lane closure

Crystal City 5K Fridays to Start This Week

By ARLnow.com

An annual springtime athletic tradition is coming back to Crystal City this week.

Crystal City’s 5K Fridays will start this coming Friday, April 6 — the first of four Friday races that will run through April 27. The race, organized by Pacers Events, will take runners on a looped course up and down Crystal Drive, starting at 6:30 p.m.

Registration is $20 per race or $60 for all four races. Runners can register online or in person, before the race.

Arlington County Police will be blocking off lanes of several Crystal City-area roads between 6:15 and 7:45 p.m. on race days. Among them:

  • Northbound lanes of Crystal Drive between 23rd Street and 12th Street (one northbound lane of Crystal Drive will remain open between 15th and 12th Street)
  • Northbound lanes of Crystal Drive between 26th Street and Potomac Avenue/27th Street
  • Northbound lanes of Potomac Avenue between 27th Street and 33rd Street
  • One southbound lane of Potomac Avenue between 27th and 33rd Street
  • Two westbound lanes (one lane to remain open) of 12th Street between Crystal Drive and Old Jefferson Davis Highway/Clark Street
  • One northbound lane of Old Jefferson Davis Highway will be closed for approximately 100 feet (one lane to remain open)

Disclosure: Crystal City BID is an ARLnow.com advertiser

BREAKING NEWS — Rollover Accident on Route 50

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 10:55 a.m.) Police and firefighters are on the scene of a two vehicle rollover accident on Route 50 near Park Drive.

The initial police investigation indicates that the driver of an SUV suffered a medical emergency and collided head-on with a Saab while going the wrong way on Route 50, according to Arlington County police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck. The SUV flipped on its side as a result of the accident, and the female driver had to be extricated by firefighters. She was taken via ambulance to a local hospital.

The driver of the Saab appears to have suffered only bumps and bruises.

All lanes of Route 50 are expected to be back open by 11:00 a.m.

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Route 50 Exit Closing for Construction

By ARLnow.com

An Route 50 exit used by Clarendon area drivers is set to close for the rest of the week.

The Fairfax Drive exit from Route 50/Arlington Boulevard will be closed from Wednesday to Friday so that VDOT contractors can install new storm water infrastructure. The construction is part of the ongoing Arlington Boulevard/Courthouse Road/10th Street interchange project.

Lane closures are also planned in the area on both east- and westbound Route 50, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., through Friday.

Work on the interchange project is scheduled to continue through fall 2013, and is expected to result in additional periodic lane, exit and road closures.

Image via Google Maps

Lane Closures on Route 50 Begin Sunday

By Katie Pyzyk

Various lane closures due to work on the new Courthouse interchange could cause some additional traffic headaches starting this weekend.

The Virginia Department of Transportation will be closing up to two of three lanes in each direction of Route 50 from 10th Street to N. Rhodes Street. Those closures will take place at night, from 9:00 p.m. to 5:30 a.m., starting on Sunday and running through Thursday, February 2. Daytime closures from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. will begin on Monday and continue until Friday, February 3.

VDOT warns drivers that although late night closures don’t officially begin until 9:00 p.m., preparations for the road work could start as early as 7:00 p.m. Drivers should use extra caution in the area and be aware of construction crews.

The $39 million project to redesign the interchange at Route 50, Courthouse Road and 10th Street was launched to improve accessibility and safety in the area. Aesthetic improvements will also be added.

The project’s second phase of utility relocation is scheduled to be finished this spring. The entire project is slated to be completed in fall of 2013.

Loose Gravel Closes Two Lanes of I-66

By ARLnow.com

Two lanes of westbound I-66 are closed prior to Sycamore Street due to an apparent gravel spill.

VDOT crews are on their way to the scene to clean up the loose gravel, but Arlington County officials say they don’t know long the clean-up will take.

Just before 9:30 a.m. a car slammed into the guardrail on westbound I-66 beneath the Patrick Henry Drive underpass, near the gravel spill. It’s not clear if the gravel caused or is somehow related to the accident.

VDOT Suspends Most Lane Closures for Holiday Travel

By Katie Pyzyk

In order to make your holiday traveling easier, the Virginia Department of Transportation is suspending most lane closures during the Christmas and New Year’s holidays. Here’s what VDOT said in a release:

RICHMOND — The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is clearing a path for travelers this holiday season by lifting lane closures over the extended Christmas and New Year’s weekends.

