Input on Mark Center I-395 HOV Ramp on Short Timeline

Alexandria residents only have a few days to submit their concerns about the  to connect the northbound HOV lane of I-395 to Seminary Road near Mark Center.

VDOT wants input from residents who will be affected by the ramp, and are asking them to send issues to representatives in the Advisory Group. Group members then have until close of business Monday, Sept. 12, to submit their concerns to David Grover, who will draft a document to send to VDOT.

Shirley Downs, a resident of KMS Townhomes near Van Dorn Street and a regular attendee at Advisory Group meetings, was worried about the ramp's effect on her property's value. She produced a letter outlining a number of the problems she saw with the ramp, including the potential removal of trees to shift the northbound general purpose lanes of I-395 towards Van Dorn. 

"Looking at something ... like the Southwest Freeway in D.C. or the 'Mixing Bowl' in Springfield is not going to enhance the property values of residents all along Van Dorn," her letter said.

It is hoped the ramp will alleviate rush hour traffic brought by 6,400 new federal employees working at Mark Center. These employees have already begun to arrive at the building, and more will come starting Sept. 15.

The assessment will look at three alternatives related to the ramp: not building it; left- and right-turn options from the ramp onto Seminary Road; and a left-turn only option onto Seminary Road.

Dick Somers, the Advisory Group representative for the Seminary Park Community Association, was unconvinced of the ramp’s effectiveness. “As long as you have 3,700 parking spaces, they will be used,” he said.

“We want [the community’s] input looking at what they think are the relevant issues,” Iosco said, citing concerns such as noise and cutthrough traffic problems.

A public hearing will be held on Dec. 15, after a draft of the Environmental Assessment has been produced. From there, VDOT officials will update it and submit it to the Federal Highway Administration.

VDOT BRAC coordinator Tom Fahrney stressed that it was still vey early in the process. "All I can say is, 'Let's see,'" he said.