At last. This morning DDOT installed a new Capital bikeshare dock at Fort Totten metro station. The dock is located in the median just west of the tracks by the taxi queue.
Bikeshare at Fort Totten metro station
We have bikeshare
Tag Archives: Bikeshare
Bikeshare headed to Takoma
As expected, DDOT recently announced that it plans to install a bikeshare station near Takoma metro. In our neck of the woods, recall from this post that JBG representatives stated the company plans to pay for installation of a station near Fort Totten Square once it is complete and that Walmart has agreed to pay for a second station near Fort Totten metro (date to be determined).
Comment on MoveDC by July 5 + Tidbits from the Lamond Riggs Workshop
DDOT held a public workshop on moveDC, its initiative to develop a long-term transportation plan for the city, at Lamond Riggs library on June 6, 2013. The agency also held workshops online and at various locations around the city. The agency has spelled out three possible approaches to the plan: (1) Stay the Course (focus on incremental improvements); (2) Get to the Center (focus on easing ways to get and travel around downtown); and (3) Connect the Neighborhoods (focus on local streets and local connectivity). DDOT is offering one more chance to provide input on this initiative. Visit the online comment portal here to learn more about the three approaches and share or concur with policy suggestions by Friday, July 5.
Riggs Park and Surrounding Neighborhoods
With a chance to focus on the Riggs Park neighborhood at the Lamond Riggs library workshop, we learned a few things about what people are hoping for in terms of connectivity in the area. Connectivity in the area was also addressed in this post previously.
Pedestrian Safety and Metro Access
Several people identified specific streets with missing sidewalks or where passage is impeded, particularly around the Fort Totten metro station. Some of the metro access issues will be addressed by the 1st Place and Galloway Street NE transportation access plan.
Bikeshare
Lots of people have provided suggestions for bikeshare locations, which would fall under Approach #1, since bikeshare already exists and incrementally adding stations is consistent with the design of the system. Currently, the closest bikeshare stations are in Brookland. A few are available across Fort Totten Park some distance away in Petworth. JBG plans to fund a station at Fort Totten Square when the project is complete in 2015 and Walmart might pay for a station near Fort Totten metro station as well. Montgomery County officials are planning to roll out bikeshare in Takoma and Silver Spring in the near future. It makes sense for the city to fill in the gaps in Riggs Park and North Michigan Park to make the system function a bit better and give people options for getting downtown and to other neighborhoods.
One suggestion made by a transportation planner was to specifically identify possible locations for bikeshare. That means it is not enough to request a bikeshare station “at the metro” since the city will likely have trouble getting the requisite authority to place a bikeshare station “at the metro.” I was told it would be more helpful to work with Aventine Fort Totten, for example, to identify space on that property for a station. One other suggestion I have made is a bikeshare station by UDC-CC’s Backus campus.
Metropolitan Branch Trail
Many people have also advocated for completion of the Metropolitan Branch Trail between Brookland and Silver Spring, to include an off-road connection through Fort Totten and Takoma. The city has provided funding for this fiscal year and next to design the Fort Totten portion of the trail, which will include a cycle staircase requiring cyclists to dismount. Funding for construction of this portion of the trail is allocated for FY2016.
Cycletracks
As part of Approach #3, a suggestion has been made to install cycletracks along Riggs Road NE to provide an east-west connection to different neighborhoods and along South Dakota Avenue NE to provide a north-south connection.
These are just a few ideas presented by residents in the neighborhood. More ideas are welcome by July 5 on the online portal.
Connectivity around Fort Totten
This post is long overdue, but still timely because of a couple of events coming up. At the Ward 5 budget townhall meeting, I raised a question about connectivity around Fort Totten. Of course, Fort Totten metro station with its three lines and several bus bays is a huge plus for the neighborhood, but the neighborhood could benefit from a bit more connectivity. More specifically, I asked if funding would be made available to improve connectivity through completion of the Metropolitan Branch Trail, installation of bikeshare stations in the neighborhood, and a study of the feasibility of a north-south streetcar route along South Dakota Avenue NE to Riggs Road NE.
Metropolitan Branch Trail
Currently, the northbound off-road portion of the MBT ends in Brookland. From there, an on-street route continues (partly up a steep hill) to Fort Totten. DDOT previously held workshops and planning sessions to determine the best route for completing the MBT north of Brookland. The National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board’s (TPB) May meeting included proposed amendments to update DDOT’s section of the FY 2013-2018 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). One of the items is completion of the Fort Totten portion of the MBT in 2015.
