While reflecting on the death of his wife Sarah, who was hit and killed while riding her bike in Bethesda last year, Dan Langenkamp celebrated the completion of the Rhode Island Avenue Trolley Trail at an event Tuesday, while noting there’s still work that needs to be done.
“This choice that she made to ride her bike should not be a life or death choice, it should be one that you can do safely,” Langenkamp said. “I really urge us all to remember that this is an incomplete revolution.”
The completion of the extension has been a year in the making, with millions going toward the project that so many have waited for.
The $6.4 million bicycle-pedestrian route project will connect the Rhode Island Avenue Trolley Trail to the Anacostia Tributary Trail in Hyattsville, Maryland. The new, 10-foot wide, half-mile-long paved path stretches from Farragut Street to Charles Armentrout Drive, connecting to the Northwest Branch Trail that comes out of Silver Spring leading into D.C.
Joe McAndrew, assistant secretary for transportation for the state’s Department of Transportation, said the path will also improve safety and accessibility.
“It’s a critical connection, connecting the town of Hyattsville [and] College Park, to many trail connections that will take you into the District of Columbia, and throughout the state of Maryland,” McAndrew said.
Hyattsville leaders see it as another magnet for customers and visitors to the city’s restaurants, breweries and cultural scene.
“We have businesses that are served by the trail, so people can ride their bikes, they can walk to the businesses. It’s great,” Hyattsville Mayor Robert Croslin said.
WTOP’s Ciara Wells contributed to this report.
