Evening star., 1947-05-18
Early AZ Completion
|0f Shirley Highway
lis Aim Of Virginia
sp.e;ol pi.po.eh 10 III. s,or

lis Aim Of Virginia
spseiel Dispatch 10 The sior
RICHMOND, Va, May 1.-THE
most ambitious highway project
undertaken by the Virginia Depart
ment of Highways-the multi-mil-
lion dollar Henry g. Shirley Me-
mortal Highway Route 800 in
traffic-congested Fairfax County
may be serving trafiic by "early 49,"
State Highway ofacials said today.
As traffic problems multiply In
that heavily developed suburban
district, the department said it Is
sparing no effort to complete the
17-mile expressway that will relieve
congestion on Route / and bypass
Alexandria
Already completed, built by the
Federal government in 1942, is a q
mile section between the Pentagon
network and the Alexandria-Lees-
burg road, Route 7. Construction of
the 15-mile stretch between Route
Z and Woodbridge, held up during
the war, is now receiving the full
time attention OF engineers.
AT present Route. + between Wood
bridge and WaAllingt on is the most
heavily travelled highway on the
eastern seaboard south OF Washing
(ton.a Shirley highway will carry an
estimated 30 per cent Of that trafic
and will.cut 81 miles OF the Wash
ington Richmond run for passenger
vehicles. Heavy trucks, which cause
much of the congestion in that sec
tion, will benefit by "a miles, the
difference due to an alternate truck
routing into Washington.
Traffic surveys have indicated q
peak of 10000 vehicles a day will
travel the northern end of the high
way, dwindling to more than 10000
near Woodbridge.
8 Points of Access.
Between Route l and Route Z
there will be nine points of con-
trolled access where traffic may en-
ter or leave the highway. A clover
leaf, second of its type In the State,
will be constructed at the intersec-
ton of Route 236, the Alexandria
Fairfax road. Other interchanges,
including a connecting link with
Route / at Woodbridge, will be Of
modern highway design.
Grading of 10.5 miles of the high
way has been completed; bids for
grading the remaining, stretches
should be sought this month. Other
phases not yet under contract in
clude the Route l interchange, ad-
vertised this week, and the paving
Of q 6.87 miles stretch from Route
to Franconia. Ten of the Is high
way structures are under contract.
When grading has been completed
highway engineers estimate 5000, 900
cubic yards of dirt will have been
lexcavated and moved.
Two 24-Foot Lanes.
The actual roadway will consist
of two 24-foot concrete traffic lanes,
separated by a depressed medium
strip" varying from IA to 10 feet
in width. Later, II desired and nee
essary, one additional lane each way
can be added on the first five miles
at the Washington end Anticipat-
| ing heavy truck trafic, designing
engineers called for concrete slabs
10 inches thick.
The highway has design speed
which is not, highway officials
emphasize, "a speed lin1it-of 10
smiles an hour. 1t will roll along
in a series of gradual curves, re-
ducing to a minimum the head
light glare Of opposing traffic.
With few exceptions, all right-of-
way and survey work has been COM
pleted. Several buildings now are
being moved and others remain to
be moved. All-in-al1, around a doz-
en- dwellings will have been moved
/ when the project is completed, in
Guiding the entire town OF Pohifk
-four houses. A tourist camp was
among casualties of the expressway
the highway department pur-
chased the camp and proceeded to
use the small tourist houses and
building materials in the construc-
ttion procedure.
A serious problem was encount-
cred south of Lincolnia, In the form
of large underground lake. Engi-
neering skill averted disaster, how
ever, and the lake now is being
pumped by sub-drainage pipes.
To be studied and eventually In
corporated into the highway are
service stations operating on . "a
hour basis.