M Street Cycle Track Construction Begins Monday, Should Take 4-6 Weeks to Complete

M Street, NW between 15th and 16th

From DDOT:

“The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) announced it will begin installing a protected bike lane (also known as a cycle track) on M Street NW starting on or about Monday, November 25, weather permitting.

The cycle track, with a buffer of parked cars and flexible posts, will span over a mile on the north side of M Street NW between 14th and 28th Streets and will serve as the westbound compliment to the eastbound cycle track on L Street NW. On the 1500 block of M Street NW, the lane will be installed as a “traditional” bike lane. Green paint will also be used for much of the block to increase the visibility of the lane.

Ed. Note: Last night a van parked in the L Street cycle track, check out the interesting debate that followed here.

Construction Details after the jump.

Construction activities will take place Monday through Friday between the morning and evening rush-hour period and may also take place during the weekend. Starting next week the work will commence at M Street NW and Rhode Island Avenue NW and by the following week it will begin simultaneously at 14th Street NW and New Hampshire Avenue and proceed west on M Street NW.

Depending on weather conditions, the installation will take approximately four to six weeks to complete. If it rains or snows installation activities will likely shutdown for the day and may delay the schedule.

DDOT will also be coordinating closely with several major construction projects that are currently underway on M Street NW at 17th Street NW and at New Hampshire Avenue NW. These construction projects may possibly extend the installation schedule for the bike lane.

Existing markings will be removed and replaced with new markings for the bike lane. DDOT is installing the lane as a “retrofit” which will not require for the entire roadway to be resurfaced.

DDOT has specifically chosen to implement the M Street cycle track as a “retrofit” to allow for time to evaluate the design and operations before resurfacing the street and setting it more permanently.

Curbside parking spaces will be temporally restricted to accommodate installation activities.

Cyclists are reminded to be please avoid using the lane while it is under construction. Motorists and pedestrians are reminded to please use extra caution when traveling near the active work zone.”