The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) has uploaded the most recent presentation on the rehabilitation of Eastern Avenue NE from New Hampshire Avenue NE to Whittier Street NW to the project website. DDOT held its last public meeting on June 22, 2022.

Presentation: Eastern Avenue NE Rehabilitation Public Meeting, June 22, 2022

This project has been sitting for a while as DDOT updated the project scope and waited for some utility work to be done. I will be honest, even after all these years since this project was first conceived, I am still not entirely sure what exactly DDOT is doing. It seems pretty unwise to deliberately design a project in which bike riders will be cycling in and out of unprotected bike lanes onto shared lanes on a road with lots of hills. But maybe that is just me. People will decide for themselves what is safe or not.

The project will also upgrade the sidewalks in the project area, add a traffic signal, and make other improvements along the corridor. The project page will be updated with the final design once that is complete.

Roadway improvements (copied from project website):

• Sidewalk and bike lane addition from Kansas Avenue NE to Sligo Mill Road
• Construct new 6-foot sidewalks with 6-foot grass buffer northbound from Sligo Mill Road to North Capitol Street NW
• Full-depth Pavement Reconstruction from Whittier Street NW New Hampshire Avenue NE
• Street lighting upgrade for the entire length of the project and underground installation of ducts to accommodate lighting and traffic and communication cables
• The Installation of new traffic Signal and intersection reconfiguration at Sligo Mill Rd. and Eastern Ave. NE
• Signal modifications and ADA improvements at the intersection of Eastern Ave. NE and New Hampshire Ave. NE
• Modification of existing traffic signals at Eastern Ave. NE and Kansas Ave intersection to accommodate left-turn lane in the Westbound direction
• Granite curbs for the entire length of the project

Current Project Schedule

• Design Completion: Summer 2022
• Construction Begins: TBD
• Construction Completion: TBD

Project website
https://ddot.dc.gov/page/rehabilitation-eastern-avenue-ne

Project contacts
DDOT Public Outreach Contact – Stacee Hemby, stacee@tbaconnects.com, 202-271-7406
DDOT Project Manager – Tesfalem Aim, tesfalem.aim@dc.gov