The D.C. Department of Transportation has removed the dozens of “love locks” that started popping up on the Key Bridge this year.
“We have [the locks] in our storage facility,” DDOT spokesman Reggie Sanders said in an email. “The locks are in reasonably good condition. At some point [couples] will be able to make arrangements to retrieve them.”
Update on 8/7/14 at 11:30 a.m. — D.C. Department of Transportation spokesman Reggie Sanders says the love locks will be removed from Key Bridge today. “Locks are being removed because we don’t want to establish a precedence where our structures could become polluted with these types of campaigns. Also, it could jeopardize the functionality of the railings,” said Sanders.
Earlier: Lovers have started keeping their love under lock and key by latching padlocks bearing their names to the Key Bridge’s railings.
But drivers aren’t the only one dealing with congestion on the 91-year-old span that crosses the Potomac from Rosslyn to Georgetown. The bridge’s narrow pedestrian walkway is also typically jammed with walkers, runners and bikers, who sometimes come into conflict as they try to pass one another.
Pedestrians also impact traffic, as vehicles must wait for them to clear a crosswalk to take a ramp to the Whitehurst Freeway.
Arlington first responders got a call for a man who fell or jumped from the bridge around 11:30 a.m. on Sunday. Fire department personnel determined that the man was on the D.C. side of the river and responded to the Key Bridge Boathouse.
There, they found that a civilian had seen the man in the water and used a kayak to bring him to shore, according to Arlington County Fire Department spokeswoman Lt. Sarah-Maria Marchegiani.
‘Trolley Pub’ Bill Fails in Richmond — A bill that would have allowed patrons of Arlington’s Trolley Pub to drink alcohol while on board has been passed over indefinitely in the House of Delegates. Del. Patrick Hope (D-47), who introduced the bill, said there were “too many significant issues” around the bill. [Patch]
Middle School PTA Peeved at Bus Inequality — The Thomas Jefferson Middle School PTA is upset that North Arlington schools appear to be getting preferential treatment when it comes to bus service for students inside the standard 1.5 mile perimeter for secondary schools. The PTA president says S. Glebe Road is dangerous for middle school students to cross and the school system should provide bus service for students who have to cross it. [Sun Gazette]
Update at 11:50 a.m. — All lanes are now back open.
Update at 11:35 a.m. — The Key Bridge is being reopened, D.C. police said via Twitter. Traffic is currently flowing from the D.C. to Virginia side of the bridge, but so far the inbound lanes have not reopened. NBC Washington is reporting that the closure was due to a phoned-in bomb threat.
The incident happened around 5:00 a.m. Police say a 21-year-old man from Leesburg was driving a white 2008 BMW M5 at approximately 90 miles per hour over the Key Bridge when the car hit the curb of a traffic island on the Rosslyn side of the bridge, flipped 5 times and ended up in the bushes of the Key Bridge Marriott. The force of the accident sheared the sports car’s roof off, according to Arlington County Police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck.
There were two passengers, ages 21 and 22 and both from Leesburg, in the vehicle at the time of the accident.
Update at 7:35 p.m. — The man has been safely taken into police custody. The scene is now being cleared.
Update at 6:10 p.m. — Police are still attempting to talk and negotiate with the man. A SWAT team is now reportedly on scene.
Starting this week, the police department has assigned extra traffic patrols to the area during the morning rush hour, when gridlock gets especially bad on Lynn Street. (Although traffic is often heavy during the evening rush hour, as well.)
The officers will remind drivers that it’s illegal to block the box — to enter into an intersection during a green light when there is no room to clear the intersection. For now, the officers will not be issuing citations, according to ACPD spokesman Dustin Sternbeck, who called morning congestion on Lynn Street a “disaster.”
The picture on the left is the area formerly known as Rosslyn Circle, taken around 1925. Records indicate the businesses shown were on Agnew Avenue, which is now Lynn Street. They stood at the base of the newly finished Key Bridge, which replaced the Aqueduct Bridge in 1923.
Rosslyn, and this section in particular, used to be considered a rough area. After the Civil War ended, many soldiers stayed behind. They drove out the farmers who previously owned the land in Rosslyn, and set up saloons, gambling houses and houses of prostitution. Thievery and murder were a regular occurrence, and locals knew not to walk there at night, if at all.
The publicity stunt will start at the intersection of N. Lynn Street and Lee Highway in Rosslyn. “Flight Time” will dribble and spin basketballs for one mile from the intersection, across the Key Bridge, and to a basketball court at a playground in Georgetown. (See a map of the route here.)
“Flight Time’s grand arrival tips off ‘Globetrotter Week’ in the D.C. metropolitan area, which includes multiple school visits and goodwill appearances,” the Globetrotters said in a press release. “The week concludes as the Globetrotters bring their one-of-a-kind skills to town for three big games on March 24 & 25: Verizon Center in Washington D.C. (Sat., March 24 at 1 p.m.) and the Patriot Center in Fairfax, VA (Sat., March 24 at 7:30 p.m. and Sun., March 25 at 2 p.m.).”
