11th Street Bridge Opening

DDOT TRAFFIC ADVISORY:

New 11th Street Local Bridge Scheduled to Open on or about Thursday, May 24

New Span Provides Direct Connection Between Historic Anacostia and the Capitol Hill/Navy Yard Area
13th Street Access Ramp from Anacostia to the Inbound 11th Street Freeway (WB I-695) Bridge to Permanently Close

(Washington, D.C.) The 11th Street Bridge Project is entering a major phase of construction that will complete and open new ramps and bridges over the next several weeks.  These changes will affect traffic patterns for local traffic crossing the Anacostia River.

Opening of New Local Bridge and Closure of 13th Street Ramp

On the morning of Thursday, May 24, the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) is scheduled to partially open the new 11th Street Local Bridge between Historic Anacostia and the Capitol Hill/Navy Yard area.  The new 11th Street corridor will accommodate two-way local traffic and pedestrians across the river and provide a direct connection to the Washington Navy Yard at O Street, SE.

In the local bridge’s interim condition, there will be 2 lanes for inbound traffic and 1 lane for outbound traffic towards Anacostia. There will also be a temporary 6-foot separated walkway for pedestrians and cyclists. (The local bridge is scheduled to be completed this fall with 4 travel lanes and a permanent shared pedestrian/bicycle path).

On the same day, the existing 13th Street ramp, which currently provides access from Good Hope Road to the inbound 11th Street Freeway Bridge (I-695 WB), will close permanently.  All inbound traffic from Anacostia will be directed to the intersection of Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue and Good Hope Road, SE where motorists will access the new inbound 11th Street corridor.

Temporary Traffic Impacts

Please note: this new traffic pattern is anticipated to cause temporary traffic delays during the morning rush hour, until a new freeway ramp opens in approximately 6 weeks. That new ramp, which will complete a missing connection between southbound DC 295 and the inbound 11th Street Freeway Bridge, will draw commuters and reduce rush hour congestion in Anacostia.

In addition, a new on-ramp from 11th Street, SE to the westbound SE/SW Freeway is also expected to open before July 4. That ramp will re-establish the connection to the freeway for local traffic.

Detours

Full closure of the existing 11th Street, SE bridge and corridor from M Street, SE to Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, SE will be required starting at 10 pm on May 23 until 5 am the next day to switch traffic to the new local bridge.  During the roadway closure, signed detours will be posted.

During the closure of 11th Street, SE, local traffic seeking access to Anacostia from M Street, SE and the Navy Yard Area will be detoured onto the new ramp at the intersection of M Street and 11th Street, SE, to the outbound 11th Street Freeway. From there motorists can access southbound I-295, then Howard Road, SE to get to Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue.
Electronic signs will be in place to provide motorists advanced notice of the scheduled detour.
In the event of inclement weather or other unforeseen conditions, this work will be rescheduled and an updated advisory will be distributed.

This closure is in addition to the previously publicized off-peak closures of the 11th Street bridges, related ramps, local streets, Southeast/Southwest Freeway and I-295/DC 295.

For more information about this work or the 11th Street Bridge Project, please contact DDOT Project Manager Ravindra Ganvir at 202-359-6948 or visit www.ddot.dc.gov/11thStreetBridge.