A tire-slashing storm drain on the corner of 23rd and L streets NW might finally get fixed after resident Jason Rhoades pointed out the traffic hazard on his blog.
The storm drain, which exposes a sharp, steel corner, reportedly rips open the rear tires of motorists making the sharp left turn from 23rd onto L near George Washington University.
“Literally, several times a day, I hear the big pop and the rush of air,” said Rhoades, a law student at GW who lives near the busy intersection. He told The Examiner that he has helped several unlucky motorists change their tires after they struck the drain.
Charlie Kimm, a cab driver who has worked the neighborhood for about six months, says that he has seen tires slashed seven or eight times already.
“There’s a police station right across the street,” Kimm said. “You’d think they’d notice the problem.”
Officials at the police station at 23rd and L, the Special Operations Division of the Metropolitan Police Department, say they have never received any complaints about the storm drain or noticed an unusual frequency of flat tires.
Though the accident rate is reportedly high, it seems hardly anyone is actually filing complaints. Neither Kimm nor Rhoades have reported the problem to city officials, and the Citywide Call Center has no record of complaints about the storm drain in the system.
The storm drain is actually under the jurisdiction of the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority, an agency independent of the city. WASA has received three complaints about the 23rd and L storm drain within the last year, and says that three times they sent someone to repair the drain. After hearing that a hazardous condition may still exist, the agency told The Examiner, “Someone will be out to investigate as soon as possible.”
Follow the case
» Case tracking number: 06100159. Residents can check on the status of the drain by calling the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority at 202-787-2000.
» A link to Jason Rhoades’ blog can be found at www.DCblogs.com.
