A hidden route, unhidden

Most of my regular readers are probably aware of DDOT's 11th St Bridge project, which is replacing the existing 11th Street Bridge over the Anacostia with three new bridges...one for each direction of freeway and a new local bridge that'll link 11th St SE with Martin Luther King Ave SE.

A few of you may know that the Southeast Freeway between the 3rd St Tunnel (I-395) and the 11th St Bridge has carried a hidden Interstate designation: I-695. As part of the 11th St Bridge project, DDOT requested in 2009 to truncate I-295 (which had crossed the bridge, the ramp connections above M St SE that were taken out last year, and extended to Barney Circle) to Anacostia and extend I-695 across the 11th St Bridge.

This past weekend, I found visual proof that DDOT intends to at least partially sign I-695:



This is quite likely the first I-695 shield in DC in 40 years, if not ever. I-695 was originally slated to follow both the Southeast Freeway and also the cancelled "West Leg" of the core freeway system, from I-395 at Maine Ave northwest to I-66 near the Roosevelt Bridge. Though it's possible that the covered panel here may have had an I-695 shield at one point, it's hard to say for sure.

Thursday meetings galore...

Three notable meetings tomorrow (Thursday):

- Fairfax County will be hosting the third in a series of eight meetings on the county's Bicycle Master Plan, focusing on the Mount Vernon area (mostly Mt. Vernon District and part of Lee District). The meeting will be at the South County Government Center on Route 1, from 5:30 to 8pm.

- Alexandria will be hosting the latest of its High Capacity Transit Corridor Study meetings at Patrick Henry Elementary School from 7-9pm. The meeting will focus on the latest concepts for Corridor B along Duke Street.

- WABA is hosting a Happy Hour at Brasserie Beck in DC at 11th and K NW. The Happy Hour begins at 5pm.

Unfortunately, I can't be in all three places at once.

Transit maps on Flickr

Many months ago, I had several people ask me to post my transit concept maps for DC online. After those months of procrastination, not to mention adding a few more maps to the pile, I've gotten around to it and created a Flickr set.

The set will become a repository for the maps I create showing various transit concepts in the DC area, including my proposal for around Mark Center:



Or potential streetcar corridors:



There's also my oft-mentioned proposal to extend the Yellow Line to (and beyond) Fort Belvoir:



Lastly, there's been a lot of talk about a separated Blue Line through DC (with a separated Yellow Line thrown in for good measure):



More maps will be posted to the Flickr set as they're created.

A permanent fix for a problematic spot

A persistent problem spot on the area's bicycle/pedestrian network has been on the George Washington Parkway near Memorial Bridge. In this area, bicycles and pedestrians transiting between the Mount Vernon Parkway and the Memorial Bridge must cross both the northbound GW Parkway main lanes plus a northbound ramp at-grade. The site has been the scene of numerous crashes this year (the latest being a pedestrian right before Halloween), all of which involve either a vehicle hitting a cyclist or pedestrian, or rear-end crashes among vehicles as some drivers stop/slow to allow bikes/peds across and the vehicles following behind do not stop and thus crash.

Even without the crashes, regular vehicle traffic has other concerns. The area is confusing jumble of ramps going all sorts of different directions. All too often, drivers not familiar with the area realize too late that they are in the wrong lane for the particular ramp they want to take and try to change it at the last possible moment. The result is further congestion and the occasional vehicle crash.

Unfortunately, there is no easy fix to the problem. Longstanding National Park Service policy is for no traffic signals along their parkways, so this precludes putting a traffic signal or even a HAWK signal at the location. Ideas for a bike/pedestrian overpass have brought concerns about loss of trees and "overhead obstructions". This has led to more recent calls for a bike/pedestrian underpass, but this will require a fair bit of money and regrading to implement.

Ultimately, something will have to be done. It will be a bitter pill to swallow, but the only way NPS can reduce the crash risk is to do something that either costs a lot of money or goes against their current policies.

