
Originally Posted by
Brünř Moore
46,000 people, not all of whom live on campus (or even anywhere near it—grad students may show up from Australia once a year), etc. The population of CP is usually estimated at around 30k, and, given that the city stretches for about four miles along Rhode Island Avenue, not necessarily that small. Most plans for Bikeshare tend to concentrate around downtown and the campus, with an outpost by the Metro, maybe some in Old Town or Calvert Hills when the Cafritz development goes in; not much if anything north of MD-193/Greenbelt Road, save perhaps at Greenbelt Metro, about three miles and change from the Stamp Union by bike.
Plans for the Purple Line Trail, last I heard, was to run it the entire length of the line. This is part of the reason why, despite being the most deadly intersection in the county, we're not trying to make the University Boulevard/Riggs Road intersection from Hell in Adelphi less lethal—it's going to be ripped up during Purple Line construction, and a bike path put in. Ditto trying to forge connections between the NEBranch and Sligo Creek, which would connect College Park to Silver Spring and Takoma, where many students live and work. Of course, Governor Hogan has cut funding for the project pretty drastically, insisting that "unnecessary" features be cut...
To be perfectly honest, I'm not optimistic.
As far as popular bike routes—HECK YEAH! I mean, I'm one of many people who commutes from CP to DC (or vice versa) every day, and, as so many people who did the Cider Ride discovered, there's some really nice infrastructure in my part of the world. Granted, once you're out of the ATHA, it all just suddenly seems to die—heck, even within the area, you go from "really great!" to "nuttin" each time you cross a jurisdictional boundary (I usually cross about nine on my way in to work)—but in CP alone, we have the Indian Creek, Paint Branch, Trolly, and NEBranch trails, plus bike lanes, signposting, speed humps, and planning for more bike and pedestrian infrastructure and initiatives.
Campus to the Metro? Down the hill, cross US1 take Trolly Trail south, left to Metro. Mile and a half from the Stamp, IIRC. Cake.
CP to Greenbelt? Eff That Noise. The most direct route, 193, is best undertaken if you hate the idea of continued existence. Even the racers at Greenbelt Park will take back ways to avoid it. Usually, you either take the sidewalk, your own personal back way, or dismount and walk through Greenbelt Metro.
And thanks for catching my Subsidiary Error.
Bookmarks