George Washington Memorial Parkway & I-395

This section will be updated on a weekly basis. Construction Updates Work for the Week of November 1 to November 8, 2008 Continuing drainage work Continuing production shaft work on the southwest and northwest sides of the bridge Traffic Control/Weekend and Night Work Weekdays: Monday, November 3 to Friday, November 7, 10am to 3pm, expect a closure in the southbound right lane Weekend: Saturday, November 1, drilled shaft work (no lane closures are planned) Night work: Drilled shaft work (no lane closures are planned) For additional information see NPS Press Releases NOTE: No lane closures are permitted during rush hours Morning rush hours: 5:30 AM to 10:00 AM, Monday through Friday (except holidays) Evening rush hours: 3:00 PM to 7:00 PM, Monday through Friday (except holidays) General Traffic Details All lanes of the GWMP and the Humpback Bridge will remain open during rush hours, or from 5:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. and from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Delays can be expected. Construction crews will work between 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and from 7:00 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. During construction, one lane in each direction will remain open at all times. Drivers are encouraged to use the alternate routes suggested below. Variable electronic message boards and construction signs have been and will remain in place to alert drivers of the expected closures. The Mount Vernon Trail will be open at all times during the project. The public will see various immediate changes in the construction area, including the clearing of a small amount of trees. Construction work will then include the closure and removal of the left-turn, northbound access lane into the Columbia Island Marina, the pedestrian crosswalk, and the small parking lot in Lady Bird Johnson Park. This will allow traffic to be shifted as needed during the construction of the new bridge. All roadways, trails, and waterways within the project limits will remain open to vehicle, bicycle, boat, and pedestrian traffic during construction. All roadways and trails are owned and maintained by the National Park Service. Access will be maintained to the Columbia Island Marina during construction. Specified horizontal and vertical clearances at the bridge site will be maintained for boat traffic in the vicinity of the Columbia Island Marina throughout construction. Updates, including adjustments in the work schedule, will be posted here. Motorists may also access up-to-date information on this project by dialing "5-1-1". Information will be updated as it becomes available. Further information on this project, including construction updates and suggested alternate routes, may also be obtained weekdays between 7:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. by calling 800-892-8776 and pressing #3. The planned completion date for all work is spring 2010. Weather delays may require adjustments to the schedule. The FHWA and the NPS will continue to inform the public and the media of any changes in the work schedule. Every effort is being made to minimize traffic delays and accomplish the work in a timely manner. This project is expected to have significant impact on traffic. The FHWA and the NPS regret any inconvenience and appreciate the driving public’s understanding. The following alternate routes are suggested: Suggested Alternate Routes Suggested Alternate Routes (62kb, PDF) Suggested Alternate Routes (6kb, DOC) Location Maps Location Map #1 (1.3mb, JPG) Location Map #2 (570kb, JPG)

• Improve safety for motorists, bicyclists, and pedestrians
• Improve traffic flow

• The highest accident rate on the Parkway occurs on the northbound ramp that exits from I-395 onto the Parkway. Traffic also routinely backs up on the 14th Street Bridge, impacting the southbound lanes of I-395.
• Insufficient sight distances over the bridge have resulted in frequent accidents caused by sudden braking of vehicles. Approximately 20% involve personal injury.
• Mount Vernon Trail users wishing to cross the bridge are confined to a narrow sidewalk with speeding traffic on one side and the bridge wall on the other. This has created high safety risks for motorists, bicyclists, and pedestrians.
• Pedestrians and bicyclists crossing the Parkway at the Columbia Island Marina entrance must do so in the face of oncoming vehicle traffic traveling at a high rate of speed in both directions.

The Project Includes:

• Replacing the historic Humpback Bridge, using similar materials and configuration of the existing bridge, to feature wider traffic lanes, a new acceleration lane for northbound traffic from the
  I-395 on-ramp, and a separate wider lane for users of the Mount Vernon Trail
• Adjusting the grade of the road to improve sight distance over the bridge
• Replacing a pedestrian crosswalk with a tunnel under the Parkway for safe access between the Columbia Island Marina, the Mount Vernon Trail and the Potomac shoreline
• Providing a barrier along the Humpback Bridge to separate users of the Mount Vernon Trail from Parkway traffic
• Closing the northbound vehicle entrance into the Columbia Island Marina and Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove parking areas

• Press Releases
• Traffic Advisory dated 5/14/08 (56kb, PDF)
• Traffic Advisory dated 5/2/08 (55kb, PDF)
• Traffic Advisory dated 2/1/08 (59kb, PDF)
• Press Release dated 11/2/07 (30kb, PDF)
• Relevant Articles
• Washington Post column dated 1/3/08
• Detail Illustrations
• Detail Illustration #1 (300kb, JPG)
• Detail Illustration #2 (200kb, JPG)
• Existing Conditions Rendering (500kb, PDF)
• Photographs of Existing Conditions
• Existing 14th Street Ramp Merge to GWMP (1.8mb, JPG)
• Existing GWMP Northbound Looking South (1.7mb, JPG)
• Existing View from Potomac (1.9mb, JPG)
• Existing View from Southbound Mt. Vernon Trail at Bridge (2.2mb, JPG)
• Humpback Bridge Informational Brochure (1mb, PDF)
• Additional Background (30kb, DOC)