News Release Date: February 2, 2018
To better facilitate emergency response for U.S. Park Police during construction, Morrow Drive NW will close to vehicle traffic at 9:30 a.m. Monday, February 5 and remain closed until Fall 2018. The road will remain open to pedestrians and bicyclists. Rock Creek Park is implementing this closure because active construction activities are adversely impacting access to and from the U.S Park Police district three substation and their ability to respond to emergency calls. Morrow Drive runs between Joyce Road NW and 16th Street NW. The Federal Highway Administration estimates that this closure will affect about 800 drivers during the morning hours of peak use. Detour signs will redirect drivers a few hundred yards up 16th Street for alternative access to Joyce Road NW. Drivers can also view a detour in Rock Creek Park’s online album of Beach Drive Detour Maps at go.nps.gov/beachdrive. The National Park Service and United States Park Police considered several alternatives to this closure, including a partial relocation of operations from the district three substation to the parking lot or other facilities at the nearby Carter Barron Amphitheater or Rock Creek Park Tennis Center. These options were ultimately dismissed due to cost, potential impacts to public use and the alternative structures’ relative distance from essential resources that would remain at the district three substation
