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NCPC briefed on Little Falls Parkway safety and bicycle improvements; environmental assessment to be posted for comment
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Summary
Montgomery County Parks and NCPC staff briefed commissioners on planned pedestrian and bicycle safety improvements and a permanent two-lane configuration for a 0.4-mile segment of Little Falls Parkway in Bethesda; NCPC staff will publish an Environmental Assessment for 30 days and review the project in September.
NCPC staff provided an informational briefing on proposed safety and mobility improvements on a 0.4-mile section of Little Falls Parkway in Bethesda, Maryland, referred to NCPC under the Capper-Crampton Act. Montgomery County Parks described a multiyear process that included interim road-diet trials, an open-parkways pilot and traffic studies showing significant crash reductions after a temporary lane reduction at the Capital Crescent Trail crossing.
County staff described the proposed action as a permanent conversion to a two-lane configuration separated by the existing median, with a protected shared-use path adjacent to the trail crossing, buffered bike lanes, intersection improvements (reduced curb radii, accessible landings), and removal of unused pavement to provide environmental benefits in a stream-valley park setting. Staff emphasized that the county will maintain emergency access and that low-profile separators and buffers will be used where full barriers are not feasible.
NCPC explained its review role under the Capper-Crampton Act and noted the commission is preparing a NEPA Environmental Assessment and Section 106 review. The EA will include a no-action alternative and the action alternative referred by Montgomery County; NCPC will post the draft EA for a 30-day public comment period in June and anticipates commission review in September.
Commissioners asked about coordination with bicycle advocates, pedestrian/cyclist conflicts on multiuse segments, and community concerns about congestion and development pressure; county staff said they had engaged WABA/WAVA and other stakeholders, and that traffic analyses support the road-diet approach while acknowledging some opposition from drivers.
