Project Rationale Print E-mail
  • Completed in 1961, the four-lane bridge was designed to carry 75,000 vehicles a day over the next twenty years.
  • The Bridge reached that design volume in eight years, and today carries nearly three times its original intended traffic volume - almost 200,000 vehicles a day. Bridge improvements have been under construction since the late 1980s.
  • The demand projections for a crossing of the Potomac River are great due to the extensive development in Maryland and Virginia suburbs as well as the renaissance in Washington D.C.
  • The Project is not just a bridge replacement but includes four interchanges.
  • Project will enhance mobility while addressing community and environmental concerns.
  • Currently, the eight-lane Capital Beltway (I-95 / I-495) narrows into the six-lane Woodrow Wilson Bridge.
  • The Bridge is one of the worst bottlenecks in the country.
  • Building a new bridge will ease congestion by unclogging the bottleneck.
  • Work on the surrounding interchanges will alleviate traffic congestion and better traffic flow.