To that end, I have devised my own permanent fix that solves many of the problems endemic in the area:



My proposal involves a lot of construction, which NPS may not be very keen on doing and will in turn cost a lot of money. However, it solves many of the safety/traffic problems in the area. Among the benefits:

• Straightens out the GW Parkway main lanes and moves all entrances/exits to the right. The existing configuration has three left-side entrances/exits.
  
• Retains all existing access and greatly streamlines and simplifies the ramps connecting the GW Parkway to Memorial Bridge, Route 27, and Route 50 West.
  
• Elimination of many of the existing roads/ramps allows for renaturalization/revegetation of those ramp locations to mitigate the loss of trees due to construction.
  
• Eliminates the need for at-grade crossings for bicycles/pedestrians connecting between the Mt. Vernon Trail and Memorial Bridge.
  
• Greatly expands the bicycle/pedestrian network in the area, utilizing some of the eliminated roads/ramps.
  
• Allows for separate bicycle/pedestrian paths along this segment of the Mt. Vernon Trail, very much needed due to heavy trail use. The bicycle path can utilize the existing northbound lanes.
  
• Allows for the possibility of a streetcar line across Memorial Bridge, connecting K Street NW at Washington Circle to the Pentagon and the proposed Arlington streetcar network.
  
• Allows for a full interchange on Route 110 connecting to both Memorial Bridge and the Iwo Jima/Marine Corps memorial (as shown on the map). Alternatively, this option could be left off and the existing congifuration along Route 110 remaining as-is.

This proposal would require a lot of money and would likely involve multiple years of construction, but the benefits of a reduced road footprint, better safety, and an expanded bike/ped network are well worth it. Even if my specific proposal isn't followed, it would be in NPS's best interests to look at a long-term solution for this area and implement it as soon as possible.

GGW Post on Alexandria Bikeshare

My post on GGW about Alexandria Bikeshare is now online. The maps I posted yesterday are in there, as is some details from last night's City Council meeting and discussion of the program. Just wish we could get the stations in sooner than Spring.

Alexandria joins Bikeshare

A quick word now before I wrote a longer post for Greater Greater Washington tomorrow: Alexandria City Council unanimously approved joining the Capital Bikeshare system. First 6 stations to be implemented sometime between spring and summer 2012.

Bikeshare proposal in Alexandria

The Alexandria City Council is expected to vote tonight on whether to join Capital Bikeshare. The docket item is now online.

The initial round of 6 Bikeshare stations (with 54 bikes) is to be funded via already-approved FY 2012 CMAQ funding, with operating expenses to be covered from the city's pot of Transportation Management Plan (TMP) funds. No city general funds will be used, and the docket is quick to make that point clear.



This graphic is from the City Council docket item for tonight's council meeting, showing the draft list of proposed stations. The white circles on the map are for the initial round of six bikeshare stations. Green circles are "To Be Implemenented By Others", likely developer-funded stations as there has been considerable interest among developers and property owners for including Bikeshare stations...as an example, the recently approved Harris Teeter development in North Old Town offered a Bikeshare stations as part of the new development. Black circles show future expansion locations. This is of note since Council approved FY 2013 CMAQ funding on September 27, including $400K for Bikeshare.

The street shading is from the city's map of Potential Bicycle Activity (page 6), from the city's Pedestrian and Bicycle Mobility Plan. It's basically their version of a "heat map" identifying potential areas of bicycle activity. It could also be used to identify potential locations for Bikeshare stations.

By comparison, here is my own idea on Bikeshare station placement, from June 2011:



Of note:

Not much difference between the city's proposed initial round and my own. We both put stations at the King St and Braddock Rd Metro stations, but while I put the rest of the stations along King St, the city puts one in at Pitt and Pendleton.

The city's draft map only focuses on Old Town and Carlyle, though they have announced interest in future expansion into Rosemont, Del Ray, Arlandria, and possibly even into the West End. Meanwhile, I include stations along Mt. Vernon Ave and in Potomac Yard in my proposal.

