The District Department of Transportation (DDOT), Infrastructure Project Management Administration (IPMA) is conducting a safety evaluation along New Jersey Avenue, NW between H and N Streets, NW to determine improvements necessary to address existing safety and traffic operational deficiencies within the corridor. Upon completion of this evaluation, engineering plans for safety and traffic operations improvements within the corridor will be developed to implement the recommended alternative.

A design project was identified as part of the Mount Vernon Triangle Transportation and Public Realm Design Project’s recommendations to convert New Jersey Avenue to two-way operation. In early 2008, engineering on the Mount Vernon design had proceeded to a 65 percent level of completion. At this point the project was put on hold for a variety of reasons, including a different geometric concept prepared by DDOT.

Recently, the project was re-instituted to address safety concerns in the corridor and has been re-scoped conduct an alternatives analysis to identify opportunities to re-allocate right-of-way space for other modes including transit vehicles, cyclists and pedestrians. Once a new alternative is determined, the design project would include the following elements:

• Widen at the intersection of New Jersey Avenue, New York Avenue, and M Street Intersections to support the two-way operation.
• Widen at the intersection of New Jersey Avenue, 2nd Street/I Street Intersection to support the two-way operation.
• Upgrade all lighting within the corridor to the new LED standard.
• Reconstruct all of the traffic signals in the corridor, including providing new ADA pedestrian ramps, countdown pedestrian signals and Accessible Pedestrian Signals.
• Update all sidewalks in the corridor to meet ADA requirements.
• Evaluate drainage needs and update as necessary.
• Reconstruct all curbing to the Washington, DC granite curb standard.
• Update all landscaping along the corridor to increase beautification.
• Conduct geotechnical analysis to determine pavement repair needs to address crash patterns that may be caused by rutting pavement.
• Re-time all traffic signals to improve corridor operation and potentially reduce rear-end and other crashes attributable to poor signal timing.
• Improve signing and pavement markings in the corridor.