Regarding the major traffic changes and congestion in the Mount Vernon area the last few years, I would like to offer a suggestion.
It is my understanding that Ft Belvoir has added over 25,000 people over the last few years and is scheduled to add at least another 25,000 in the not too distant future. As a result, the roads in the Mt Vernon area including US Route 1 and Fort Hunt Road have become extremely congested and often gridlocked tempting to get over the Woodrow Wilson Bridge. One thought that might be more realistic than attempting to widen neighborhood roads may be to consider a ferry service from Maryland to Virginia somewhere convenient to Ft Belvoir and environs. In places like Boston, New York, California, Washington State and throughout Europe, ferries transport hundreds of thousands of cars a day as a part of the daily norm. A joint project involving the states of VA, MD, the Defense Department and other appropriate parties might be able to make this project, if proven feasible, much sooner than the traditional road widening approach. The plan could possibly include larger parking garages on either side of the river and shuttles to major destinations like Ft Belvoir to lessen the burden. Just a thought, and I would be interested in the reaction.
Dan Mica
Alexandria