The fate of two trail projects in southeast DC is too uncertain

Some residents of Ward 7 and Ward 8 have, for decades, called for safer places to walk and bike. Two trails have been at the center of that effort: the Suitland Parkway trail, a nearly two-mile, paved but swiftly deteriorating trail running along Suitland Parkway, and the Shepherd Branch Trail, which—if built—would transform an unused rail line into a three-mile shared-use path.

Those residents’ hard work could face additional years of delay depending on final decisions from the DC Council about funding for the next fiscal year. Without funding, the trail projects could continue to languish, falling deeper into disrepair and poor conditions. If funded, the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) can take the next steps in the many-years-long process to begin transform these projects.

The Capital Improvement Program (CIP), a six-year plan for capital project funding, is approved by the DC Council alongside the FY24 operating budget. It designates funding for capital projects, including multi-use trails. The draft FY24-FY29 CIP includes the Trails Master Project (page 33), which supports the design, construction, maintenance, and rehabilitation of trails for walking and biking throughout the District. The proposed draft includes funding for the Suitland Parkway Trail and Shepherd Branch Trail. The Committee on Transportation and the Environment supported Mayor Bowser’s proposed funding for trails, and even added funding to support the Palisades Trolley Trail project.

Fixing the Suitland Parkway trail and building the Shepherd Branch trail are relatively noncontroversial proposals. But, Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White took aim at funding for trails and road safety improvements during the Council’s first vote on May 16th on the FY24 budget. White called to direct capital funds to the renovation and creation of recreation facilities, saying that planned capital funding for Ward 8 trail projects would be used to support renovation and construction projects to recreation centers. However, we believe that the funding for these trails and recreation centers and schools are crucially important for community members and that an alternate funding source should be considered. Having safe, convenient places to recreate is important, but so is the ability to travel and recreate without a personal vehicle.

Shepherd Branch: A 20+-year campaign for revitalizing community space

The proposed Shepherd Branch trail will transform an illegal dumping ground into a walking and biking path, creating an inviting space for outdoor activity and commuting while connecting to other trails in the city.

The Shepherd Branch rail line was deactivated (see page 3 of the Feasibility Report) due to safety concerns after Sept. 11, 2001, and has gone unused in the intervening 20-plus years, during which local leaders have called for its conversion to a multi-use trail. Without active rail use or regular maintenance, residents like Dolly Davis, a former Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner and the current president and executive coordinator of the Pope Branch Park Restoration Alliance, have stepped in to maintain the area and advocate for its reuse as a trail.

DDOT attempted to purchase the land from CSX in 2004 and continued negotiations over the next 15 years. During that time, DDOT’s 2020 feasibility study found that, as long as the land is available, the proposed trail alignment is technically feasible. However, in September 2020, DDOT put the design and construction of this trail on hold indefinitely until negotiations resume due to disagreements over the value of the land.

Funding for the Shepherd Branch Trail in the District’s capital projects must be maintained to enable negotiations with CSX. Without funds to obtain the land, DDOT cannot move forward and there is little motivation for CSX to consider next steps for the rail line. Funding is urgently needed to avoid further delays that especially impact neighbors of the unused rail line, including those like Davis, who is determined to see the trail built even if it is completed after her lifetime.

Despite the uncertain timeline, residents and organizations are continuing to build community momentum for the trail including the Fairlawn Citizens Association, Anacostia Parks and Community Collaborative, Anacostia Riverkeeper, Anacostia Watershed Society, Pope Branch Park Restoration Alliance, Capital Trails Coalition, and the Washington Area Bicyclist Association.

Suitland Parkway: Urgent rehab for a neighborhood and regional connector

The Suitland Parkway trail is a 1.7-mile paved path that runs along Suitland Parkway. It was built in the 1990s and has, since then, become deeply unwelcoming: Its surface is bumpy and uneven, and it’s barely protected from drivers, whose speed limit is 35 miles per hour at minimum.

