Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1954-04-01
By George Beveridge

Dy 0SOIyS DSVeTtO9e
Representative Kearns, Re-
publican, of Pennsylvania. said
today he does not expect to call
his House District subcommittee
into executive session to study
controversial Potomac River
bridge proposals until the end
of April.
The subcommittee ended
lengthy public hearings yester-
day with a blistering attack by
District, Federal and Virginia Of
f1cials on the proposed Reaches
Run bridge.
The Reaches Run project
would be located about 600 feet
downriver from the railroad
bridge. It is proposed by the Ma
tional Capital Planning Com
mission, park officials and others
as an alternate to the E street
bridge supported by District Of
ficialS.
Yesterdays windup hearing
also brought an alternate nine
point plan from Brig. Gen. Louis
w. Prentiss, Engineer Com
missioner, in the event Congress
refuses to approve the E street
span.
For Jones Point Bridge.
The programs main points
call for immediate construction
of aaJones Point tAlexandria)
bridge, immediate rebuilding Of
the old trestle-topped Fourteenth
street bridge and major inn
provements to other bridges
and streets.
District officials disclosed to-
day that, aside from the Jones
Point project, these improve
ments could have the effect of
adding nearly four new bridge
lanes in the downtown area.
Mr.. Kearns said there was
much merit" in Gen. Prentiss'
alternate proposal and promised
it would get very careful study
when his group meets behind
closed doors to wrestle with the
maze of conflicting bridge testi-
mony.
The Pennsylvania said COM
mitments he has on other COM
mittees, plus Congress Easter
recess from April 1925, rule out
any chance of executive sessions
before the end of the month.
Time to Figure Costs.
Meanwhile, the breathing spell
will:
/. Give District officials a
chance to provide cost estimates
and other data to Congress on
the new alternate proposals.
2. Give the planning commits
sion a chance to decide whether
it wants to recommend special
priority for any bridge other
than Reaches Run and whether
it will answer sharply -worded
criticism against it yesterday.
John Nolen, jr., planning COM
mission director, said both those
questions would come before his
group at a meeting tomorrow
The commission has not voiced
any priority for other bridges
although it strongly favors the
Jones Point project. On the
matter of answering yesterdays
testimony, the planners are an
gered by District testimony
challenging their estimates OF
Reaches Run bridge costs.
The planners said their bridge
as well as extensive approach
road improvements in Virginia,
would cost 1858 million. This
estimate did not include some
improvements already planned
by District and Federal officials
but the planners contend it was
based on figures they got from
the District.
81 Million Disagreement.
District highway engineers
said the improvements proposed
by the planners would cost $685.
million-not 1858 million. But
they contended other improve
ments needed to make the bridge
"a partly workable facility
would run the total up to $500
million.
The partly workable" COM
ment was as far as any Of the
District witnesses went. Basically
and in uncomfortable language
they commended the bridge is
impractical because District
streets in the Fourteenth street
N. w. area could not be made
to handle increased traffic vol
ume the new bridge would
pour in.
Gen. Prentiss said the new
bridge, combined with existing
spans, would bring a total of
10,5O0 cars during the peak hour
into the Fourteenth street area.
He said he could see no practical
way of getting these cars north
of Constitution and Pennsylvania