Recap of June 20th, 2023 Community Meeting

City staff briefed us on efforts to improve connectivity to the Rockville Pike corridor from the Twinbrook neighborhood, in particular the proposed Twinbrook pedestrian bridge. The city has extensively studied various landing spots on either side of the railway. Each offers advantages and disadvantages in terms of engineering, cost, and community benefit.

One option would place the crossing near the intersection of Brooke Drive and Lewis Avenue, putting it at the northern end of the Twinbrook Quarter that will be developed in later phases of the project. This location offers cost and engineering benefits because the railbed is deeper here so the bridge would require less elevation. Other possible locations are closer to Twinbrook Metro station and the light industrial area on Lewis. These locations would link to areas of Twinbrook Quarter that are planned for construction in earlier phases, but still may require temporary conditions (e.g., ramps) until those plans are realized. 

The city has identified a number of state and federal grant programs aimed at projects like this that promote pedestrian and bicycle safety and access, as well as restore links to communities that were cut off during previous transportation upgrades. (Veteran Twinbrookers recall that Halpine used to cross over the tracks to MD-355 until this access was lost during the construction of Metro.) Key to the success of these grant applications is an analysis of their benefit/cost ratio, as the government programs award projects that provide the biggest bang for the buck. Without external grant funding, the Twinbrook project is unlikely to move forward.

Separate from the bridge initiative, city staff is also looking to expand east/west connectivity by gaining access to the station tunnel at Twinbrook station. Staff is discussing with WMATA the feasibility of keeping the station tunnel open outside system operating hours. While TCA does not view this as a substitute for an appealing pedestrian/cycling crossing, expanding access through the station could provide some benefit if it can be done safely.

As the city pursues grants over the next year, TCA will offer letters of support to include in the applications. Comments from residents at our June 20th meeting reinforced the strong community support for the initiative.