D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 10-A, § 404
404.1 Avenues and boulevards are much more than simple transportation routes. They are a legacy of the 1791 L'Enfant Plan and are still one of Washington, DC's most distinctive features. They were designed to be beautiful corridors lined with distinctive buildings, affording dramatic vistas for those passing by. Today, these corridors handle hundreds of thousands of private vehicles each day, as well as pedestrians, bicycles, trucks, and buses.
404.2 Different corridors in Washington, DC serve different functions. Some, like New York Avenue, carry heavy truck and commuter traffic. Others have wide sidewalks that provide a safe and pleasant environment for pedestrians. Still others were once vital shopping streets or streetcar lines that today have lost their neighborhood-serving activities and are checkered by drive-through and auto-oriented uses. As the gateways to Washington, DC's communities, the District's corridors should once again become the centers of civic and economic life for surrounding neighborhoods and serve as vital transportation corridors. Major avenues will also serve as focus areas for future smart-city investments that support these goals through enhancements in safety, transit service, and public amenities. The challenges facing the District as it plans for and reinvests in its corridors include balancing the various transportation modes, providing diverse and accessible transit options for all users, and tailoring its transportation strategies to recognize the function of each major street and foster economic growth.
404.3 Transit and non-auto travel have become major travel modes in the District, yet these modes have little roadway space dedicated to their exclusive use. One of the key moveDC strategies to enhance the District's multimodal system is to establish modal priorities on District streets. Per moveDC, every non-local street should prioritize pedestrians, accommodate driving and local deliveries, and support one of the following modes:
Decisions on which modes will be prioritized on streets are illustrated in the moveDC plan and are based on network connectivity, land use, and travel demand.
404.4 Policy T-1.2.1: Major Thoroughfare Improvements Beautify and stabilize gateways and major thoroughfares by implementing coordinated multimodal transportation, economic development, and urban design improvements.404.5 Policy T-1.2.2: Targeted Investment Target planning and public investment toward the specific corridors with the greatest potential to foster neighborhood improvements, create equitable outcomes that reduce barriers and transportation burdens, and enhance connectivity across Washington, DC and corridors that serve as gateways to the District, welcoming visitors, residents, and workers.404.6 Policy T-1.2.3: Discouraging Auto-Oriented Uses Discourage certain uses, like drive-through businesses or stores with large surface parking lots and minimize the number of curb cuts in new developments. Curb cuts and multiple vehicle access points break up the sidewalk, reduce pedestrian safety, and detract from pedestrian-oriented retail and residential areas.404.7 Policy T-1.2.4: Providing Roadway Space for All Modes Roadway space should be determined by the potential person-carrying capacity of the lane; modes with the ability to move the most people should be prioritized. These changes should be informed by the modal priorities identified in moveDC.404.8 Action T-1.2.A: Crosstown Corridors Implement the recommendations of the Crosstown Multimodal Transportation Study and the Florida Avenue Multimodal Transportation Study to improve mobility across town for all users of those corridors.
Please consult the Urban Design Element for additional policies and actions on streetscape and design standards for corridors.
SOURCE: District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Act of 1984, effective April 10, 1984 (D.C. Law 5-76; 31 DCR 1049 (March 9, 1984)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Act of 1984 Land Use Element Amendment Act of 1984, effective March 16, 1985 (D.C. Law 5-187; 32 DCR 873 (February 15, 1985)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Amendments Act of 1989, effective May 23, 1990 (D.C. Law 8-129; 37 DCR 55 (January 5, 1990)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Amendments Act of 1989 NCPC-Recommended Amendments, and Closing of Public Alleys in Square 669, S.O. 88-452, Act of 1990, effective May 23, 1990 (D.C. Law 8-132; 37 DCR 2213 (April 6, 1990)); as amended by District Government Land Use Temporary Amendment Act of 1994, effective October 1, 1994 (D.C. Law 10-190; 41 DCR 5360 (August 12, 1994)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendments Act of 1994, effective October 6, 1994 (D.C. Law 10-193; 41 DCR 5536 (August 19, 1994)); as amended by District of Columbia Comprehensive Plan Act of 1984 Land Use Amendment Act of 1994, effective March 21, 1995 (D.C. Law 10-235; 42 DCR 30 (January 6, 1995)); as amended by Technical Amendments Act of 1996, effective April 18, 1996 (D.C. Law 11-110; 43 DCR 530 (February 9, 1996)); as amended by Second Technical Amendments Act of 1996 effective April 9, 1997 (D.C. Law 11-255; 44 DCR 1271 (March 7, 1997)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 1998, effective April 27, 1999 (D.C. Law 12-275; 46 DCR 1441 (February 19, 1999)); as amended by Technical Amendments Act of 1999, effe
ctive April 12, 2000 (D.C. Law 13-91; 47 DCR 520 (January 28, 2000)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 2006, effective March 8, 2007 (D.C. Law 16-300; 54 DCR 924 (February 2, 2007)); as amended by Technical Amendments Act of 2008, effective March 25, 2009 (D.C. Law 17-353; 56 DCR 1117 (February 6, 2009)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 2010, effective April 8, 2011 (D.C. Law 18-361; 58 DCR 908 (February 4, 2011)); as amended by Comprehensive Plan Amendment Act of 2021, effective August 21, 2021 (D.C. Law 24-20; 68 DCR 006918 (July 16, 2021)).