Late night road striping in downtown Bethesda raises worker safety questions (Photos)

A road crew was out performing road striping operations in downtown Bethesda's Woodmont Triangle late last night into this morning. The crew was striping a crosswalk and stop line in front of the Tastee Diner on Norfolk Avenue at Woodmont Avenue. It's interesting that they could do this without closing the street to traffic. There also wasn't any protection for the crew from vehicles or drunk drivers, or even cones and lights or flares to alert drivers to their presence. This is an extremely dangerous work environment for these men. Who in Montgomery County government is supervising this?

Look how dark it is - would a drunk driver
be likely to see this crew while making a
left turn from Woodmont?

These men need more safety protection

Nighttime work ahead for Purple Line in Bethesda, Chevy Chase

Additional overnight work hours may be needed this summer for the Purple Line light rail project between Bethesda and New Carrollton. The Maryland Transit Administration advises that some work may need to take place between 5:00 AM and 7:00 AM, or during the overnight hours. Areas impacted within Montgomery County include Bethesda, Chevy Chase, Lyttonsville, Silver Spring, and Long Branch. Concrete pours in particular may need to occur in the cooler hours after dark. "Hot weather can cause issues while placing concrete due to rapid curing that can occur at higher ambient temperatures," the MTA said in a statement. "Crews will prioritize the noisiest work to the daytime shifts."

NIghttime lane closures ahead at Chevy Chase Lake

Watch for nighttime lane closures on Connecticut Avenue between Jones Bridge Road and Dunlop Street in Chevy Chase beginning tomorrow night, September 15, 2024. The Purple Line construction-related closures will take place as needed for about three weeks. Crews will be completing utility work under the Purple Line bridge at Chevy Chase Lake during that time. Work hours will be from 9:00 PM to 5:00 AM.

Washington Gas works overnight on Arlington Road in Bethesda

Washington Gas worked overnight on its utilities beneath Arlington Road in Bethesda. The work zone was in the vicinity of the Hampden Lane intersection, closing lanes on both streets. Two weeks ago, a major gas leak on Norfolk Avenue required a multi-day response from the utility.

Washington Gas works overnight to repair gas leak in Bethesda (Photos)

Sometimes the street has something to say about the Streetery. A gas leak at Norfolk Avenue near Cordell Avenue in Bethesda around 7:30 PM last night disrupted dinner plans for many. The area was evacuated by Montgomery County first responders as a precaution. A Washington Gas crew continued to make repairs over the night into this morning. The Bethesda Streetery section of Norfolk, which had been closed for a concert and outdoor dining Friday evening, remained closed to traffic as work continued.

Road closure ahead tonight near Solaire 7607 Old Georgetown Road apartment tower in Bethesda

Mobile crane operations will halt all traffic on Old Georgetown Road between Wisconsin and Woodmont Avenues in Bethesda starting tonight, June 9, 2023 at 10:00 PM until 3:00 PM on Sunday, June 11. The work is being done at the Solaire 7607 Old Georgetown Road apartment tower. Watch for flagmen directing traffic to a detour. Should inclement weather disrupt the planned work, it will be rescheduled to start on Saturday. The contractor has promised to reduce nighttime noise as much as possible for residents in nearby buildings. Keep a pair of earplugs handy just in case...

Overnight utility work begins on River Road at Ridgefield Road in Bethesda (Photos)

A major utility relocation project began a day late last night at the intersection of River Road and Ridgefield Road in Bethesda. The work is related to the larger project of realigning Westbard Avenue to connect directly to River at this intersection, and will continue nightly until July 1, 2022. As expected, several lanes of River were temporarily closed, as workers used large saws to slice open the pavement. The main River Road entrance to Kenwood was completely shut down during last night's work; Ridgefield Road will close for 16 months starting at 12:00 AM on June 5, 2022.

Nighttime noise, road closures near Avocet Tower site in Bethesda next month

Underground utility upgrades along Montgomery Avenue in downtown Bethesda will necessitate lane closures and nighttime work early next month. The work will be alongside the Avocet Tower construction site between Wisconsin Avenue and Waverly Street.

Due to the potential impact on rush hour traffic, the Maryland State Highway Administration is requiring the contractor to perform the work at night between 9:00 PM and 5:00 AM. The project is anticipated to begin on or around November 4, 2019.

Nighttime utility work blocks Tastee Diner (Video+Photos)

Workers digging along Norfolk Avenue and Wisconsin Avenue partially blocked views of and access to the Tastee Diner on a Friday night in downtown Bethesda. This can't have been good for business. There were several lane closures in the area. Tastee Diner is open 24 hours.

Nighttime utility work continues near Marriott site in Bethesda (Video+Photos)

Bethesda's nighttime economy may have tanked after the Montgomery County Council's disastrous Nighttime Economy Task Force, but the nighttime noise and utility work markets are still booming. A crew closed several lanes again around the intersection of Norfolk and Woodmont Avenues last night, by the Marriott headquarters construction site.

