The National Park Service is asking the public if the upper part of Beach Drive in Rock Creek Park should remain closed to traffic, as it has been during the pandemic, or revert back to being a commuter route connecting D.C. to Maryland.

More than 250 people attended a virtual meeting on Thursday to hear details on the options. The informational meeting kicked off a six-month National Environmental Policy Act study process that must be completed before NPS can make any permanent changes to the roadway.

Public comments are being accepted through August 22, with a final decision expected later this year. In the meantime, the road will remain closed to most vehicular traffic, as it has been since the spring of 2020.

During the virtual meeting, the online chatbox served as a primer of the arguments for and against keeping Beach Drive mostly closed to cars. Runners, cyclists, and other recreationists said the road has become a haven for safe outdoor play. But some nearby residents said they are worried about spillover traffic on residential roads; roughly 5,000 to 8,000 vehicles used the road on a daily basis pre-pandemic. They argued for adding bike lanes or paths along the road, but NPS says it’s too narrow to do so.

Dueling petitions have circulated, with the one to close the road to traffic having 5,700 signatures and the one to reopen the road to traffic having about 1,300.

Rock Creek Park Superintendent Julia Washburn said the pandemic closure was dramatic and needed to be studied “to better understand possible long-term changes.” She said NPS is neutral as to the future of the road.

“I wouldn’t say that anything is a priority over anything else for us at this moment,” she said.

Last April, the upper part of Beach Drive from Broad Branch Road NW to the Maryland state line closed to traffic during the pandemic to allow more room for recreation. If the road remains the way it is now, NPS says vehicles would still have access to some picnic areas, but commuters couldn’t drive straight through the four-mile stretch, which connects D.C. to Maryland.

NPS is looking at two main options, but is also open to other submitted ideas:

Keep Beach Drive closed to cars

Weekend/holiday closure for recreation would become permanent and remain in place 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Vehicles would still have access to picnic areas, but commuters couldn’t drive straight through.

Washburn said NPS is still looking at data sets and determining what to analyze, but it will certainly focus on visitor use and experience, access and accessibility, traffic impacts, safety, recreational opportunities, and historic and cultural impacts.

The D.C. Council and Montgomery County Council have both passed resolutions asking NPS to keep the pandemic-era closures in place. D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton once backed the idea, but said she has since heard from many drivers who want it to stay open to traffic.

Environmental advocates said NPS should keep the changes as a way to curb climate change, but NPS says it will not be doing an analysis of climate change for this project as “the alternatives would not present enough of a difference … on climate change,” Washburn said.

Bring the cars back

Pre-COVID weekend and holiday closures for recreation would remain in place, but weekday through-traffic would be allowed.

Prior to the pandemic, up to 8,000 cars would use the roadway every weekday.

The weekend/holiday closures include Bingham Drive, Sherrill Drive and Beach Drive in three sections: from Broad Branch Road to Joyce Road NW, from Picnic Area 10 to Wise Road NW, and from West Beach Drive NW to the Maryland state line.

Between Joyce Road and Picnic Area 10, Beach Drive would stay open to vehicles to get to group picnic areas and parking lots.

A mix of both

NPS also wants to hear from residents about their ideas for the road.

Officials say the road could be closed to traffic based on time of idea, like non-rush hours, or by season, like summer. Or traffic closures could extend from Friday to Monday, which are traditionally less busy commuting days.