| Bethesda Trolley Trail | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Length | 5.9 mi (9.5 km) |
| Location | Montgomery County, Maryland |
| Use | Walking,Jogging,Biking |
| Difficulty | Easy, level, ADA accessible |
| Season | Year-round |
| Months | Year-round |
| Surface | Asphalt |
| Trail map | |
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TheBethesda Trolley Trail, at one time[when?] known as theNorth Bethesda Trail, is a 5.9-mile (9.5 km)rail trail in southernMontgomery County, Maryland. It runs from Bouic Avenue next to theTwinbrook Metro Station in thecity ofRockville to Battery Lane Park inBethesda.[1][2]
Thetrail runs primarily on the abandonedright-of-way of thestreetcar line that connected Bethesda to Rockville, but also partially on roads, sidewalks, and side paths.
In 1891, theTennallytown (Tenleytown) and Rockville Railroad began operations along a line that came north to Bethesda onWisconsin Avenue, turned left onOld Georgetown Road, and terminated at Bethesda Park, a 50-acre amusement park built by the railroad on the west side of Old Georgetown Road between the modern-day streets of Cedar and Greentree Road.[3][4] By 1900, theWashington and Rockville Electric Railway had laid tracks from the T&R's terminus to Rockville, though full operation would begin only in 1904.[5][6] Streetcars stopped running to Rockville in 1935, when the service was converted to buses.[7] Some of the right-of-way then sat fallow for decades.
Building a trail on the unused part of the right-of-way was first suggested inMontgomery County's 1978 Countywide Bikeways Master Plan. Design of the trail began in the early 1990s. Construction was held up for many years by opposition from neighbors and lack of funding.[8] Funding for the bridges over I-495 and I-270 was approved in 1999.[9]
Construction of the trail began in fall of 2000 and lasted nearly a decade.[10][11][12] Money to rebuild existing sections of the trail was diverted to theForest Glen Metro overpass project, delaying work on the trail. Work was further delayed by the bridge fabrication.[12][13] Bridges overI-495 andI-270 opened in 2002 and 2003 respectively, adding to narrow, discontinuous sections that existed before 2002 between Nicholson Lane and Beech Avenue.[14][15] Paving and building the missing trail segments from the Old Georgetown Pike/Cedar Lane intersection to the intersection ofRandolph Road withRockville Pike began in November 2005, and continued into 2006.[16] Between Charles Street and Cedar Lane and north of Nicholson Lane, the trail was on sidewalks. Around the same time, theNational Institutes of Health (NIH) built a trail along the south edge of their facility, which connected Rugby Avenue to the sidewalk alongOld Georgetown Road. In 2008, the new sections of the trail, including the sidewalks, received signage.[17] As part of the Montrose Parkway West project in 2009, a section of trail — a side path alongRockville Pike — was constructed from Per Sei Place to Hubbard Drive, north of theNorth Bethesda Metro Station. That section connected to a path built alongMontrose Parkway at the same time.[citation needed]
39°0′56″N77°6′43″W / 39.01556°N 77.11194°W /39.01556; -77.11194
