Over the next 8 years, the Long Bridge project will dramatically improve transportation across the Potomac River, by doubling rail capacity and building a brand new connection for bikes & pedestrians from Long Bridge Park in Arlington to East Potomac Park in DC.

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but the current plan for the design of the bike & pedestrian bridge reflects short-term thinking.  The proposed design is 14' wide with vertical barriers for safety on each side.  While 14' would be a good width for a well-used trail across a park, the barriers on either side narrow the effective width of the trail.  Trail users, especially those on bikes and scooters have a natural aversion to riding too close to vertical barriers.  VDOT's trail guidelines recognize this and require a 3' buffer between a trail and any vertical barrier.

Effectively removing 3' of usable space on each side of a 14' trail leaves only 8' of usable space, which is insufficient for the expected number of trail users immediately on completion, let alone what that traffic may grow to over time.  Unlike a trail through a park which is relatively easy to widen later, it is our understanding that the width of a truss bridge is extremely difficult to change after construction.

Tell the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority to get this design right the first time, and build a 20' wide bike & pedestrian span.  This is the width of the new bike & pedestrian bridge on the W&OD Trail over Langston Boulevard.