As of 1:45, the HOV lanes and two lanes northbound and southbound I-395 are blocked between Seminary Road and King Street.
First responders from Arlington and Alexandria are on scene, along with Virginia State Police.
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Traffic
Limited public seating will be available at the funeral, which is also expected to draw a large media contingent to the church at 3455 North Glebe Road.
After the service, a private internment ceremony will be held at the Columbia Gardens Cemetery in Ashton Heights.
Dominion has brought in a crane to fix a transformer at Wilson Boulevard and North Randolph Street, across the street from Ballston Common Mall.
During the repairs, one lane of westbound Wilson Boulevard will be closed. The work is expected to wrap up between 5:00 and 5:30 tonight.
The Roosevelt Bridge was blocked in both directions last night as D.C. police and Arlington firefighters investigated a suspicious package on the Virginia side of the span.
Authorities shut down the heavily-traveled thoroughfare around 7:30. The all-clear was given around 8:15.
It’s not clear what’s going on, but the eastbound lanes of I-66 are completely blocked at Lynn Street, just before the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge. Traffic is backing up at the Rosslyn tunnel.
Virginia Won’t Cut Off Money to Metro — Virginia Transportation Secretary Sean Connaughton says the $50 million per year the state pledges to Metro will not be cut off, after all. Connaughton had threatened to stop the annual payment unless the state were granted two seats on Metro’s Board of Directors. But after an outcry from local leaders, and a letter from Metro board members Chris Zimmerman (who’s also on the Arlington County board) and Catherine Hudgins, Connaughton and the McDonnell administration apparently had a change of heart. More from the Washington Post.
Career Center Wins State Accolade — The Arlington Career Center’s Automotive Technology Program has won the 2010 Virginia Governor’s Career and Technical Education Exemplary Standards Award. The program will receive $5,000 cash and a banner to display on the school.
A tire-sized sinkhole has formed on the exit ramp from southbound Washington Boulevard to Columbia Pike.
The sinkhole, located in the right turning lane, appeared to have been partially filled in by a public works crew shortly after these photos were taken, but as of Saturday afternoon it remains a hazard to drivers.
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Update at 5:30 p.m. — All lanes have reopened.
Update at 4:40 p.m. — One lane is now getting by. Traffic is backed up to Duke Street.
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Update at 4:00 p.m. — The disruption has been cleared, WTOP reports.
A possible fire has been reported on the Orange Line Metrorail tracks that run parallel to I-66, near the North Harrison Street overpass.
In an editorial today, the Washington Post questions the basis for Arlington County’s $750,000 lawsuit against the proposed high occupancy toll lanes on I-395. But after calling the lawsuit’s racial claims “a doozy” and asserting the need for more capacity along I-395 and I-95, the Post says that Virginia and the Feds should accede to Arlington’s request for a full environmental impact study.
The request is “reasonable,” the Post editorial board writes, while adding that “once [the study] is complete, Arlington should stand down before it throws further taxpayer dollars down into the sinkhole of litigation.”
Sunset Parade Draws Big Crowd — A good-sized crowd was on hand at the Iwo Jima Memorial last night (see photo above) for the Marine Corps’ first Sunset Parade of the summer.
I-66 Widening Begins Next Week — Dr. Gridlock reports that construction is expected to begin on I-66 next week. VDOT will be widening I-66 between Fairfax Drive and Sycamore Street in Arlington County. Expect an almost nightly lane closure through July, which could tie up traffic at times from 9:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. The project is expected to take 18 months.
The Texas-based engineering firm Fluor and Australian toll road developer Transurban collectively donated $20,000 to Virginia’s GOP in May, according to the Virginia Public Access Project. Neither company donated to Democrats in the most recent reporting period, according to VPAP records.
The money comes as Governor Robert McDonnell and state transportation officials are pushing to resurrect a plan to replace HOV lanes with High Occupancy Toll lanes on both highways. The lanes on I-95 would then be extended from Dumfries to Spotsylvania County to make a 56-mile toll road, which would compliment HOT lanes now being built on the Capital Beltway, between Springfield and Dulles Toll Road, by the same two companies.