Media Contact: Karyn Le Blanc at (202) 671-3490

(Washington, DC) Mayor Adrian Fenty and the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) announced today that Pepco would grant a right of entry agreement for property in the city’s Eckington neighborhood. This agreement will allow DDOT to immediately begin the design for Phase II of the Metropolitan Branch Trail (MBT)*, a section located between New York Avenue, NE and Franklin Street, NE. Pepco will formally donate the land to the District in the next few months. The construction will link various independent sections into a three-mile stretch of continuous trail.

“The MBT will connect kids to schools, people to their jobs, provide for a place for recreation as well as act as a transportation corridor which will help to reduce energy consumption in the city,” said Mayor Adrian M. Fenty.

The trail will provide a vital connection to the New York Avenue Metro station in addition to the recently announced bicycle/pedestrian bridge connecting the trail to the Rhode Island Metro station.

“This land donation furthers Pepco’s commitment to the District, its residents and the environment,” said Pepco Region President Thomas Graham. “It’s a natural connection. The land is adjacent to our new substation that is partially powered by solar panels.”

The MBT is a planned eight-mile bicycle and pedestrian trail between Union Station and Takoma Park, Md. The new addition to the trail will take users over Florida Avenue, under New York Avenue and over Rhode Island Avenue, avoiding eighteen lanes of heavily traveled roadway. It will connect to the Capital Crescent Trail, the Anacostia Tributaries Trail System and the National Mall, and will be part of the East Coast Greenway. The MBT will be an important recreation and transportation route and will provide direct access to seven of Metro’s Red Line stations.

“This is a critical step for construction on one of our most important trail projects. DDOT is extremely pleased to finally reach this agreement,” added DDOT Director Emeka Moneme.

In 2005, the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) developed the concept plan for the eight miles of the trail within District boundaries. Currently, built are sections of the trail along 2nd Street, NE, at the New York Ave. Metro Station, and along John McCormack Road. Scheduled for completion by summer of 2009 is the section from New York Avenue to Franklin Street. In addition, the projected completion on Construction for Phase II is by summer 2009.

For additional information on the MBT visit www.metbranchtrail.com or www.ddot.dc.gov.