Case file // Ward 3 // sidewalk_ada

Both sidewalks broken. One repair date: October 2027.

On the 3700 block of 39th Street NW, the sidewalk is broken on both sides of the street. Each side has a 311 ticket. One has been open since August. For the other, filed October 8, 311's own confirmation gives an expected completion date of October 27, 2027. Until then, the only level route on this block is the roadway.

Location: 3700 block of 39th Street NW (near 3760), Washington, DC 20016
Ward: 3 // ANC 3A
Documented: October 7, 2026
Category: sidewalk_ada -- raised, broken sidewalk on both sides of the block
311 tickets: 26-00513460 (Aug 27, 2026 // In-Progress) // 26-00611392 (Oct 8, 2026 // expected Oct 27, 2027)

01What is on the ground

A concrete sidewalk slab heaved up above the slab in front of it, leaving a raised lip with a broken edge across the full width of the walk. A white spray-painted arrow and line mark the raised edge. The sidewalk continues beyond it past a brick building and a planted strip. — 01 // A slab heaved up above the next, leaving a raised lip with a broken edge across the whole width of the walk. Someone has already spray-painted a white arrow on it to mark the trip edge. The hazard has been marked. It has not been fixed.

A stretch of sidewalk patched with asphalt, buckled into a raised hump with a cracked edge, covered in fallen leaves. Ahead, the sidewalk meets the street corner, where a person on a mobility scooter is moving along the sidewalk. — 02 // An asphalt patch buckled into a hump with a cracked, raised edge. Ahead, a person on a mobility scooter is on the sidewalk -- the people this block has to carry.

02What happened when it was reported

August 27, 2026311 service request 26-00513460 (Sidewalk Repair) filed for one side of the block, at 3760 39th Street NW.
October 7, 2026The block is photographed. The photographs on this page are from that visit.
October 8, 2026Service request 26-00611392 (Sidewalk Repair) filed for the other side of the street. Both tickets are reported directly to DDOT the same day, with the photos.
October 8, 2026311 confirms the new ticket with an expected completion date of October 27, 2027 -- a 270-business-day service level. The August ticket is still listed In-Progress, with a due date of September 16, 2027 in DC's open data.

Your request is expected to be completed on or about 2027-10-27 00:00:00 (SLA: 270 Business Days).
DC 311 confirmation for service request 26-00611392 // October 8, 2026

03Why a year is too long

One broken sidewalk is a detour. Two broken sidewalks on the same block is a closed block, for anyone who can't step over a raised edge. A wheelchair caster stops dead against a lip like the one in the first photo. A walker catches on it. Someone with low vision doesn't see it.

This block is a walking route to Wegmans, restaurants, and other shops. The person who reported it says that until one side is fixed, the only way to get to the gym and the grocery store is to walk in the street with the cars. That is the outcome a 270-business-day service level produces when it runs on both sides of the same block at once.

The distinction that matters A full slab replacement can take a year. Making one side passable can't wait that long, and doesn't need to.

04The standard that applies

Federal accessibility standards set a hard limit on surface changes along a pedestrian route: a vertical change in level of up to 1/4 inch is allowed, up to 1/2 inch must be beveled, and anything higher must be ramped (2010 ADA Standards, § 303). The raised edge in the first photo is visibly well past half an inch.

The usual interim fix for a heaved slab -- grinding the lip down, or setting a wedge of asphalt against it -- is a same-day job for a maintenance crew. It doesn't replace the slab. It makes the walk passable while the replacement waits its turn.

The ask Grind or wedge the raised edges on at least one side of the block now, so there is a passable route. Then replace the slabs on both sides on the schedule -- and treat a block with both sides broken as a higher priority than a block with one.

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