New bike & pedestrian trail coming to Piney Branch Parkway
/It's not just the roadway that is being replaced on Piney Branch Parkway. The DC Department of Transportation plans to update miles of bike and pedestrian pathways across the Rock Creek Park. This will impact vehicle access to Piney Branch Parkway, as DDOT plans to close Piney Branch Parkway to westbound traffic, maintaining eastbound traffic.
The Rock Creek Park Multi-Use Trail spans 3.6 miles of trail across Wards 1, 2, 3 and 4 at a cost of $12 million dollars in seven "stages." You can see details on the rehabilitations in a "Rock Creek Park Multi-Use Trail and Pedestrian Bridge Project" PDF from DDOT.
The new trail for Piney Branch Parkway is set for "Stage 5," and goes from Beach Drive NW up to Arkansas Avenue NW with a new 4,859-foot (0.9 mile) segment. Construction will close half of Piney Branch Parkway for up to 6 months -- which seems extreme.
Ballpark on timing of the construction for Piney Branch Parkway could be summer or later in 2019... about 12 months from when the Trail project kicks off this summer.
Petworth News requested more information from DDOT, and will update this article when we hear back.