Utility work on Woodmont Avenue in Bethesda (Video+Photos)

An all-too-familiar sight was seen on Woodmont Avenue at Norfolk Avenue last night in downtown Bethesda:  a utility crew tearing up the street and closing traffic lanes down. This may be related to the Marriott headquarters project nearby on that block.

Utility work continues in the Woodmont Triangle

Work crews are closing lanes and digging up streets day and night in downtown Bethesda. The curb lane of Woodmont Avenue behind 8200 Wisconsin, the DoubleTree hotel, the Bethesda Medical Building and the "apartment building for homeless people" was closed down Monday afternoon.

Disabled and elderly patients were unable to easily access the rear entrances at the medical building. I observed three seniors with walkers being obstructed trying to access the building in only 15 minutes. A greyish slime resembling cement was gurgling down the gutter and edge of the street as workers used large saws to cut into the asphalt.

After nightfall, another crew started working in one of the hotspots for utility problems, Old Georgetown Road north of Cordell Avenue.

WSSC nighttime work on Rugby Avenue starting Sunday night

Another part of the WSSC project to replace the Battery Lane water main is scheduled to begin tomorrow night, Sunday, October 14, 2018. That night, Monday night, and Wednesday night, expect lane closures and nighttime work on Rugby Avenue, according to a WSSC service bulletin. In case of inclement weather or unexpected problems, the schedule will be moved to the next business day.

Generators, pumps and heavy vehicles and equipment will be employed, increasing noise levels. WSSC says residents nearby should not experience a loss of water service during the work. They might experience discolored water, or air trapped in their pipes. Customers are advised to flush their cold water lines in both cases.

Little Falls Parkway Pepco project takes residents, MoCo officials by surprise

A major Pepco project has gotten underway on Little Falls Parkway in Bethesda, without any public announcement. Drivers began to see heavy equipment and ominous liquid nitrogen tanks along the road, which has been reduced to one lane on the northbound side north of Dorset Avenue to near Hillandale Road. Work has been going on around the clock since late last week, leaving people to wonder what is going on, as clouds of unidentified vapors rose over the work site.

Now I have the story. According to the project's manager at Pepco, who was very helpful in providing information about the project, the utility is remodeling its substation at 5210 Wisconsin Avenue N.W. in Friendship Heights. As part of that, they are upgrading a segment of underground transmission line that leads into the substation from the parkway on one end, and from the 3600 block of Van Ness Street N.W. on the other end. To replace the segment, they must access the feeder lines at both locations.

The liquid nitrogen is being used to freeze fluid in the Pepco "pipes" so that they can be opened. This is not a one-nighter project. Work on the first feeder will continue until Christmas of this year. The second feeder project will run from March 2019 to the first week in June 2019.

Apparently, Pepco was not required to hold public meetings on the project. They do have a permit to perform the work, and according to Pepco, they have alerted the Maryland State Highway Administration and Montgomery County Department of Transportation. 

However, there was no reference to the project in either of the two September email update newsletters MCDOT put out. Montgomery Parks officials said that, while they were aware of the project plans, they did not get a heads-up from Pepco, and said they would be sending staff out to the site after being contacted for this report. Pepco apparently did not hold a standard pre-project meeting with Montgomery Parks before starting the work, either.

Pepco's Harrison Street substation, which is
connected to Little Falls Parkway by underground
power lines. Who knew?

Work on the project ceased for the day Wednesday due to weather conditions, but as you can see in these photos, the lane closure remained in effect. According to the real estate website Curbed DC, Pepco's Harrison Street Substation at 5210 Wisconsin N.W. was designated a historic landmark by the District last year. Built in 1940, it has an Art Moderne design to blend in with other commercial buildings that surround it.

Purple Line night shifts to start Monday on Elm Street

Purple Line Transit Partners announced Friday that construction crews will begin night shifts on the light rail project in downtown Bethesda on Monday, July 16, 2018. The activity will be on Elm Street from 2:30 PM to 11:00 PM on weeknights. They did not specify what the nature of the work will be.

Night work scheduled at 4747 Bethesda Ave. project next month

Update 8:31 AM: A correction was made regarding the dimensions of the window units; they are 24' tall. 

Ferguson Neudorf Glass Inc., a Canadian firm, has requested a Temporary Noise Waiver from Montgomery County for nighttime work at the JBG Smith 4747 Bethesda Avenue project. The contractor will be installing 24' tall unitized window units. 4747 consists of the 2-story retail building already constructed, and the office tower going up next to it.

Unitized window units are usually manufactured offsite, glazed, and then transported to the building site. There, they are lifted into place on the building.

The work will be performed between the hours of 5:00 PM and 1:00 AM Monday through Friday, and on weekends between 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM. Installation is currently scheduled to begin around April 3, 2018, and be completed by June 30. Night hours were chosen to avoid impacting the movement of traffic and pedestrians on Bethesda Avenue during business hours on weekdays.

Residents of The Seasons, The Darcy and The Flats at Bethesda Avenue - you know the drill. Time to stock up on earplugs, and fire up the white noise machine.