Hopefully, a temporary tie-up.

Last month, National Harbor was unprepared for cyclists and pedestrians accessing the waterfront resort via the new Wilson Bridge active transportation crossing.

The sustained demand for bicycle and pedestrian access has led the property’s management to make changes, including the installation of temporary dismount signage and makeshift bike racks where the crushed clamshell surface trail known as the Harborwalk reaches the “downtown” area of the complex.

Developer the Peterson Companies says that permanent bike racks and dismount signage will be installed at this location by the end of July. In addition, Director of Marketing Rocell Viniard says that National Harbor security and event staff, who at the beginning of June weren’t even aware of the existence of bike racks within the facility on Waterfront Street, have been trained on the new bicycle policies.

However, the developer still seems reluctant to pave the Harborwalk. Viniard tells me that “the Harborwalk will not be paved in the near future” nor has any decision been made to pave it, since the pathway was originally intended for leisure walks and jogs by hotel guests and residents. National Harbor management needs to realize that the Harborwalk is no longer a dead-end path.

It’s the connection between National Harbor and a first-class bicycle and pedestrian facility on the Wilson Bridge, with the potential to bring thousands of new customers from Alexandria and the Mount Vernon Trail. Providing these customers with substandard facilities indicates that National Harbor doesn’t want their business.