2023 District of Columbia Code › Title 50 - Motor and Non-Motor Vehicles and Traffic › Chapter 23D - Complete Streets › § 50–2381. Complete Streets policy

§ 50–2381. Complete Streets policy.
(a) For the purposes of this section, the term:
(1) "Complete Streets policy" means a policy by which streets are designed, operated, and maintained to accommodate safe and convenient access and mobility for all users of the District's transportation system, including pedestrians, bicyclists, users of mass transit, motorists, emergency responders, and persons of all ages and abilities.
(2) "Highway" means any street, road, or public thoroughfare that is under the jurisdiction and control of the District, when any part thereof is open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular or pedestrian travel.
(b) The District Department of Transportation ("DDOT") shall create a Complete Streets policy, which shall contain, at a minimum, the following goals:
(1) Improving safety and promoting healthy communities by encouraging walking, bicycling, and using public transportation;
(2) Establishing a District-wide integrated system of vehicle, bicycle, and pedestrian infrastructure;
(3) Accommodating and balancing the choice, safety, and convenience of all users of the District's transit network, while recognizing that individual corridors have modal priorities;
(4) Protecting the environment and reducing congestion by providing safe alternatives to single-occupancy driving;
(5) Involving local residents and stakeholders in planning and design decisions;
(6) Actively looking for opportunities to repurpose highways to enhance connectivity for pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit; and
(7) Improving non-motorized use of highways within one quarter mile of schools and parks.
(b-1) Not Funded.
(c) DDOT shall incorporate the Complete Streets policy into the Transportation Strategic Plan, the Pedestrian Master Plan, the Bicycle Master Plan, and other DDOT plans, manuals, rules, regulations, and programs, including the construction, reconstruction, and maintenance of all highways, unless:
(1) Use of a particular highway by specified users is prohibited by law, including within interstate highway corridors, in which case DDOT shall endeavor to accommodate such users elsewhere, including on highways that cross or otherwise intersect with the affected highway;
(2) The costs would be excessively disproportionate to the need or probable use of the particular highway; or
(3) The safety of vehicular, pedestrian, or bicycle traffic would be placed at an unacceptable risk.
(d) By July 1, 2017, and annually thereafter, DDOT shall report to the Council on the agency's progress towards implementing the Complete Streets policy during the previous calendar year, as well as plans for further implementation of the Complete Streets policy during the upcoming year. These reports shall incorporate performance measures established by DDOT to determine how well streets are serving all users and identify barriers to implementing the Complete Streets policy.
(e) The Mayor, pursuant to subchapter I of Chapter 5 of Title 2, may issue rules to implement the provisions of this section.
(Oct. 8, 2016, D.C. Law 21-155, § 301, 63 DCR 10143; Dec. 23, 2020, D.C. Law 23-158, § 7(e), 67 DCR 13057.)
Applicability
Applicability of D.C. Law 23-158: § 14 of D.C. Law 23-158 provided that the change made to this section by § 7(e)(2) of D.C. Law 23-158 is subject to the inclusion of the law’s fiscal effect in an approved budget and financial plan. Therefore that amendment has not been implemented.
Editor's Notes
For requirement of the issuance of rules to implement title 7 of Law 21-155, see § 703 of D.C. Law 21-155.