Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1962-08-03
House Unit Demands
Area RoadWorkHalt
S3.2MiIIion
Projects
Imperiled
By GRACE BASSETT
Star Staff Writer

A House subcommittee today
an immediate halt
to at least $3.2 million of in
terstate highway building in
the District apea.
The subcommittee accused
the District Commissioners Of
"circumventing" Congressional
policy by pressing forward with
the highway construction be-
fore mass transit plans for the
Capital are fixed.
The PROJECTS involved are:
The Potomac River freeway,
the Three Sisters bridge, the
east leg of the Inner Loop. the
Northeast freeway - also an
Inner Loop link-and Inter-
change C leading from the loop
to the Southeast freeway.
The full House already has
deferred the last three SPEND
ing proposals. But the Po-
tomac freeway and the contro-
versial Three Sisters span
across the Potomac, allowed by
the House, are due for a Sem
ate hearing within days.
BIistering Report
The House subcommittee is
sued a blistering report after a
study of highway and traffic
problems ordered by full Dis,
trict Committee Chairman Nc
MILAN, Democrat of South
Carolina.
District highway officials &C,
tolerated highway building I'M
direct contravention Of con-
gressional approval Of a ball
anced highway and transit sys-
tenn, written into the 1860 law
creating the National Capital
Transportation Agency. Sub
committee Chairman Whitener.
Democrat Of North Carolina.
wrote.
: Further, Commissioners have
l failed to give Congress accurate
! estimates of highway spending
the report charged. Left out
were costs of operation, tax
losses from land acquisitions
and relocation of an estimated
: %, 900 persons to be uprooted
! by highways.
Also assailed was a highway
proposal to convert l6 miles Of
downtown streets to one-way
e traffic.
ID. C. Not POmpeil
This is startling" the report
k said. Twenty lone miles Of CEN
y trail streets now are one way
= An 80 per cent increase Is the
t. goal of the highway director
Harold Aitken.
o Washington is not Pompeii
e House subcommitteemen said
It In old Pompeii, before AID, rs
d marrow streets demanded one
way restrictions. But Subcom'
Il mittee members said Washing
Q ton, abundantly blessed witt
: wide avenues, does not need tht
: same plan.
d The House report upheld thu
y position of the Transportation
d Agency and of numerous citi'
zens who have fought the entr!
J. of broad streets into their re
= sidential sections. The agency
It concern is that highways viii
Lg congest the city and crowd gu
e a rapid rail system in the earl,
= planning stages.
al The subcommittee depande'
lg the Commissioners defer &C
ton on projects the Trans
- portation Agency wants de
ferred until Congress convene
in January. These recommeAda
tons apparently would Hmi
the Districts freeway system t
~ an arc along the southern rir
of the city, running from tn
Theodore Roosevelt Bridge !
u Sixth street Southeast. X
Would Freeze Work &
of This is the only portion ST d
Inner Loop around the cit
+ core now under construction.
" The subcommittee recon
'lv mendation would freeze wor
y. on any freeways linking tn
&C arc with the central city to tn
north.
tn The National Capital Plar
IL ming Commission also wa
n asked to stop making recon
fe mendation on disputed project
n until Congress acts on a Tran.
portation Agency report dl
November /.
;fe This subcommittee wants
ms make it clear that it is neitht
10 anti-highway nor anti-rapi
transit. nor pro-highway NJ
,rv See HIGHWAYS, Page A
ers
n