Update at 5 p.m. — All lanes of the Beltway have reopened, though residual delays remain.
Earlier: A crash has closed most lanes of the Beltway near S. Van Dorn Street in Fairfax County, creating yet another traffic mess in Northern Virginia.
A truck crash and subsequent fire led to the complete closure of the Beltway just before 2 p.m. today. Since then, a single lane of traffic has reopened on the Inner Loop and two lanes have reopened on the Outer Loop.
Virginia State Police say they’re investigating the crash, which involved a truck carrying insulation:
At 1:38 p.m. Thursday (April 4, 2019), Virginia State Police responded to an overturned tractor-trailer in the westbound lanes of I-495 at the 172 mile marker in Fairfax County. The impact of the crash caused the vehicle to catch fire. The driver of the tractor-trailer was not injured in the crash. The tractor-trailer’s load is insulation, which is not deemed as a hazardous material. The cause of the crash remains under investigation.
Motorists are advised to plan ahead and avoid travel through this particular area. State police, VDOT and Fairfax Fire and EMS are on scene.
The crash could have major traffic implications into the evening rush hour. WMATA has already announced that it will run additional Blue Line trains to help.
Metro is adding trains/cars to the Blue Line to accommodate those affected by the ongoing shutdown of the Capital Beltway in Fairfax County. #wmata #va #traffic pic.twitter.com/yuTHTpLKDG
— Metro (@wmata) April 4, 2019
The situation is reminiscent of last week’s Beltway crash that shut down the Inner Loop just before the American Legion Bridge, sending tens of thousands of commuters trying to get to Maryland and D.C. into Arlington.
Thus far, traffic impacts in Arlington do not appear to be nearly as severe, although as of 3:45 p.m. delays on northbound I-395 heading into D.C. were starting to extend past Pentagon City.
More via social media:
VSP, @VaDOTNOVA @ffxfirerescue w/overturned tractor-trailer that caught fire Thursday afternoon in the WB lanes of I-495 near the #VanDorn exit. We're all working together to get the scene under control & cleared for traffic ASAP. TY for your patience. Plz plan ahead. pic.twitter.com/cbeUMxomkA
— VA State Police (@VSPPIO) April 4, 2019
UPDATE I95 South, prior to South Van Dorn St.: one lane now getting by on South Bound and North Bound. PIO on scene. #FCFRD #FairfaxCounty #traffic pic.twitter.com/xFvxz1Tpk5
— Fairfax Fire/Rescue (@ffxfirerescue) April 4, 2019
Update: Beltway at Van Dorn: One lane of the Inner Loop and multiple lanes of the Outer Loop have reopened. We cannot emphasize how important towing is to us. Check out pics of the heavy duty rotators that helped us today & at AL Bridge last week. #MoveOver for amber lights too! pic.twitter.com/cfhl8evDfF
— VDOT Northern VA (@VaDOTNOVA) April 4, 2019