The city includes 6 stations "to be implemented by others", likely via development proffers. My map only has one since I was only aware of that one at the time I created it. Four of my station locations are at/near these proffers.

It's still too early to tell just how the City Council will vote on this. Two councilmembers are on record as in support, but indications are that the others are either lukewarm or disinterested. We'll find out tonight with the voting.

Regional map data abounds, but is expensive

Detailed map data offers tremendous potential to expand our understanding of the world in which we live. Unfortunately, most localities in the immediate area charge for this data, which should be publicly available to everyone.

Past posts on Greater Greater Washington and here on Just Down The Parkway have featured user-created maps based on GIS (Geographic Information Systems) data from DC and Alexandria.

DC's GIS data availability in particular has been described as "a treasure trove of interesting information." There are numerous data layers available to the public for free at the city's GIS Data Catalog.

But DC is the only jurisdiction in the region that offers so much data for free. The City of Alexandria and every county in the immediate DC area charge for the same type of GIS data. Some charge exorbitant rates.

I contacted each jurisdiction's GIS office in order to determine the price charged for three common map layers: building footprints, zoning, and elevation contours. The prices are shown in this chart:



Alexandria and Loudoun charge a nominal price for CDs containing their full data set, which offers all of the GIS data they make available to the public. Arlington is similar but more expensive, as they separate their contour data from the rest and charge more for the contours. Prince William splits their land area up into several small geographic squares called "tiles," and then charges by tile instead of countywide. Fairfax provides countywide data, but charges a higher rate.

Even Fairfax is affordable compared to jurisdictions in Maryland, though. By comparison, both Montgomery and Prince George's charge excessive rates. They both charge "by tile," like Prince William, but with several hundred tiles within each county, the cost of full coverage skyrockets significantly.

There are some exceptions. Both Fairfax and Montgomery offer downloads of limited data for free. In Montgomery's case the free data comes as Google Earth "kml" files. However, the bulk of their GIS data, including the three layers mentioned above, comes at a price.

A number of free or low-cost GIS programs are available for the general public. As GIS becomes a more mainstream way to gather information, good data availability will become even more paramount. Making it available to the public at a nominal cost or free of charge is a good opportunity for jurisdictions to be more open with their residents, and to foster understanding and innovation.

It costs each jurisdiction virtually nothing to give the data to additional users. Some localities have argued in the past that they need to charge to recoup the cost of generating the data. However, that ignores the massive public good that comes from making it possible for people to create maps on their own, even if those maps will just get posted online somewhere and never earn anyone a dime.

Some area jurisdictions, DC in particular, have recognized this. It would behoove the other jurisdictions to follow suit.

Cross-posted on GreaterGreaterWashington.

Huntington flood/redevelopment meeting tweets

Last night was the second in a recent series of meetings stemming from last Thursday's flooding of lower Huntington from Cameron Run and the huge rains we had from Tropical Storm Lee's leftovers.

Brian Krebs wrote a quick article for Patch about last night's meeting. I'm not (yet) going to do much of a writeup, but wanted to include tweets from during the meeting itself. Three people, Brian, myself, and someone going by 22303huntington live-tweeted the meeting. Though some topics are duplicated between Brian and I, this should give you a fairly good feel for how the meeting progressed and what got discussed. I will admit that, at the beginning, I expected the meeting to be more contentious than it wound up being. All in all, it was a very civil meeting with almost no tempers flaring.

