Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich joined Silver Spring community members and Federal, State and local officials on Nov. 15 to dedicate the new Park Valley Road Bridge over Sligo Creek in Silver Spring. The Montgomery County Department of Transportation (MCDOT) managed the project that includes realignment of the nearby Sligo Creek Hiker/Biker Trail.
The bridge is located on Park Valley Road over Sligo Creek—about two-tenths of a mile from Piney Branch Road in Silver Spring
County Executive Elrich and MCDOT Director Chris Conklin talked about the significant safety improvements that the new bridge will deliver, while preserving the character of the original bridge—including its stone design. The bridge and reconfigured trail project will improve pedestrian and bicycle safety, access to the hiker/biker trail, will meet ADA standards and will improve traffic safety.
The 1931-vintage bridge was in poor condition. The new 34-foot, single-span bridge includes a 5-foot, 8-inch-wide sidewalk on the south side. An 85-foot approach roadway and an 85-foot sidewalk connector tie the bridge to the existing roadway and trail.
The project includes a 12-foot-wide, 65-foot-long, steel truss pedestrian bridge over Sligo Creek; a new, 10-foot-wide, 213-foot-long hard surface trail that links the new pedestrian bridge to the existing Sligo Creek Trail; a safer, reconfigured intersection at Park Valley Road/Sligo Creek Parkway with a new crosswalk and a six-foot-wide trail pedestrian/bicyclist refuge median on Park Valley Road; and a new, five-foot-wide, 190-foot-long natural surface pedestrian path along the existing hard surface trail.
The total project’s cost was $4.85 million. It was funded with approximately $3.5 million in federal funds and $1.3 million in local funds.
Learn more about the project here.
