Tim Bracken, wtop.com

Last week, the D.C. Department of Transportation announced that the next big phase of the 11th Street Bridge Project will permanently close the ramp from 13th Street SE to the inbound 11th Street Bridge. The ramp will be closed when the new local span of the bridge opens this spring.

Planners had considered closing the bridge in advance of the new local span opening, but the goal of minimizing traffic delays trumped the possibility of quickly building new ramps between DC-295 and the bridge.

DDOT Director Terry Bellamy said, “…we proactively communicated with residents and motorists as early as possible about the ramp closure but continued to consider additional options that would reduce the impact…”

So, what should you expect for now?

• The ramp from 13th Street NE to the inbound 11th Street Bridge will remain open until late spring.
• When the new local span of the 11th Street Bridge opens, the ramp from 13th Street NE will permanently close.

In late fall:

• A new ramp will connect southbound DC-295 to the inbound 11th Street Bridge.
• Another new ramp will connect the outbound 11th Street Bridge to northbound DC-295.
• These new ramps are expected to have a big impact on reducing congestion in that area — Direct access from the outbound 11th Street Bridge to northbound DC-295 (as well as direct access from southbound DC-295 to the inbound 11th Street Bridge)  is currently not an option.

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