Here's the tweets in chronological order, starting around 7pm and lasting until about 9:30pm. Beware that this is a very long list:

ajfroggie
Here for a Huntington community mtg related to last week's flood. (@ Mount Vernon Mount Vernon Governmental Center) http://4sq.com/pyurCx

ajfroggie
Expecting a contentious mtg tonite. Lots of #Huntington folks were flooded out last week. ABC7 is here.

ajfroggie
Hoping to see @BelleHavenPatch and @22303huntington here. Will live-tweet what I can given the crappy 3G svc in this bldg. #Huntington

ajfroggie
Laying the ground rules early. Sure sign that this'll be a contentious mtg. #Huntington

ajfroggie
According to NWS numbers, this was 1000yr storm at Ft Belvoir & 500yr storm at Kingstowne. #Huntington

ajfroggie
Mention of numerous water rescues in lower #Huntington last Thurs night.

ajfroggie
Asking about Spanish speaking firefighters and response times.

ajfroggie
Siren at end of Fenwick that either doesn't work, or wasn't activated. #Huntington

BelleHavenPatch
Standing room only at the Mt Vernon Gov't Center meeting to discuss #Huntington flooding. Never seen the parking lot so packed.

ajfroggie
Still 19 power outages in lower #Huntington.

ajfroggie
#Huntington Community Ctr being used as staging point for aid.

BelleHavenPatch
Currently 19 homes w/o power in #Huntington: one on Fenwick Drive & the rest on Arlington Terrace, —Michael Guditus emergency mgmt office

ajfroggie
Lots of talk fm county on continuous trash collection, mosquito control, and health/safety issues. #Huntington

ajfroggie
Free fans to those 60+y.o. #Huntington

22303huntington
Mt. Vernon Comm Center #Huntington flood meeting right now http://yfrog.com/gyd15lqj

ajfroggie
Praise from some for the county's and Red Cross's response. #Huntington

BelleHavenPatch
Supervisor Gerry Hyland just walked into #Huntington flood meeting, greeted with applause.

ajfroggie
Sup. Hyland now here. Time for the serious talk on what to do next. #Huntington

BelleHavenPatch
One source told Hyland parts of #Huntington had "1000-year storm"

ajfroggie
Hyland asked FFX BoS on Tues to add #Huntington to a stormwater bond. Would go to voters Nov. '12.

BelleHavenPatch
Hyland: Supervisors will discuss bond issue at retreat next year w/ new board and then budget session in April. Would be on ballot Nov. 2012

BelleHavenPatch
Hyland: "Even if the board were to authorize the bond, we are still not going to have protection" for at least another five years

ajfroggie
$30M to do a levee & pump station in #Huntington.

ajfroggie
Another option would be to redevelop lower #Huntington. Wld require changing Huntington Conservation Plan.

ajfroggie
Concern from Hyland that the Conservation Plan protects #Huntington from being "bought out" by developers.

22303huntington
Talking points from #Huntington meeting: Future? Give owners fair market value? Storm bond for levy in 5+ years? Lift conservation plan?

ajfroggie
Someone just asked about dredging Cameron Run. Hyland: wouldn't keep water out of #Huntington.

BelleHavenPatch
"Dredging Cameron outside of your community is not going to allow us to keep the water out of your community" —Hyland quoting Corps study

22303huntington
#Huntington meeting talking points: Dredging not an option in Huntington, but maybe from GW parkway, says hydrologist.

ajfroggie
hyland: #Huntington floods becausenthere is a huge developed watershed to the west. Too much water & not enough stormwater management.

BelleHavenPatch
Hyland blames Cameron Run flooding at #Huntington "too much water coming out of the properties to the west. ... It's a capacity problem."

ajfroggie
Levee was asked for after '06 flood. Needed 6 votes fm BoS. Didn't get voted on. #Huntington

ajfroggie
Hyland: levee needed. Moran tried but won't get Fed funding. Will need to be funded locally fm bonding. Won't come fm gen fund.

