Traffic congestion in the vicinity of Fort Belvoir is about to get worse. Beginning the end of August or early September, Tully Gate will be closed through the remainder of 2003.
All in the name of force protection security, the gate upgrade construction project is the first step in bringing Fort Belvoir's access control in line with Department of Defense and Department of the Army standards, according to Fort Belvoir officials.
"The construction effort will introduce major technology and information systems to the control access points, while enhancing installation security," said Force Protection Officer 1st Lt. Jeff Lieberman. "To reduce traffic implications, construction will be undertaken on one gate at a time."
Tully Gate is the first access point to Fort Belvoir when approaching from the south on Route 1, and the last when coming from the north. "Each gate, except for Tully, should be closed for a period of no longer than three weeks with periods of reduced traffic flow at other times," said director of public safety Lt. Col. Paul F. Nigara.
The Tully Gate project will be extended due to the tie-in with work that began July 7, on a new visitor center located just inside that access point. "Because the construction contract has not yet been awarded, the sequence of gate closures after Tully has not yet been determined," Nigara said.
"We will try not to have two gates closed at one time because of the traffic implications. We are going to work closely with the Fort Belvoir Public Affairs Office to get the info out there so it's known to the public and everyone can adjust appropriately," Leiberman said. "We are doing them in sequence to minimize the effects to people who work or live on post."
OTHER GATE projects will be undertaken at Farrer Division Airfield; J.J. Kingman Defense Logistics Agency, just off the Fairfax County Parkway; Woodlawn Road; Telegraph Road, at the intersection with Beulah Street; Walker, off Route 235; Pence; and Woodlawn Village.
Belvoir officials maintain the construction and upgrades will have wide-reaching benefits. The expectation, according to the Army, is that changes will increase the accessibility by improving soldiers' ability to process cars on post, in addition to making the area more attractive.
"We'll actually be increasing the safety of our soldiers who will be manning the access control points. We're giving them better structures to operate from. Some will have a toll booth where they can process and identify cars. That will protect them from firearms and explosive devices," Lieberman stressed.
A different assessment of the project was expressed by Mount Vernon District supervisor Gerald Hyland. "There's going to be a major challenge not to cause a significant impact on traffic traveling on Route 1," he insisted.
"Woodlawn Road is still not open, even after the Town Meeting we had on that subject. It still poses a major traffic problem, and this action seems to indicate that the prospects of it reopening are not improving," Hyland said.
Lieberman emphasized that implementing the new technology will result in "things people won't even be able to see, but will increase our ability to monitor cars coming on post, and even prevent them from coming on post if we need to."
To avoid arriving at a closed gate, Belvoir officials are advising the community to monitor the post Web site, www.belvoir.army.mil.
Any changes to the project, or any other pertinent information, will be posted there immediately, according to Marcia Kline, public affairs officer