Courthouse Road

Arlington Honors Fallen Officers

By ARLnow.com

The Arlington County Police Department and Sheriff’s Office held its annual observance of Peace Officers Memorial Day this morning.

Drummers, bagpipers and a bugler helped to mark the solemn occasion at the Arlington County Justice Center Plaza om Courthouse. Courthouse Road was shut down for the ceremony, which started at 8:00 a.m. Through speeches, the law enforcement community remembered the six Arlington County officers who have died in the line of duty.

Later in the day, Whole Foods and Applegate Farms grilled a free lunch on the plaza for law enforcement officers and employees.

National Police Week, an annual law enforcement gathering held in the D.C. area, officially begins on Friday.

Sketches of New Courthouse Interchange Released

By ARLnow.com

If you’re used to seeing the ugly, dangerous Route 50/Courthouse Road interchange, get ready for a big change. VDOT has released some sketches of what the interchange will look like by 2014.

Next month VDOT will begin work on a $39 million project to revamp the aging, confusing mess of on-ramps and off-ramps. The interchange’s bridges will be rebuilt and dedicated acceleration/deceleration lanes will be added.

For the next two an a half years, motorists can expect nightly closures of 2-3 lanes of Route 50 in both directions, as well as occasional closures of side streets and on/off ramps. VDOT says it will announce the closures in advance and provide signed detours.

VDOT will be holding a public meeting on Tuesday, May 3, to answer neighborhood questions about the project. The meeting will be held at 6:00 p.m. at the Arlington County Boardroom (2100 Clarendon Blvd).

See the full VDOT press release after the jump.

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Missing Stop Sign Causes Hazard In Courthouse

By ARLnow.com

Update at 12:35 p.m. — Another stop sign has been installed.

There is a stop sign missing on the on-ramp from Courthouse Road to eastbound Route 50, causing a serious traffic hazard.

Police are currently on scene directing traffic, according to police radio transmissions. Before police arrived, cars were heading straight through the T intersection, where Courthouse Road traffic heading onto Route 50 normally yields to eastbound Route 50 traffic exiting onto the ramp.

No word on how the stop sign went missing or whether it caused any accidents. A new stop sign is expected to be installed shortly.

Gov. McDonnell Announces Funding for Transportation Projects

By ARLnow.com

The Route 50/Courthouse Road interchange project is among the projects receiving funding under a new transportation push by Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell.

At a meeting of Northern Virginia elected officials and transportation planners yesterday, McDonnell announced that VDOT will advertise some $1.1 billion in new construction and maintenance projects during the first six months of fiscal year 2011.

The spending will create 33,900 jobs and generate $2.83 billion in total economic activity, according to the governor’s office.

McDonnell says his administration has been working to unclog a backlog of projects in VDOT’s pipeline. The governor noted that now is the time to invest in new infrastructure, since financing costs are at near-record lows.

One question that remains is how McDonnell plans on funding the slew of new transportation projects. He has pledged not to impose new taxes.

Route 50 Ramp to Courthouse Road Reopens

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 2:40 p.m.) Repairs are complete and the ramp has reopened.

“Repairs are temporary until they find out exactly what caused the sinkhole,” said VDOT spokesperson Joan Morris. Workers think a “bad pipe” may be to blame.

Original post from 2:38 p.m. on 10/12 — The ramp from westbound Route 50 to Courthouse Road will likely be shut down throughout the rush hour due to a sinkhole that’s about the size of a tire in diameter and 4-5 feet deep.

Arlington police have blocked off the ramp with orange barrels from the adjacent VDOT utility relocation project, which already had the far left-hand lane of Route 50 shut down.

Two VDOT workers are on the scene evaluating the sinkhole. A VDOT spokesperson is checking to see how long repair work is expected to take.

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Route 50 Lane Closure Will Likely Remain Through End of Year

By ARLnow.com

Hopefully you’ve gotten used to the lane closure on westbound Route 50 near Courthouse, because it’s probably sticking around for the holidays.

The lane closure, put into place to facilitate a utility relocation project, was originally supposed to be lifted in July. Now, it will likely be in place through the end of the year.

Washington Gas will wrap up their portion of the utility work by the end of October or beginning of November, according to VDOT utility relocation manager Matthew McLaughlin. Then it’s expected that Dominion will start a two-month installation of an underground electrical conduit. The existing lane closure will stay in place during that time.

The planned two-month duration of the Dominion work “can increase very quickly” in the event of inclement weather, we’re told.

The lane closure has made a tricky merge from Courthouse Road onto westbound Route 50 even trickier. Somewhat ironically, the ultimate goal of the utility relocation work is to prepare for the construction of a safer Route 50/Courthouse Road interchange.

The multi-month delays in the project were caused by additional utility relocations that had to be made due to changes in the interchange construction plan, McLaughlin said.

Photo courtesy Todd DuBois

Second Break in Water Main Near Ft. Myer

By ARLnow.com

Crews are working to fix a second break in a 12-inch water main near Ft. Myer.

The first break occurred around 7:30 this morning at South Courthouse Road and 2nd Street. Water from the break flooded the intersection and nearby Washington Boulevard, snarling rush hour traffic.

Arlington County crews just finished repairing the break and patching up the road. Now, they’re beginning to work on a second break that occurred at South Wayne Street and 2nd Street. Drivers should expect road and lane closures in the area. The repairs should wrap up around 10:00 tonight.

We’re told the second break happened during the repair of the first break. Both breaks, a county employee said, were the result of blown valves.

The water main is thought to date back to the 1960s.

Residents in the area should expect reduced water pressure and possible sediment in the water. To be safe, those with low water pressure should either boil the water or wait for repairs to be completed.

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