BelleHavenPatch
Here's the info from Army Corps of Engineer report on #Huntington, Cameron Run flooding on @FairfaxCounty site: http://ow.ly/6uKdq

22303huntington
Hyland says, only short term way to save the lower #Huntington community is to build a levy, at flood meeting

ajfroggie
Apparently a flood control study was done 40yrs ago. #Huntington

ajfroggie
Each watershed has been studied, but implementation would cost multi-millions. Hyland: we don't have the time to wait for that. #Huntington

ajfroggie
Hyland supports stormwater bond, but need to put pressure on other Sups. #Huntington

ajfroggie
All: sorry for the mass horde of tweets. Live-tweeting a mtg abt #Huntington flood issues after last week's mess.

ajfroggie
Flows on Cameron Run last week were similar to '06 flood. Causes backups on storm drains & into basements. #Huntington

ajfroggie
Question abt pushing both the levy and revising-or-dropping the Conservation Plan. #Huntington

BelleHavenPatch
The community can pursue both options, Hyland said, attempt to get bond for levee and remove conservation plan to promote redevelopment

ajfroggie
Concern that new homeowners would lose out if Conservation Plan lifted. #Huntington

ajfroggie
Question if Conservation Plan could be lifted by street instead of lifting the whole plan. #Huntington

BelleHavenPatch
A resident asked about the ramifications for new homeowners. "What is our financial viability in this?"

BelleHavenPatch
Same resident said he would be financially devastated if he got less than what he paid for home.

BelleHavenPatch
Gerry Hyland speaking to a packed house at #Huntington flood meeting at Mount Vernon Government Center. http://yfrog.com/nuxfncxj

22303huntington
@BelleHavenPatch Can you ask if they will post a site or email box for public comment, please?

ajfroggie
Discussion on backflow preventers. Some commenting that they've installed them for $75 and it really helped.

BelleHavenPatch
Talk of backflow drains and disagreement on prices—ranging from $75 to $1000

BelleHavenPatch
Multiple residents have commented on how much they love their community. Lots of residents I've talked to, don't want to move.

BelleHavenPatch
One resident said community needs to band together to lift conservation plan and could get good price for redevelopment

ajfroggie
Speaker doubting viability of getting the levee & proposing homeowners band together so when developers come, homeowners get the best deal.

ajfroggie
Hyland: if this area gets redeveloped, we'd do everything possible to reduce the number of cars. #Huntington

BelleHavenPatch
Hyland said he won't condemn any properties for residents that don't want it

ajfroggie
Gotta wonder if process of changing/dropping the Conservation Plan will increase attendence at #Huntington Community Association meetings.

ajfroggie
Hyand citing Kelo vs. New London in how he'll defend homeowners. #Huntington

ajfroggie
Question how community will vote on this. Hyland's response is it'll probably go through #Huntington Community Association.

BelleHavenPatch
One resident, representing the Huntington Community Association, said the real value for the community is the land they own, not the homes

BelleHavenPatch
HCA representative asked Hyland for "concurrent planning" for bond referendum and lifting conservation plan for commercial development

ajfroggie
Resident: what we need from Hyland is a real estate expert to help us determine how/whether Conservation Plan should be changed. #Huntington

ajfroggie
Same resident: second thing we need is lawyers to guide us through the legal ramifications. #Huntington

BelleHavenPatch
Resident request for real estate, lawyers to assist community if they decide to redevelop #Huntington

BelleHavenPatch
3 professions with least respect: politicians, lawyers & used car salesmen, Hyland said. He's done first 2 but wants to go for 'trifecta'

BelleHavenPatch
Re: last tweet, Hyland seems more laid back, relaxed tonight compared to Saturday's meeting. Cracking jokes and shedding his suit jacket.

BelleHavenPatch
County staff official warns community about 'hold outs' in redevelopment. Cites communities in Vienna and near Dulles.

ajfroggie
County zoning staff citing what was done near Vienna Metro as an example. #Huntington

BelleHavenPatch
Candidate for Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Will Radle gets microphone to speak at meeting. #Huntington

ajfroggie
Candidate for County Chair is now speaking. Can't help but think he's speaking for votes. #Huntington

BelleHavenPatch
"We do have the resources," and should look forward to solutions for #Huntington, Radle said. Remarks met with brief, scattered applause.

ssurovell
At Gum Springs tonight with VDOT, FCDOT discussing US1, Sherwood Hall Ln, & doing something about traffic!

ajfroggie
HCA member now discussing the proposed Conservation Plan revisions that county never implemented. #Huntington

ajfroggie
@ssurovell Will you blog about that? Some of us next door w/Sup Hyland discussing Huntington flooding.