Bikeshare
Residents have been asking for bikeshare stations in the neighborhood for a while. JBG/Lowe, developers of Fort Totten Square, have said they are committed to paying for installation of a bikeshare station at the corner of the FTS development on 3rd Street & Riggs Road NE. However, that station will not be installed until the development delivers in spring 2015. They also said Walmart, which will anchor the development, has promised to pay for installation of a bikeshare station at Fort Totten metro station, but it’s not clear if Walmart will pay for that station to be installed before the development is complete. In any event, the neighborhood will be getting at least one, maybe two, stations by spring 2015.
Opportunities for input
In the next couple of weeks, there will be two really good opportunities to speak directly to and hear from the agencies that are responsible for shaping the way residents connect and move around the city. The first is DDOT’s moveDC public workshop on Thursday, June 6, from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm. at Lamond Riggs Library. MoveDC is DDOT’s initiative to develop a strategic, multimodal long-range transportation plan for the city. The workshop will provide a chance to talk about how residents travel around the city and share ideas on projects and priorities and what residents hope to see in the future. Residents are strongly encouraged to participate. Visit the moveDC website for more information.
The second opportunity is a walking tour hosted by the Coalition for Smarter Growth called “Fort Totten: More than a Transfer Point,” on Saturday, June 15, from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm. This tour is more of an opportunity to learn about what is happening in the neighborhood. Plenty of agency officials will be on hand. CSG’s policy director Cheryl Cort will lead the tour. A representative from WMATA will discuss plans to develop the parking lot parcels at Fort Totten metro station. A representative from DDOT will discuss the streetscape improvements in the neighborhood and the reconfiguration of the South Dakota Avenue & Riggs Road NE intersection. A representative from JBG will discuss the vision for Fort Totten Square as a placemaking development. A representative of the tenants of the Riggs Plaza apartments will discuss the Art Place at Fort Totten development. Finally, a representative from the Office of Planning familiar with the neighborhood will tie it all together. Hopefully residents were able to sign up because registration is now full.
Building Permit Issued for Fort Totten Square
A representative from JBG shared updates on the progress of Fort Totten Square, the mixed-use development anchored by Walmart with approximately 345 rental apartment units. Final building permits were issued on May 30, 2013. Digging will soon end and the concrete will start to pour. Once the digging is done, many more contractors will be working on the site. Clark Construction, the general contractor on the project, will set up a trailer office near the site. Residents are encouraged to report problems with trash and other issues.
The construction job fair on March 23, 2013, yielded over 900 applications. Qualified applicants will be contacted directly by the subcontractors. In addition, the Fort Totten Square website contains information about hiring for the Walmart store. A hiring center will open three to four months before the store opens. More information about the hiring center will be posted on Walmart’s Washington DC website.
As mentioned in another post, JBG will pay for installation of a bikeshare station at 3rd Street & Riggs Road NE once the development is complete in spring 2015. Walmart has also agreed to pay for a bikeshare station at Fort Totten metro station. The developers anticipate having transit information screens in the residential buildings. These are part of the developers’ effort to promote a walkable, bikable neighborhood.
Renderings of the development are available on the site of the development’s architects Hickok Cole. The blue paneling seen in the online rendering is supposed to be more of a muted blue color. The renderings provide views of both the residential and retail portions of the development.
The development has space for three to four additional retail tenants on the ground level at Chillum Place & Riggs Road NE. In addition, a separate ground level retail space will be available at 3rd Street & Riggs Road NE. There is hope that a major coffee shop will be interested in leasing the 3rd Street retail space. Luring such a tenant will partly entail convincing DDOT to have 30-minute parking meters for the 16 spaces that line Riggs Road in front of the development. It is still a little early to approach tenants for an anticipated delivery of spring 2015, but residents should use the time to think about what they would like to see at Fort Totten Square.
Capital Bikeshare possibly coming to Fort Totten in 2nd round expansion
DDOT released news of its latest round of Bikeshare expansion to include 54 new station installations between January and March 2013. These 54 locations were selected from a list of 78. One of the locations not selected for the first round of expansion that could possibly be included in a second round expansion is Fort Totten metro station. JBG/Lowe have stated that they would support (fund?) a bikeshare installation at Fort Totten as a community benefit for the Fort Totten Square development. That development is expected to add 350 rental apartments and retail to the community in 2014. To comment on the latest round of expansions (and advocate for bringing a station to Fort Totten sooner), email ddot.bikeshare@dc.gov by January, 15, 2013.
Next Stop...Riggs Park 