Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-09-09
TRAFFIC SYSTEM
| At BRIDGE SOUGHT
Joint Conference Will ConSid'
81 er Method of Handling
Vehicles.

With two alternative plans fol
treatment of the east end of the
Arlington Memorial Bridge before
them, members OF the Commission oi
Fine Arts, the National Capital Park
and Planning Commission and the
Arlington Memorial Bridge Commission
will grapple a week from today with
the knotty problem of handling traffic
into East Potomac Park and into
Washington from nearby Virginia
over the new bridge.
A Joint meeting of the three com
missions will settle the question OF
whether the Rock Greek and Potomac
Parkway will he routed into East
Potomac Park via an underpass be
;feIth the ahutments of the Memorial
Bridge or whether a traffic whirlpool
wilr be created in the plaza at the
east end of the bridge, with either
traffic lights or traffic officers tC
handle the moving stream of traffic.
Models Being Prepared.
Models outlining the physical as
poets of the two schemes for handling
traffic entering the park from the
north and west are being prepared
Under the direction of the Arlington
Memorial Bridge Commits ion at Wash
inGton Barracks, and will be placed
before the joint meeting to aid in ar
irving at a decision. Construction OF
the bridge and its approaches has vir
tually reached the point where a de
ciSion as to the traffic arrangements
and whether or not a Viaduct is to he
constructed for north and south traf
fic into the park, must be made.
The viaduct feature to carry the
Rock Creek and Potomac parkway un
der the bridge into East Potomac Park
is Objectionable to the Commission OF
Fine Arts and is to be avoided il some
other scheme can be found. On the
other hal, officers of the Bridge Com
mission and the Park and Planning
Commission fear intense congestion of
traffic moving north and south and
east and west unless some such ar
rangement is made to prevent the
cross currents of travel. from meeting.
Traffic lights and traffic officers are
equally undesirable to the fine arts
body.
Plan For Viaduct.
The scheme for the viaduct, as AT
present outlined, would create a II
foot cut from the line of 3 street, run
ming through and bisecting the water
gate alongside the Memorial Bridge
traverse an underpass under the first
Neast abutment of the bridge and ris'
ing gradually, bring the roadway TO
the surface near the Ericsson Me-
mortal Statue. The alternate scheme
would be to route southbound traffic
over the Rock Creek and Potomac
Parkway, straight through to the east
end of the bridge, where its crossing
with traffic over the bridge would be
controlled by lights or by manual sig
nails. Still another alternate scheme
in the mind of members of the fine
arts body would route eastbound traf-
fic over the bridge south to a point
near the Ericsson Memorial, whence
it would proceed eastward around the
Lincoln Memorial and thence down
town via B street.
The viaduct scheme would force
southbound traffic into the park to
turn east on B street to reach the
entrance to the tunnel under the
pier of the Memorial Bridge.
Objection to the viaduct proposal
arises chiefly on esthetic grounds,
members of the Fine Arts Commits
sion believing that a cut or ditch under