The District wants to transform the center of K Street into a two-lane bus thoroughfare, while relegating all other traffic to three lanes on each side.
The city had spent years mulling a major change to the high-profile artery to speed buses through the notoriously congested center of the city. This fall, officials looked at creating either a three-lane or two-lane bus transitway along a portion of the street.
But on Wednesday, the District Department of Transportation posted to its Web site plans for the two-lane busway option, a concession to local business leaders as it offers a part-time lane on the side for parking and loading.
The plan would revamp the roadway between 9th and 20th streets NW so two middle lanes would only allow Metrobuses and the D.C. Circulator. The street has some of the heaviest Metrobus traffic in the District, and dedicated bus lanes have long been sought by Metro and transit advocates to promote more ridership.
All other vehicles — including commuter buses from Maryland and Loudoun County, cars, trucks, and bikes — would share up to three lanes on each side of the transitway.
During non-rush hours, one of those side lanes would be set aside for parking, loading zones and bikers.
Local business leaders had pushed for a parking option during public hearings in the fall, arguing that stores and restaurants needed a way to accept deliveries to survive. But biking advocates fought all the options under consideration, saying bicyclists needed a safer option such as a bike lane physically separated from cars.
The new layout will vary somewhat from the three-two-three lane model along the 11-block stretch because the street widens and narrows around parks. But the changes do mean no left turns throughout, with one exception: turning while eastbound on K Street onto 14th Street.
Now the key is how to pay for it. The city is expecting to hear if it won a competitive federal stimulus grant by Feb. 17. If the $139 million for that portion of the project is received, the city says it could begin construction by mid-2010.
But without the stimulus money, the city has no schedule for the project. The city doesn’t have any other money allocated for it, said DDOT spokeswoman Karyn Le Blanc.
If the grant is received, though, it would take about two years to build, she said. That period could mean headaches on the already busy road. But Le Blanc said the city planned to work with local businesses and residents to coordinate the construction phases.
