A digital sign board placed on Woodmont Avenue between Elm Street and Bethesda Avenue has been displaying a message for several days. "Woodmont to be closed on or about 6/1/26." It doesn't specify why, for how long, or which segment of Woodmont it applies to. Over the last few days, I have combed through the Montgomery County Department of Transportation website news releases and projects page, and find no information about this closure. I've also reviewed the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Services Center newsletters going back several weeks, and have found no mention of this. I asked MCDOT on X about the closure two days ago, and have not received a response as of this writing.
This will potentially be a major disruption to traffic in the Bethesda Row area and beyond. It will impact residents and businesses alike. And it is only a few days away. The public really needs to be informed by Montgomery County of the specifics of this closure.
34 comments:
I'll bet that the Council wants to experiment with a pedestrian thoroughfare. They already have no regard in implementing severely underutilized bike lanes on OGR. They probably took a trip to Europe and thought how cute.
Meh, traffic will be fine. There are plenty of other ways around the block. It worked out during covid.
WSSC is replacing a large water main valve on Woodmont between Leland and Wisconsin
Friday, May 12, 2023
Residents launch petition to stop WSSC's planned 5-month closure of Woodmont Avenue segment in Bethesda
I wonder if it is related to the use of one of those building cranes. Or perhaps it is construction on the pipes under the roadway.
The most likely want to duplicate the . . . Yellow Brick Road!
I believe this closure is for a construction project to replace a very large water main valve in Woodmont near the Solaire Apartments garage entrance. There is also a pop-up street fare in Bethesda Row on Woodmont Avenue on June 6 and 7, but not likely related. Ahh, summertime in Bethesda, the season of orange construction cones and Jersey barriers…
Sure hope you’re right! It would be fantastic to have more pedestrian only spaces. Cars are a plague on urban areas.
There's a massive new pedestrian crosswalk under construction right now on Old Georgetown Road. It's at the site where another crossing with flashing lights has been in use. This one looks like it's going to be similar to the one on democracy right across from WJ that has actual stop lights to signal drivers to stop on red as pedestrians are crossing. But if you look at the light poles, they're pointed straight up in the air. Very bizarre.
WSSC has a project planned, apparently.
Typical moco poor choices when deciding what is best for its population. Repeal the gas powered leaf blower ban as well as remove the non used bikes lanes and do not close woodmont ave. Time for some sanity To return to our county government.
Ain't just Europe, people have the bright idea that it's great for business to have no cars and only walking areas. I would love to see how the people who are responsible for these ideas actually utilize their creations. I would dare say you won't be seeing those people biking or walking on Little Falls any time soon.
Totally agree! The worst thing we can do is allow these ding dongs to travel abroad.
They always come back attempting to apply Euro-socialist “solutions” to American communities.
Dream on! Fat chance!
The have also planned The Chevy Chase Terrace Water Main Replacement to start in the Spring of 2027, with estimated construction duration of 2.5 years.
I appears that, when looking at the candidates for county executive, sanity is NOT returning to the county any time soon. Gird your loins, or do what many others are doing - escape.
This is the problem with politicians in general. They all should be made to live with the legislation they pass.
How can sanity return when the candidates are from the Round Robin council?
Crane were for replacing air conditioners on roof of office bldg at the corner of st Elmo and Woodmont
Crane was to replace air conditioning on bldg @ corner of St Elmo and Woodmont
Perhaps they want to transform it like the "Little Folls Pathway."
When our county government is modeled after Tammany Hall, it is not an easy task.
NIMBY's are so goofy. Clutching their pearls over... sidewalks and bike lanes. They won't be happy until every available centimeter of ground is covered in asphalt.
Absurd statement but that's what's expected from our angry little federal drone. All one needs to do is look at the bike utilization of OGR. LFP has a few more but only because of the CCT and is still woefully underused.
Seen OGR lately?
@10:49 oh no, look out, it's a big scary bike! It's gonna ride through downtown Bethesda! THE HORRORRRRRRRRR
8:28 probably disappointed their parents with the lack of any cohesive arguments. No big deal to have so many workers who can't afford to live in Bethesda idle in rush hour traffic to and from the 270 spur so the two or three people daily can occupy 1/3 of a major commuter road. "Fat, Drunk and Stupid is no way to go through life son"
@12:13 Yes, we can only have bike lanes or highways. Not both! Only one.
You're following me from post to post and it's weird. It's giving parasocial relationship. Or maybe a desperate cry for attention?
As usual, the response from 8:07 contains no reasoning as to why the council took away 1/3 of a major road that is rarely used by bikes.
Sorry for calling you drunk as you're still "working".
Though I'm sure it'll be tough for some residents of Bethesda to navigate the road with an evil bike lane looming menacingly next to them, I'm confident in their abilities to navigate these treacherous conditions.
10:11 must be either chronically ignorant and absolutely apathetic but I get it, who cares about people who don' live in Bethesda and need to sit in traffic because it's all about you and we're here for that.
Yes, because closing one lane on one block in downtown Bethesda is just as easy as widening miles of 270 and 495. Those two sound like completely comparable projects. But as we know, we can only do one or the other, never both, so this time we have to be mad about bike lanes.
Can't cure a closed mind that only cares about themselves while the rest can go fish. Hypocrite should be your moniker.
@7:17 I prefer Uno over Go Fish myself.
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