BelleHavenPatch
A developed #Huntington would include affordable dwelling units, Hyland said.

ajfroggie
Hyland: many in #Huntington here because they can afford it. If redevelopment happens, need to ensure there are plenty of affordable units.

ajfroggie
Hyland: higher than the current 12% set-aside. So that those who want to stay can afford to. #Huntington

BelleHavenPatch
Hyland: "A lot of people will want to stay, and we need to find away for them to do that." #Huntington

BelleHavenPatch
Hyland: back flow preventers information should be available in "a couple days"

BelleHavenPatch
Every mention so far about the county's help with response, cleanup has been met with applause.

BelleHavenPatch
"I am going to be dogged to make sure I know how they feel." Hyland on residents who don't respond to outreach on route to take

ajfroggie
Lady speaking about defective storm drains and asking what county will do about them.

BelleHavenPatch
Important numbers: Gerry Hyland: 703.967.0157. Brett Kenney, Chief Aide to Hyland: 703.780.7518

BelleHavenPatch
One resident shares potential solutions for homeowners to mitigate flooding: raised furnaces and tankless water heaters

ajfroggie
Lady speaking for her father...concerned abt representation of seniors and "oldtimers" in the process. #Huntington

BelleHavenPatch
One resident asks community to consider older, established residents, not just younger, new residents.

BelleHavenPatch
Hyland: Mount Vernon has largest % of seniors in Fairfax County of all magisterial districts.

ajfroggie
Speaker proposes dropping Conservation Plan & raisinf density immediately & allowing developers to landbank over time as residents sell out.

ajfroggie
Hyland disagrees, calls if "leapfrog development". #Huntington

BelleHavenPatch
Next: #Huntington Community Association meeting on Thursday, Oct. 6 invites Hyland and staff for more information and dialogue

BelleHavenPatch
HCA rep brings up Huntington Avenue development: "It seems to me that re-planning it seems in order"

BelleHavenPatch
Hyland asking #Huntington Community Association to create committee within to focus on redeveloping

BelleHavenPatch
Hyland said as many meetings that need to be will be "in order to involve as many as possible"

BelleHavenPatch
Future meetings will be held at Huntington Community Center, Hyland said.

BelleHavenPatch
@ajfroggie raises concern on the effect of transportation if Huntington's population density increases under redevelopment

ajfroggie
I mentioned the need to include transportation as a discussion point if dropping the Conservation Plan and increasing density is considered.

ajfroggie
http://twitpic.com/6l0d7t Scene from the #Huntington meeting hosted by Supervisor Hyland.

Bikes on the George Washington Parkway?

Another Dr. Gridlock column about whether the National Park Service should allow bicycles on the George Washington Parkway. Though it's in response to a reader question, it's a follow-up to a letter that WABA sent to NPS.

The argument, as it has been said, is that cyclists use the Parkway because the existing Mount Vernon Trail is crowded and inadequate, and there are no good alternative routes. While Fort Hunt Rd largely parallels the Parkway south of Alexandria, it has several issues of its own...inconsistent shoulders and pavement quality, bigger hill and curve issues than the Parkway, and the anathemia of hardcore road cyclists: traffic signals.

I'm somewhat torn on the issue. As a bicyclist, I'll be the first to say that the MVT is very inadequate and needs major improvement. As a driver, I'll echo NPS's concerns about safety...the narrow lanes, curves, and drainage issues on the segment south of Alexandria, and the limited-access nature of the Parkway north of Alexandria.

Ultimately, the limited-access nature of the Parkway north of Old Town should preclude its use for bicyclists...but this is also the most crowded segment of the MVT and the MVT really needs to be widened on this stretch. South of Old Town is more controversial and I'll admit I don't have a good solution for this segment.

I'm expecting this issue to be taken up again on TheWashCycle Blog. Look for some spirited discussion there.