Project Overview

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The Shepherd Branch Trail is a proposed 3-mile-long, shared-use path that will extend from the intersection of Firth Sterling Road SE and South Capitol Street SE to E Street SE. The trail would connect the South Capitol Street Trail (currently in the design phase) to the Greenway neighborhood in Anacostia. 

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The trail will be built on the inactive Shepherd Branch rail corridor that extends from the CSX Benning Yard to Blue Plains. The corridor is adjacent to I-295 and South Capitol Street SE, passing through the Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling (JBAB) and Blue Plains property.  

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DDOT completed the preliminary design and feasibility study for the Shepherd Branch Trail in 2019. In 2020, DDOT placed the project on hold to acquire the property needed for the project.  

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KEY DESIGN ELEMENTS

• Three-mile-long, shared-use path 

• Improve the area’s non-motorized transportation infrastructure for residents and provide a new commuting option for employees working at JBAB and the developing St. Elizabeths West Campus 

• Provide connections to other trails in the District, Maryland, and Virginia