Beyer, Kaine, Norton To Host Press Conference At Memorial Bridge
Secretary Foxx, Secretary Jewell, NPS Director Jarvis to Join
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Representative Don Beyer, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, and Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton will join National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis, U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, and U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell at a press conference Monday, June 1st, at noon on Arlington Memorial Bridge to highlight the neglected condition of the bridge and the critical need for Congress to act on infrastructure improvements.
Who: Representative Don Beyer
Senator Tim Kaine
Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton
National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis
U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx
U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell
What: Press Conference on Memorial Bridge Lane Closures
When: Tomorrow, June 1, at 12:00 pm
Where: Virginia side of Arlington Memorial Bridge -- the grassy area between RT 27 Memorial Circle ramp and Route 50 Memorial Circle underpass. Follow crosswalks and paved paths to the East side of the bridge.
Parking will be located at Memorial Avenue near the Arlington Cemetery Metro. Both Westbound and Eastbound curb lanes are open to parking in the permitted parking area. No permit is required for this event. Watch for traffic as you exit your vehicle and leave your parking spot. When on foot, only cross traffic lanes at crosswalks.
Please RSVP to tia.shuyler@mail.house.gov
Earlier this month a single lane of Memorial Bridge was closed after an area of corrosion was discovered in the “bascule” portion of its undercarriage. This week the National Park Service (NPS) announced that it will close a second lane of traffic on the bridge, which stretches from Arlington National Cemetery to the Lincoln Memorial and is a major artery across the Potomac.
Senator Tim Kaine (VA), Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC) and Representative Don Beyer (VA-8) have all called for stronger federal infrastructure investment, citing the closure of a third of the lanes on the iconic and congested bridge as the latest evidence of federal neglect.
Nearly 68,000 vehicles cross the 83-year-old bridge on a typical work day. These closures already are having a dramatic impact on the region’s rush hour. The cost to fully repair the bridge is estimated at more than $250 million. Memorial Bridge is just one of more than 70,000 US bridges deemed “structurally deficient.”