Cyclist groups seek to delay demolition of old Nice Bridge over Potomac – Maryland Matters

As Maryland prepares to demolish the historic Good/Middleton Bridge that connects the southern a part of the state with Virginia over the Potomac River, bicycle advocates are looking for to delay these plans till the completion of an impression research.

The bicycle advocacy teams, which embody Potomac Heritage Path Affiliation, Dahlgren Railroad Heritage Affiliation and Oxon Hill Bicycle and Path Membership, allege in a criticism filed within the U.S. District Courtroom for the District of Maryland that state businesses, together with the Maryland Transportation Authority, violated state and federal environmental overview legal guidelines by altering the mission from its unique conception and failing to review the impression of demolishing the bridge. The teams, who’re asking for a short lived restraining order to halt the demolition, additionally allege that the authority lacks the facility to destroy the bridge beneath environmental legal guidelines.

“Utilizing explosives to demolish elements of the Historic Good Bridge or the rubble from the bridge to create a ‘reef’ has not been evaluated appropriately for the impression on the pure habitat and human setting, together with the taking of endangered species or disruption of their habitats,” the criticism states.

The plaintiffs additionally allege that the defendants by no means thought-about the “cumulative results” of the development plan and the potential demolition of the outdated bridge on human, environmental and historic sources, in addition to on publicly or privately owned landmark websites listed or eligible for inclusion within the Nationwide Register of Historic Locations.

The outdated Governor Harry W. Good Memorial/Senator Thomas “Mac” Middleton Bridge, which opened in December 1940, is adjoining to the brand new four-lane alternative bridge.

In November 2016, Gov. Larry Hogan (R) promised a pedestrian and bicycle lane can be constructed alongside the brand new bridge’s car lanes amid neighborhood entry issues and to mitigate the impression of destroying the historic bridge.

Nevertheless, in 2019, the Maryland Transportation Authority accredited a bridge plan that excluded the mission’s initially conceived $64 million, 10-foot two-way path.

Final July, U.S. lawmakers requested Maryland Division of Transportation Secretary Jim Ports to delay destroying the historic bridge pending an analysis.

Ports responded that the authority would proceed with its plan.

The bicycle advocacy teams included of their criticism the Maryland Division of Transportation and Maryland Transportation Authority, in addition to the U.S. Division of Transportation and Federal Freeway Administration for offering “permissions and funding crucial for the mission with out having undertaken or requiring applicable consideration beneath NEPA and the opposite Environmental Assessment Legal guidelines.”

Bridge opening imminent as courtroom units listening to for restraining order on Tuesday.

Plans for the elimination of the historic bridge are transferring shortly, in response to Michael MacWilliams, an legal professional who represents the Maryland defendants.

MacWilliams stated in an e-mail that “mechanical demolition efforts in reference to the outdated bridge are scheduled to begin in earnest on Oct. 13.”

Maryland plans to maneuver site visitors to the brand new bridge the identical day.

On Tuesday, the courtroom will hear arguments on the restraining order within the U.S. District Courtroom Northern Division in Baltimore at 1 p.m.

In response to the development webpage, the bridge is predicted to open early subsequent 12 months.

The $463 million bridge alternative mission features a $13 million contribution from Virginia.

The alternative bridge will embody 4 12-foot-wide lanes with 2-foot shoulders, a big enlargement in comparison with the historic bridge’s two lanes with no shoulders. The brand new bridge could have all-electronic cashless tolling, a barrier-separated median between west- and eastbound lanes, and 2-foot shoulders permitting for taller ships to move beneath its 135-foot clearance.

David Brickley, president of the Dahlgren Railroad Heritage Path Affiliation and a former Virginia state delegate, stated Virginia ought to think about partnering with Maryland to create what can be probably the most outstanding bicycle and pedestrian crossing within the nation, clocking in at 1.7 miles.

The previous lawmaker not too long ago wrote to Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) and members of his cupboard about contemplating a partnership however stated he felt like “Cinderella speeding in the direction of midnight and making an attempt to save lots of this bridge earlier than it’s too late.”

Virginia and King George County beforehand thought-about taking on the outdated bridge however by no means pursued it.

Marshall Herman, a spokesperson with the Virginia Division of Transportation, stated the company didn’t conduct a research however did have interaction with King George County and bicycle and path teams about their curiosity in retaining and repurposing the bridge.

The teams mentioned the price of common inspection and upkeep, potential points with marine navigation as a result of alignment of the piers, and allow points resulting from federal necessities throughout the Nationwide Environmental Coverage Act.

A consultant from the King George County Administration Workplace directed inquiries to VDOT for questions.

Nevertheless, regardless of the shortage of curiosity in taking on the construction, Brickley stated Virginia residents have robust curiosity within the bridge’s future.

He pointed to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge as among the finest examples of a bridge with a separate lane for pedestrians and bicyclists. In 1995, Brickley sponsored laws that allowed Virginia to hitch a regional compact for the aim of buying the bridge and changing it.

Brickley stated arguments ensued over eliminating the Wilson bridge’s bicycle and pedestrian lane, a lot as they’ve for the brand new Good/Middleton Bridge. Nevertheless, the lane remained within the mission.

“Now, in case you go as much as the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, it’s a improbable bridge for motorists and cyclists and hikers mixed,” Brickley stated. “It’s simply what a bridge within the twenty first century must be about.”

Maryland’s choice to not embody such infrastructure within the new bridge is “unbelievably unhappy,” he stated.