Friday, May 07, 2010

Sidewalks & Tree Roots, The Dilemma

IMG_1171

If you've spent much time walking the streets of Trinidad, you'll know we have some sidewalk/tree conflict issues. We have a lot of wonderful older trees, but some of them are tearing up the sidewalks because they are too big for their treeboxes.  I'd love to see the rubber sidewalks the District has been testing elsewhere in DC. These things are great because you can remove them, and install other sizes as trees grow. Here's an article about another approach to the issue. I'm no arborist, so I can't really say whether the root barrier system is healthy for the trees.

6 comments:

lou said...

I remember Joe Fengler coming by our house a couple of years ago when he was collecting signatures for re-election and mentioning that the new sidewalk pavement on H St NE (also used on the Mall) is much better at stopping tree root disruption. also supposed to be more historically accurate than bricks.

So that's another alternative.

Happy Friday said...

My sidewalk and my next door neighbors are all jacked up from the roots.

Questions:

Is this something that the homeowner is responsible for fixing? The city? If the city do we make a request and is it likely that request will ever be honored?

Curmudgeon time?

Anonymous said...

We appreciated the posting, Sidewalks & Tree Roots, the Dilemmna. We have been working with the DCDOT to get more Rubbersidewalks used by your city but cities are also so to reach. We also have a newer product called Terrewalks which looks like concrete and cost the City less money.

Dan Joyce
Rubbersidewalks, inc.

Anonymous said...

Not much to say about the tree roots, I got used to them walking the streets of Cambridge, Mass, and continuing onto the Historic Hill District...just a fact of life living in a leafy city. But that is a fantastic foggy picture. :)

Anonymous said...

The rubber mats installed along 8th Street south of Eastern Market are deforming in places and creating a trip hazard. They don't really look good either.

SustainableDC said...

This is so funny, I was just walking with my baby in the stroller the other day along 14th place from G street NE the other day and was appreciating the rubber sidewalks around the giant trees on that street. I don't know where I have been, but I had never noticed them before...anyway, they line the whole street if you want to see them in action. I would be interested in know what people who have these in front of their homes think....