DDOT is in the early stages of planning to rehabilitate the trail, which will include repaving and widening it, adding a protective barrier between the trail and the road (or, possibly, relocating the trail farther from the road), and adding trail and street lights. Attendees of a February 2023 meeting held by DDOT were optimistic that the agency’s plans would increase the number of people who would feel comfortable walking, biking, and rolling along the Suitland Parkway Trail.

The draft FY24-FY29 CIP includes funding to redesign and reconstruct the trail under the Master Trail Project, but the timeline for construction is not slated to begin until at least 2027, making it unlikely that the fully renovated trail would reopen before 2029. We must prioritize keeping these funds in the CIP, and if possible, moving up the funding to better address urgent safety improvements and help to fully realize the trail’s potential for Ward 8 residents and other people using the trail. Rehabbing and improving the trail is especially important because of the lack of protected bike lanes and other safe places to walk and bike across Ward 8.

Why the funding’s suddenly under threat

At the DC Council’s first hearing to vote on the Fiscal Year 2024 budget, Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White prepared to submit amendments to DC’s Fiscal Year 2024 Local Budget Act to move funds from the Ward 8 Streetscapes and from the Master Trails Project to fund improvements to recreation centers and schools. White specifically targeted funding for the Suitland Parkway Trail to support his proposal.

Though White pulled his amendment due to concerns about the broader fiscal impact of the amendments, the discussion is expected to resume at the Council’s second and final budget meeting on May 30th. Reports indicate that some compromise to fund some renovations to rec centers for renovations is being considered, with Chairman Phil Mendelson and At-Large Coucilmember Kenyan McDuffie offering to help find the $9 million needed.

We support alternative funding solutions for the recreation centers, and maintaining funding for urgent trail projects in Ward 8. People need safe places to go for recreation, as well as safe ways to travel and recreate across the Ward.

Safe mobility and recreation facilities should be the norm

The Shepherd Branch Trail and Suitland Parkway Trail are just two examples of resources for recreation and transportation in the Capital Trails Network. Across the region, there are nearly 400 miles of planned trails that have not yet been completed, not to mention that some of the existing trails are in poor condition, making them difficult or unsafe to use.

Kids’ laughter, a cool breeze, low-stress places to walk, bike, and roll, easy access to local businesses—these are just a few of the experiences you can have on a high-quality multi-use trail. The District has committed to making those experiences more common by planning for more trails in the 2021 moveDC update, its long-range transportation plan. Strategy 22 of moveDC calls for the District to prioritize construction of the Capital Trails Network, with a focus on improving network connectivity and designs that enhance the safety, comfort, and orientation for all users of trails.

So far, achieving a world-class network of trails, as outlined by the Capital Trails Network, has required residents and local leaders to plan years ahead and stay dedicated to each trail project from ideation, through from planning to design to construction. The process can take years, and too often decades, to make the idea of even a single trail segment a reality.

Despite pricetags in the hundred thousands to millions of dollars, these infrastructure projects cost fractions compared to other capital expenditures and they produce strong economic, health, and environmental impacts for the region year after year. The Capital Trails Coalition’s impact report shows that investing the one-time $1.09 billion required to complete the nearly 1,000-mile-long trail network produces $1.02 billion total economic impacts per year, as well as $2.4 billion in savings per year.

Despite the relentless uphill battle, Ward 7 and Ward 8 are still showing up to ask the District to prioritize communities on the east side of the Anacostia River. That includes building planned trails, improving existing trails, and keeping focused on our long-term goals of sustainable and safe mobility and recreation for all DC residents.

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More about the Capital Trails Coalition: The Capital Trails Coalition is a collaboration of over 75 public and private organizations, agencies, and volunteer advocates, across DC, Montgomery and Prince George’s County in Maryland, and Arlington, Alexandria, and Fairfax in Virginia, working together to complete a 990-mile interconnected network of multi-use trails in the national capital region. The founding partners include the Washington Area Bicyclist Association, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, and the National Park Service. The coalition’s mission is to create and celebrate the Capital Trails Network: a world-class network of multi-use trails that are equitably distributed throughout the Washington D.C. metropolitan region. The regional trails network will transform public life by providing healthy, low-stress access to open space and reliable transportation for people of all ages and abilities.