Photo by kobito.

It appears as if the National Park Service has backtracked on previous statements that the installation of a Capital Bikeshare station located on the National Mall would “destroy the nature” of America’s backyard. The Post’s Tim Craig reports this afternoon that Capital Bikeshare docks are indeed on their way to the Mall, possibly as soon as “early next year.”

Park Service officials have cited existing contracts with bicycle rental companies and concerns about whether the stations would interfere with the historical significance of its property in the Washington region. As a result, Capital Bikeshare users wanting to go to the Mall to sightsee or for recreational activities such as softball games have been forced to drop off and pick up bicycles at stations in other areas downtown, which can be up to a half-mile away from some popular tourist and recreational attractions.

But after discussions between city and federal officials, there is growing agreement that the bike-share desert in the heart of the District could soon come to an end.

“There are still a number of issues we need to work out, but we are hoping we can resolve those issues so we can start it up early next year,” said Carol Johnson, a spokeswoman for the National Mall and Memorials Park branch of the National Park Service. “Earlier, we were looking at whether they can get on the Mall, but now we are looking for a way to get them on the Mall.”

There are still hurdles to overcome, like determining who precisely will pay for the buildout and maintenance of the Mall stations and the always-complex bevy of reviews involved whenever anything wants to take up space on the Mall. But the positives of installing a Bikeshare station on the National Mall are so blindingly obvious that they would hopefully overwhelm any sort of nitpicking which could derail the plan.