Evening star., 1945-12-19
House HEARINGS
On Twin Bridge
Proposal End

Foirbunk Presents
Mass Of Statistics
In Supporting Plan
Hearings on the proposed twin
bridges to replace Highway Bridge
crossing the Potomac River were
completed today by the Chapman
subcommittee of the House Inter.
state and Foreign Commerce COM
mittee after rebuttal witnesses ia.
Vorlng two bridges were heard.
II. S. Fairbank, deputy commis-
sloner In charge of research for the
Public Roads Administration, was
the star witness testifying in favor
OF the two bridge plan.
Mr. Fairbank sought with a mass
OF statistics to answer testimony
presented by the National Capital
Park and Planning Commission and
the Interior Department against a
tWo-bridge crossing.
The proposed crossing will be a
vital link on one of the most heav-
lily Travelled highways in the coun-
try, he said.
Witness Cites Surveys.
Most OF this travel is confined to
the Washington area and only
per cent of traffic using Highway
Bridge crossing would be diverted
by an Alexandria bridge. he
declared.
Surveys by the public road ad-
ministration show that the center
OF origin OF traits using the cross
Ing is at Shirley highway and
Meade road in arlington County.
and the center of destination is
at Third and G streets NV, for
cars and at the Union Station for
trucks, he said. A straight line from
the center OF origin to the center
OF destination crosses the Potomac
at Highway Bridge, he pointed out.
He said the Planning Commission
had claimed Federal EMPLOYMENT
would shift eastward when perma-
nent buildings are built along East
Capitol street. This center actually
VIII be shifted five blocks from
Twelfth street and Madison drive
10 seventh street and Madison drive
NV, Mr.. Fairbank said.
Testimony Disputed.
testimony by planners that a re-
port of the National Inter-Regional
Committee favored giving
planning commissions voice in the
design and capacity of bridges was
erroneous, he said.
Il wrote the report" he said. and
added it favored consulting plan.
ming bodies for purposes of location
only.
MIR. Fairbank quoted John Nolen.
]r., director OF planning of the Plan
nlng Commission, as having said he
had observed 5000 cars per hour
using Memorial Bridge with room
to spare. Mr.. Fairbank said surveys
within the past week by his admin
lstratlon showed the bridge crammed
10 capacity when a volume of 5000
cars was reached. with cars moving
in solid block of 10 miles per hour.
Four-Lane Bridges Urged.
He said Mr.. Nolen had been wrong
IN assuming an increase in the use
OF Highway Bridge during the war
was due to war conditions.
During the war, use of Key Bridge
remained the same and use of Me-
mortal Bridge decreased, he said
Mr.. Falrbank sought to justify two
four-lane bridges on the ground that
public roads surveys show four lanes
are needed to take care of three
streams of cars, due to straddling
Of lanes.
William H. Van Duzer. Distric.
traffic director. testified there are
enough outlets on both sides of the
river to take care of four lanes O:
traffic each way. He said construc.
tlon OF a six-lane, two-way bridge
would only be palliative" and ha
knew OF no highway project which
had ever been overbuilt.
II. P. Caemmerer, secretary of tn.
National Commission of Fine Arts.
read a statement by Gilmore D.
Clarke, commission chairman, that
the twin bridges would provide a
more dignified approach to WASH
lngton and the Jefferson Memorial
than a six-lane, single bridge.
Col. Arthur Testifies.
Col. Joseph D. Arthur, Assistant
Engineer Commissioner for the Dis
trict. said, 1T is neither good econ
omy nor good planning to build a
bridge of insufficient capacity at
Fourteenth street in order to Justify
a second bridge at Alexandria"
COL Arthur said he had been un-
able to find any statement by Public
Roads Commissioner Thomas H.
Macdonald that he would coerce the
District Commissioners into favor
ing twin bridges. Mr. Macdonald
was quoted yesterday by Secretary
OF the Interior Ickes as having made
such statement.
Maj. Gen. U. S. Grant III, chair
man of the Planning Commission,
said statistics can be used equally
successfully by either side.
He declared the argument that
four lanes are needed to hands
three streams of traffic is fallacious,
since straddling of lanes is bad
traffic manners" and is of itself an
admission a bridge is not being used
to capacity.