On June 12, Planning Board Chair Casey Anderson will lead a bike tour through the communities to gain a clearer understanding of planning recommendations and goals
SILVER SPRING, MD – Montgomery County Planning Board Chair Casey Anderson will join staff from the County Planning Department and Department of Parks, part of The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, on a bicycle tour of the communities in the southern portion of the County that are the subjects of current Sector Plans.
On Friday, June 12, from 11 am to 4 pm, the group will travel mostly on the Capital Crescent Trail to visit Lyttonsville, Downtown Bethesda and Westbard. Sector Plans for these communities are in process and the bike tour will highlight those areas now under consideration for improvements.
“The bike tour will allow us to experience the planning areas at a more fine-grained level of detail,” says Anderson. “At the same time, it will help us identify the places where a safer, more connected bicycle network is still needed in the County.”
Join the bicycle tour
The public is invited to join the bike tour at the Planning Department headquarters (8787 Georgia Avenue, Silver Spring, MD) at 11 a.m. or can meet the group at various stops along the way. The 15-mile round trip is designed for experienced cyclists who must bring their own bikes and helmets. All participants are required to sign a form for indemnification and release of all claims before they begin the bike tour.
Planners will speak about their visions for Lyttonsville, Bethesda and Westbard at key stops along the tour route:
11:25 a.m. – Rosemary Hills Elementary School (behind the school at the sign for the future Capital Crescent Trail).
12:30 p.m. – Battery Lane Urban Park in Bethesda.
1:30 p.m. – Veteran’s Park in Bethesda (Fairmont and Norfolk Avenues).
2:30 p.m. – Giant Shopping Center in Westbard (west side of the parking lot near Kenwood Condominium).
3:30 – 4:00 p.m. – Return to Planning Department headquarters at 8787 Georgia Avenue.
All times are approximate and subject to change.
Understand bicycle planning goals
In addition to showcasing Sector Plan areas, the tour will help participants understand the goals of the Countywide Bicycle Master Plan. This Plan will be launched in July 2015 to develop a high-quality, low-stress bicycle network reflecting the newest types of bikeways, such as separated and buffered bike lanes, and bicycle boulevards, as well as secure bicycle storage facilities at transit stations.
The Bicycle Master Plan will initially focus on creating a high-quality bicycle network along the rapidly developing route of the future Corridor Cities Transitway, a 15-mile bus rapid transit (BRT) line proposed to run from the Shady Grove Metrorail Station, through the Life Sciences Center area and ultimately to Germantown and Clarksburg.