons. Even though it is about 1 mile further, I prefer the 14th St-MVT route to Custis because far fewer cars. Since I transit through around 7 am, there is little difference to me to cross via Key or TR bridge (I avoid Memorial and associated GWMP crosswalk) since getting from NW to SW at the hour is no big deal. The afternoon (transiting about 5 pm) is a different story. I think I can rule out Key as when I went that way to avoid a frozen Trollheim, I found it faster to walk my bike on the sidewalk than cycle vehicularly (I am not a fan of filtering). Regarding TR Bridge, it seems (based on recent morning efforts to avoid MVT floods/mud) the only way to get there given the Kennedy Center construction is to go up via Virginia Ave to the north end of the Kennedy Center and ride the Death Star Trench/sidewalk to the bridge. Any alternatives? How trafficky is Virginia Ave in the afternoon (in the morning, I see more bikes and joggers than cars)?

Thanks.

Regular TR Bridge commuter here. I should tell everyone to stay off it, because the more people that use it, the more unpleasant it becomes. But out of the kindness of my heart, I’ll tell you that Virginia is empty all the time. But yes, the Kennedy Center is the only entrance to that sidepath. The alternative to what you laid out is taking the Memorial Bridge. See here for connections from the Memorial Bridge to the Custis.

Not sure where the Death Star Trench/sidewalk is …

[bentbike33]

@dasgeh 181188 wrote:

Not sure where the Death Star Trench/sidewalk is …

The sidewalk on the east side of the Kennedy Center next to I-66 with the fence guarding the construction site on the other side. Although the metaphor is probably more meaningful from the perspective of my bike than yours.

[jepstein]

5:30 this morning – 4MR from Rte.1 to (I assume) MVT flooded. I say “assume” because I turned around as soon as I saw water that far, but usually when water comes almost to rte.1 , it’s that far, the whole run is under water.

[dbb]

Signs at the MVT ramp on the Virginia side and by the Jefferson Memorial CaBi station.

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Nothing to warn or prepare motorists for the crosswalk fiesta on Columbia Island

[lordofthemark]

@jepstein 181212 wrote:

5:30 this morning – 4MR from Rte.1 to (I assume) MVT flooded. I say “assume” because I turned around as soon as I saw water that far, but usually when water comes almost to rte.1 , it’s that far, the whole run is under water.

There were several inches of water on 4MRT way back at Mount Vernon Avenue, so I bailed and took Eads.

[semperiden]

@lordofthemark 181217 wrote:

There were several inches of water on 4MRT way back at Mount Vernon Avenue, so I bailed and took Eads.

Water had receded around 8:30am.

[lordofthemark]

@semperiden 181221 wrote:

Water had receded around 8:30am.

So do I need to consult a tide chart before riding?

[bentbike33]

@lordofthemark 181245 wrote:

So do I need to consult a tide chart before riding?

Either that or make sure your favorite weather app will transmit coastal flood advisories for Alexandria.

[Judd]

@lordofthemark 181245 wrote:

So do I need to consult a tide chart before riding?

Yes. Almost all of the trail flooding recently has been tidal. Potomac is pretty high right now.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Starduster]

@lordofthemark 181245 wrote:

So do I need to consult a tide chart before riding?

That is what I’ll need to do before we run Monuments at Night Redux this evening…

[dbb]

The ramp up to the 14th Street Bridge was closed tonight. While I took the stairs, I doubt I’ll do that often. The fact that the side of the stairs was discontinuous (the stairs got narrower about halfway up) made rolling the bike up a bit annoying.

[dbb]

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NPS has started their unofficial CX season.

Not sure why the image is rotated. Sorry.

[LeprosyStudyGroup]

Saw Smokey Joe the umbrella man walking southbound on Eads street this morning instead of the trail, seems like a bad omen

[dbb]

Just heard from the NPS on the stairway. They said “We are working on a temp runnel. Hopefully installed soon.”

Stay tuned.

[Zack]

Yesterday was my first time using the stairs. It adds about 2-2.5 minutes and is kind of a zoo. I haven’t seen that many folks bunched up before. The Memorial Bridge adds about 2 miles to my Navy Yard bound commute (+10 minutes) so I think I will stick to the stairs for most of the construction.

Suggest going up the right side (duh!) unlike me since folks were waiting to come down.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8tGU5aiCcw

[Author]

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