Evening star., 1953-03-21
No|en Proposes
Sites 10 Build
7 New Bridges
Highway Officials,
Planners at Odds
Over Locations
By George Beveridoe

BY George Beveridee
A long-standing hassle over
the need and location of q new
Potomac River bridge to serve
downtown Washington appeared
even muddier than usual today.
Responsible were two develop
which yesterday pin
pointed basic differences between
planners of the National Capital
Commission and the
District Highway Department.
They were:
l. A proposal by John Nolen.
jr., NCPC planning director, that
the long-range need for more
river crossings be re-
studied. If such projects are
justified, he proposed two new
spans. One would be just above
Key Bridge, the other just below
the Highway Bridge.
2. A renewed drive by District
highway officials for immediate
approval of a bridge to Virginia
from E street NV, extending
across the Theodore Roosevelt
Memorial Island. They said the
traffic on the rivers three main
bridges, for the first time. has
exceeded the rush-hour capacity
of the bridges. The only prospect
in sight, they warned fatty, is
longer and longer delays for
peak hour motorists.
Would Spread Bridges.
The NCPC approved a resolu-
ton, stating in general that
Potomac bridges should be spread
apart as far as practicable so
ruSh-hour autos can bypass the
most congested areas.
The group, however, took no
definite action on Mr.. Nolen's
dual-bridge idea at a commission
yesterday. Instead, it
sent the proposal to the District
Department for study
and comment. There was no evil
dence it would get anything but
a chilly reception.
Douglas Brinkley, chief PLAN
ming engineer for the Highway
said surveys made
during January and February
showed Virginia bound traffic on
the Kay, Memorial and Highway
Bridges exceeded the bridges &C
cepted capacities between the
hour of S and 6 pm. The High
way Bridge, he said, with a
of 1,700 cars per lane
per hour. had an average of L.
736. Memorial, with a capacity
of 1.400. carried 1853. Key, with
a capacity of 1880. carried 1858.
Sees Longer Waits Ahead.
Mr.. Brinkley said it is dis
tresSing and alarming that.
from now on, such motorists
will begin to experience longer
and longer waits to get on the
bridges"
StreSsing that his main pur-
pose is to get a new bridge under
way, the District engineer said
his groups voluminous studies
always come back to the need
for a bridge at E street." Urging
agreement on a bridge site, he
said it would require about four
years to get a crossing built.
Mr.. Nolen, however, raised two
which, he said, might
drastically affect the need for
such a bridge during the next
several years.
One, he said, is a possible re-
duction in the number of Fed
eral Offices concentrated in the
congested central part of town.
Elimination of temporary build
ings might contribute to such
reduction and redistribution, he
said. The second is the current
drive to improve mass transpor-
tation facilities, which might
make bus riding attractive to
more commuters.
NOlen Pin.DOintS Sites.
If the need for new crossings
is borne out, Mr.. Nolen said, his
two-bridge proposal would serve
to draw traffic away from the
most congested points. Stressing
that the proposal is in a pre-
stage, he said it calls
for:
l. A bridge just below the
and Railroad Bridges,
in straight line
across Potomac Park and WASH
lngton Channel to connect with
Tenth street S.W. and the pro-
posed Southwest (F street, Free
way. This would result in a cost
saving, Mr.. Nolen said, since
plans are in the mill anyway for
, channel crossing.
2. A bridge in one of two or
three locations on the up-river
side Of the Key Bridge.
The site he favors for the lat
ter, Mr.. Nolan said, would ex-
Tend from the intersection of
Macarthur boulevard and Canal
road to a point on the George
Washington Memorial parkway
between Spout Run and Key
Bridge. Another possibility, he
said. would be a bridge extend
ing from Thirty-f1fth street
NV, parallel to Key Bridge. II
'he latter were approved, he said.
It might be feasible to make
Key Bridge and the new span
each one way.
Would Extend "Tnner Ring"
The major effect of his pro-
ooSal. Mr.. Nolen told reporters.
would be to extend to the Vir-
yinia shore southern part OF
he city's "inner ring" net
work. He said he hit upon