Monday, March 24, 2014

Final Meeting for Florida Avenue NE Multimodal Study

The final public meeting on the Florida Avenue NE study is set for Wednesday, April 2 beginning at 7pm at the Two Rivers Charter School, 1234 4th Street NE, (Middle School Building). Bicyclists and pedestrians should attend to help determine the best way Florida Avenue can accommodate a variety of road uses.

The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) is hosting the third and final public meeting to guide the Florida Avenue Multimodal Transportation study, which assesses the potential reconfiguration of the Florida Avenue corridor from North Capitol Street to Benning Road NE.

Florida Avenue NE at M Street,
courtesy of Google Maps

Current conditions are not favorable for pedestrians or bicyclists. The sidewalk sections from 6th Street to West Virginia Avenue particularly narrow with street lights, signage, and steps restricting sidewalk egress. The current 6-lane configuration in this section also makes using the street difficult for bicyclists as cars typically travel above the posted limit. At the intersection for Florida Avenue and New York, bicycle and pedestrian crossing is very challenging. 

Map of study, courtesy of DDOT

According to the recent DCist article, "DDOT Project Manager Gabe Onyeador says the three alternatives that will be presented will include bike lanes, a cycletrack and wider sidewalks". Please feel free to let us know what you think about the study and what ways DDOT and the public can safely improvement Florida Avenue for pedestrians and bicycle users.