*NOTE: This section includes amendments by emergency legislation that will expire on March 19, 2026. To view the text of this section after the expiration of all emergency and temporary legislation, click this link: Past Permanent Version .*
(a) There is established a Public Life and Activity Zones Program ("Program") within DDOT that shall:
(1) Designate corridors in the District that shall be closed to personal vehicle traffic; and
(2) Advise the Mayor on the issuance of grants to support efforts to close the designated corridors to personal vehicles.
(1) The Program shall publish on DDOT's website a report no later than December 31, 2026, selecting 3 roadways in the District, each no less than one-eighth of a mile in contiguous length, that are suitable for closure to personal vehicles ("designated corridors") for at least 24 cumulative hours per week.
(2) At least one of the roadways selected for closure shall be in a neighborhood in Ward 5, Ward 7, or Ward 8 that suffers from high levels of traffic violence, air pollution, lack of safe access to public space, or low rates of physical activity.
(3) Before publishing the report identifying the designated corridors, the Program shall solicit feedback from residents, business owners, Advisory Neighborhood Commissions, Business Improvement Districts, Community Improvement Districts, Main Streets, and other entities within or abutting the designated corridor to personal vehicle traffic.
(4) One of the roadways selected pursuant to this subsection shall include the 2000-2400 blocks of 18th Street, NW, in Ward 1.
(c) The report required by subsection (b)(1) of this section shall include a summary of the corridors considered and the rationale for selecting the designated corridors, including:
(1) If the designated corridor has been closed to personal vehicle traffic for another event, such as an Open Streets event, farmer's market, or festival:
(A) A description of the other event and any challenges associated with those prior events; and
(B) Recommendations for addressing challenges identified pursuant to subparagraph (A) of this paragraph;
(2) Notable safety concerns regarding the designated corridor as identified by DDOT or the Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency;
(3) Recommendations for any new or improved traffic infrastructure that would promote:
(A) Pedestrian travel to and within the designated corridor, such as sidewalk extensions and curb bump-outs, developed in consultation with the Pedestrian Advisory Council;
(B) Bicycle travel to and within the designated corridor, such as bike lanes or cycle tracks, developed in consultation with the Bicycle Advisory Council;
(C) Accessibility for multimodal users and persons with disabilities or mobility challenges, developed in consultation with the Multimodal Accessibility Advisory Council; and
(D) Access to public transit to or within the designated corridor, including Metrorail, Metrobus, and Streetcar service;
(4) Plans for ensuring public transportation, government fleet, emergency and first responder vehicles, and freight and delivery vehicles maintain access to the designated corridor;
(5) How the street closure can be implemented without additional agency staffing, including the use of barricades;
(6) The anticipated cost of closing personal vehicle traffic on the designated corridor, including any traffic infrastructure described in paragraph (3) of this subsection or grants issued pursuant to subsection (a)(2) of this section;
(7) The number of parking spaces eliminated by the proposal to close personal vehicle travel within the designated corridor and its anticipated impact on businesses within the designated corridor;
(7A) Recommendations on the designation and design of curbside space for use as streateries, parklets, or other public space activations;
(8) The feasibility of permanently closing the designated corridor to personal vehicles; and
(9) Feedback received from the residents, business owners, Advisory Neighborhood Commissions, Business Improvement Districts, Community Improvement Districts, Main Streets, and other entities within or abutting the designated corridor to personal vehicle traffic, and the Program's responses to that feedback.
(d) Following the publication of the report, in order to obtain community feedback regarding the selected designated corridors, DDOT shall:
(1) Publish on its website a form through which District residents may provide feedback regarding which of the 3 designated corridors should be closed to personal vehicle traffic;
(2) Convene at least one public meeting, properly noticed in the D.C. Register at least 30 days prior to each public meeting, for each designated corridor; and
(3) No later than March 31, 2027, announce which of the 3 designated corridors will be closed to personal vehicle traffic for, at a minimum, 24 cumulative hours per week, beginning October 1, 2027.
(e) Beginning March 31, 2027, the Mayor shall, in consultation with the Program, with respect to the designated corridor selected:
(1) Not Funded.
(2) Implement the recommendations for any new or improved traffic infrastructure as described in subsection (c)(3) of this section.
(f) Beginning October 1, 2028, any updates to the District's Multimodal Long-Range Transportation Plan shall include plans to close the remaining 2 designated corridors to personal automobile traffic for, at a minimum, 24 cumulative hours per week.