One Small Box on a Bridge, 15 Miles of Congestion/Delay for Area Mankind
On April 21st officials investigated a suspicious-looking box on the Woodrow Wilson Bridge.
The investigation took about 3 hours. The back-up extended about 8 miles in Virginia; 7 miles in Maryland.
The incident again underscores the fragile nature of the region’s transportation network, particularly the lack of redundancy in Potomac River Bridges. It also underscores of the failure of Maryland and Virginia officials to come together to improve Potomac River crossing capacity north and south of the Capital Beltway.
Talk of possible prolonged Metrorail shutdowns throws our region and area officials into a frenzy. Rightfully so.
But what of the possible prolonged shutdown of the American Legion and Wilson Bridge or large sections of the Capital Beltway? A not far-fetched scenario given today’s dangerous times.
Might not damage to the region and nation be as great and even greater?
Our Region’s Economy, Security and Quality of Life Demand that Maryland and Virginia Work Together Now To Close the Potomac River Crossing Gap Time is Not on Our Side.