The Virginia Department of Transportation began construction to improve an important bridge in the backyard of the Pentagon.

The $29.3 million project replaces the Route 27 (Washington Boulevard) bridge over Route 110 (Jefferson Davis Highway) in Arlington County. The existing bridge carries three lanes of traffic in each direction, a concrete sidewalk on each side and a 6-ft. (1.8 m) wide concrete raised median. The bridge was built in 1941 and is considered structurally deficient.

The bridge will be widened to accommodate a 14-ft. (4.2 m) shared-use path on the east side, and an 8-ft. (2.4 m) sidewalk on the west. The superstructure will be replaced and widened, increasing the length of the bridge to 470 ft. (143 m) by reconfiguring the end spans.

The new bridge superstructure also will be raised by more than a foot and a half, increasing vertical clearance for westbound Route 110 to 16.75 ft. (5.1 m).

The bridge’s new aesthetics will include decorative wrought-iron picket fencing, LED road and pedestrian lighting, gateway pillars and a recessed concrete pattern on the parapets. The crowning touch will be signature medallions on the bridge’s gateway pillars honoring the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force.

The project is being constructed by Judlau Contracting Inc. and is expected to be complete in May 2018.

Traffic Impacts

There are no major traffic impacts anticipated until May, when crews will need to reduce traffic on Washington Boulevard from three lanes to two in each direction. VDOT will maintain a minimum of two lanes in each direction on both Routes 27 and 110, other than temporary night closures to install bridge girders. Pedestrian traffic will be shifted to a temporary bridge in 2016.

As of 2013, Route 27 carries 71,500 vehicles per day and Route 110 carries 61,500 vehicles per day.