Fletcher's Boathouse Transportation Upgrades Environmental Assessment

The National Park Service (NPS) is proposing transportation upgrades (the proposed project) for the Fletcher's Boathouse area (Fletcher's Cove) in Washington, DC. The purpose of the proposed project is to provide more direct and safer transportation connections between Canal Road and the Fletcher's Boathouse, the Chesapeake & Ohio (C&O) Canal towpath, and the Capital Crescent Trail. The transportation upgrades are needed to address the following concerns and ongoing issues affecting the Fletcher's Boathouse area:

-The single-lane entrance ramp provides the only access between the area and Canal Road for entering and exiting traffic, which can result in unsafe traffic situations;

-Safe access from Canal Road's eastbound/inbound traffic is nearly impossible due to the entrance ramp's configuration immediately adjacent and parallel to Canal Road;

-The geometry and grade differential between the entrance ramp and Canal Road creates inadequate sight distances for entering and exiting traffic;

-A one-lane road culvert (tunnel) with low clearance and poor sight distance provides the only vehicle access to the larger, lower parking lot west of the C&O Canal;

-Large fire trucks, ambulances, and river rescue crews are severely challenged in gaining unfettered access to the area during an emergency;

-Large equipment and trucks have very limited access to the area to perform repair and maintenance to park facilities and the DC Water Odor Abatement Facility;

-Existing pedestrian access routes to the project area from outside the park are unsafe and cause pedestrian/vehicular conflicts, and;

-Some portions of the area are not fully compliant with accessibility standards.

The EA will be available on the NPS Planning, Environment & Public Comment website from November 8th to December 13, 2019. http://parkplanning.nps.gov/FletchersEA

Comments may also be submitted in writing to:

Superintendent
Chesapeake and Ohio National Historical Park
Attn: Fletcher's Boathouse EA
1850 Dual Highway, Suite 100
Hagerstown, MD 21740

Public participation is vital to our planning process, which is conducted in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA).

Please Note: Before including an address, phone number, email address or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment—including your personal identifying information—may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

Document Content:

Fletchers_EA_Final_2019_11_05_508_Rev.pdf   (6.5 MB, PDF file) Fletchers_EA_Final_Appendices_2019_10_28_508.pdf   (22.5 MB, PDF file) Fletchers_EA_Final_App_C_AOE_2019_11_05_508.pdf   (9.6 MB, PDF file) Disclaimer: Links within the above document(s) were valid as of the date published. Note: Some of the files may be in PDF format and can be viewed using the Adobe Acrobat Reader software. You may download a free copy of from Adobe Systems.