VDOT will suspend lane closures from noon Friday, Dec. 23, to noon Tuesday, Dec. 27, and again from noon Friday, Dec. 30, to noon Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2012.

“We want everyone to arrive safely at their destinations during the year-end holidays,” said VDOT Commissioner Greg Whirley. “We are opening lanes where appropriate to increase lane capacity on our interstates and other major roads. I encourage motorists to do their part to keep one another safe by obeying all traffic laws, staying alert and engaged behind the wheel, and being courteous to your fellow motorists.”

While temporary work zones are lifted during the holiday period, VDOT is always prepared to mobilize in case of inclement weather. VDOT will monitor weather forecasts for any snow or ice that could affect travel over the holidays. Its offices and snow-removal equipment will be fully staffed in the event of any accumulation.

In addition, the Northern Virginia High Occupancy Vehicle Lane schedule is as follows:

Christmas:

The I-95/395 reversible lanes will be open to all traffic:

  • Southbound from 6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 23 until 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 24
  • Northbound from 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 24 until 6 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 27 when HOV-3 takes effect
  • HOV restrictions on I-95, 395 and 66 are lifted on Monday, Dec. 26

New Year’s:

The I-95/395 reversible lanes will be open to all traffic:

  • Southbound from 6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 30 until 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31
  • Northbound from 4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31 until 6 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 3, when HOV-3 takes effect
  • HOV restrictions on I-95, 395 and 66 are lifted on Monday, Jan. 2

Statue Dedication May Snarl Traffic at DCA on Tuesday

By Katie Pyzyk

A statue of Ronald Reagan will be unveiled at Reagan National Airport on Tuesday, raising the possibility of some traffic headaches for people driving to the airport.

A ceremony is being held by the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation to commemorate the statue unveiling, in front of the airport’s Terminal A.

Drivers should expect heavier-than-usual traffic around the arrivals and departures terminals due to lane closures for the event, airport officials said. Four lanes will merge into one to detour around the event site. There’s also a possibility that traffic will be completely blocked for short periods along the detour route.

Detours will be in place from 11:00 a.m. through 12:00 p.m. Drivers are encouraged to avoid driving up to the terminals, and to instead keep left at the entrance to the airport, following signs toward parking garages. Passengers can be dropped off or picked up in the hourly parking garage closest to their terminal. Using taxis, which have their own boarding area, or Metro is also bring encouraged.

Utility Work Continues at Busy Clarendon Intersection

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 4:15 p.m.) Verizon utility work is still blocking part of the busy intersection of Wilson Boulevard and Washington Boulevard in Clarendon.

The work has been on-going since late last night, after an underground cable was damaged by a contractor. Verizon says work in the intersection could continue through tomorrow morning.

“A contractor performing work to install traffic light control cables bored through one of our underground cables, affecting service for several hundred customers in the area,” said Verizon spokesman Harry J. Mitchell. “We will have to replace the damaged section of cable, and we’re preparing to do that. We hope to have all work done, and service restored to all customers, by 8:00 a.m. tomorrow (Oct. 7).”

Verizon crews are working in two manholes in the middle of the intersection. Water is being pumped out of one of the manholes and onto the street. Traffic is still getting by on each street in the six-point intersection, though some lanes are blocked.

Less than three weeks ago, Verizon phone and internet service was knocked offline for hundreds of customers in the Courthouse/Clarendon area when a contractor accidentally cut through several underground cables.

Virginia State Police Officer Struck by SUV on the Pike

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 9:35 a.m.) A Virginia State Police motorcycle officer was struck by an SUV this morning on the ramp from eastbound Columbia Pike to Washington Boulevard.

The extent of the officer’s injuries are unknown at this time, but initial reports suggested he was conscious and alert after the accident. The officer was quickly loaded onto an ambulance and taken to the hospital.

Police shut down Columbia Pike at the accident scene, diverting traffic onto other roads. All lanes were opened back up at 9:10 a.m., about a half hour after the accident, but not before heavy delays formed on eastbound Columbia Pike. Some ART bus routes were also delayed as a result of the accident.

Road Work on Arlington Ridge

By ARLnow.com

Construction crews are in the process of repaving the intersection of Arlington Ridge Road and 23rd Street S.

The work has blocked one westbound lane of 23rd Street and one southbound lane of Arlington Ridge Road.

Arlington County recently completed some curb, sidewalk and turn lane changes in the area in an effort to improve pedestrian safety. The county’s web site has additional information on the changes.

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