[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 4 (Thursday, January 6, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 801-802]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-258]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Highway Administration
Coast Guard
Woodrow Wilson Bridge; Potomac River, District of Columbia and
Prince George's County, MD
AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration, Coast Guard, DOT.
ACTION: Notice of public hearing; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Federal Highway Administration together with the Coast
Guard, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, District of Columbia Department of
Health, Maryland State Highway Administration, Virginia Department of
Transportation and Maryland Department of Environment will hold two
public hearings to receive information concerning the environmental and
navigational impacts of the replacement of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge.
The bridge is located on Interstate 495/95 where it crosses the Potomac
River, mile 103.80, at District of Columbia and Prince George's County,
Maryland. The hearings will allow interested persons to present
comments and information concerning the bridge alternative under
consideration.
DATES: The hearing will start 7 p.m. on Tuesday, February 8, and
Thursday, February 10, 2000 and display materials will be available
beginning at 5:30 p.m. on these dates. Comments must be received by
February 25, 2000. Requests to speak at either hearing and requests for
services must be received by February 1, 2000.
ADDRESSES: The hearing on February 8 will be held at Best Western
Potomac View, 6400 Oxon Hill Road, Oxon Hill, Maryland 20745. On
February 10, the hearing will be at Radisson Hotel--Old Town
Alexandria, 901 North Fairfax Street, Alexandria, Virginia 22314.
Written comments may be submitted to, and will be available for
examination between 7:30 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, except
Federal holidays, at the office of the Commander (Aowb), Fifth Coast
Guard District, 431 Crawford Street, Portsmouth, Virginia 23703-5004.
Please submit all comments in an unbound format, no larger than 8 by 11
inches, suitable for copying and electronic filing. Persons wanting
acknowledgement of receipt of comments should enclose a stamped, self-
addressed postcard or envelope.
Requests to speak at either hearing and requests to be placed on
the project mailing lists may be submitted to Ms. Norine Walker, P.E.,
at the Woodrow Wilson Bridge Center, 1800 Duke Street, Suite 200,
Alexandria, Virginia 22314 or 6009 Oxon Hill Road, Suite 410, Oxon
Hill, Maryland 20745.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. John Gerner, Project Manager
(FHWA), Woodrow Wilson Bridge Center, 1800 Duke Street, Suite 200,
Alexandria, Virginia 22314 (703 519-9800); Mr. N.E. Mpras, Chief,
Office of Bridge Administration, Commandant (G-OPT), U.S. Coast Guard,
2100 Second Street, SW, Washington, DC 20593 (202 267-0368); or Ms. Ann
Deaton, Chief, Bridge Administration Branch, Fifth Coast Guard
District, Federal Building, 431 Crawford Street, Portsmouth, Virginia
23704-5004 (757 398-6222).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) proposes to replace the
Woodrow Wilson Bridge over the Potomac River and to modify the
associated roadway and interchanges in a 7.5 mile section of I-95/I-495
(Capital Beltway) from west of Telegraph Road (VA 241) in Virginia to
east of Indian Head Highway (MD 210) in Maryland. The western portion
of the project corridor is located in Fairfax County and the City of
Alexandria in Virginia. The drawspans on the Woodrow Wilson Bridge are
located in the southern tip of the District of Columbia. The eastern
portion of the corridor is located in Prince George's County, Maryland.
The purpose of the proposed action is to address existing capacity
constraints, safety, and structural deficiencies associated with the
Woodrow Wilson Bridge, and to enhance vehicular mobility in the
corridor while addressing environmental and community concerns.
The new Woodrow Wilson Bridge will replace the existing bridge with
two new, parallel, double leaf, bascule drawbridges, each with a 366-
foot span and a clearance of 70 feet over the navigation channel. One
span will carry eastbound traffic and the other westbound traffic, and
the structure will be constructed approximately 30 feet south of the
existing bridge. The westbound span, carrying the inner loop of the
Capital Beltway, would be 124 feet wide, including a 12-foot wide
pedestrian/bicycle facility with a 2-foot wide barrier. The eastbound
span, carrying the outer loop of the Capital Beltway, would be 110 feet
wide. Eleven ``V''-shaped, concrete piers will support the bridges. The
bridges will be protected at the navigational channel by twelve, 45-
foot diameter, sheet pile dolphins with a pipe pile supported, concrete
guideway with fendering north and south of the bridge piers. The
bridges would include a total of 12 lanes (six lanes in each
direction). Each bridge is 4,100 feet long, over Maryland water, with a
total length of 6,075 feet.
The FHWA is the lead Federal agency for the environmental
documentation for this project. The Coast Guard has been involved as a
cooperating agency during the preparation of the Draft Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement (DSEIS). The U.S. Coast Guard is the
Federal agency responsible
[[Page 802]]
for protecting the freedom of navigation with due consideration being
given to the quality of the human environment and by taking a balanced
approach to total transportation systems, both land and water modes.
The Coast Guard must ensure that proposed bridge projects provide for
the reasonable needs of present and prospective marine transportation.
Interested and affected parties are requested to express their views,
in writing, on the impacts of the construction of the proposed bridges
on navigation and the quality of the human environment, including
impacts on historic, recreational, endangered species, and wetlands,
giving sufficient detail to establish a clear understanding of their
reasons for support of or opposition to the proposed work.
Procedural
Individuals and representatives of organizations that wish to
present testimony at either Hearing or who want to be placed on the
project mailing list, may submit a request to Ms. Norine Walker, P.E.,
at the Woodrow Wilson Bridge Center, 1800 Duke Street, Suite 200,
Alexandria, Virginia 22314 or 6009 Oxon Hill Road, Suite 410, Oxon
Hill, Maryland 20745. Requests to speak should be received no later
than February 1, 2000 in order to ensure proper schedule of the
hearing. Attendees at the hearing who wish to present testimony and
have not previously made a request to do so, will follow those on the
previously established list. Brochures and forms for written comments
will be sent to those on the mailing list. Written statements and other
exhibits in lieu of or in addition to oral presentation at the Hearing
may be submitted to Ms. Walker at the address under ADDRESSES until
February 25, 2000, in order to be included in the Public Hearing
Transcript.
Information on Services for Individuals With Disabilities
Appropriate auxiliary aids and services for qualified individuals
with disabilities or non-English speaking persons will be provided upon
request. Please submit requests for these services to Ms. Norine
Walker, at the address under ADDRESSES in writing or by calling either
of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge Centers at 703-519-9800 or 301-686-0000 or
fax request to 703-548-4593 or 301-868-0001 or teletype to 1-800-735-
2258 (MD Statewide toll free). Any requests for an oral or sign
language interpreter must be received by February 1, 2000.
Dated: December 30, 1999.
George K. Frick, Jr.,
Acting Division Administrator, Federal Highway Administration.
Terry M. Cross,
Rear Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard, Director of Operations Policy.
[FR Doc. 00-258 Filed 1-5-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-22-M