Contact (Media Only): Erik Linden (202) 671-2004 and Karyn LeBlanc (202) 671-3490
(Washington, DC) At approximately 6:30 pm, Thursday evening (July 19), construction crews completed the lowering of the District of Columbia’s Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge, as part of this summer’s Douglass Bridge “Extreme Makeover.”
A 200-foot segment of the bridge’s elevated northern approach was lowered by just over four feet through the use of more than 35 hydraulic jacks. The precise bridge lowering process, which needed to be done very slowly and involved “cutting” the bridge’s support columns, was completed in just over 16 hours.
Yesterday’s bridge lowering allows workers to move forward with rebuilding the northernmost portion of the bridge to create an at-grade roadway with a new intersection at South Capitol Street and Potomac Avenue. This work will help create a new gateway into the District and complement the revitalization of the Southeast waterfront.
This work and other major renovations to the bridge are being done to improve the bridge’s mobility and accessibility in and out of the surrounding development along the Anacostia Waterfront area. To safely and efficiently complete this major reconstruction, the Douglass Bridge was closed to traffic and pedestrians two weeks ago on Friday, July 6th and will remain closed for up to two months.
A dramatic visual of the bridge “before and after” the lowering is available on video to press media.
Media interested in receiving the time-lapse video, which showcases the “before and after” view of the bridge, should contact DDOT’s Erik Linden at erik.linden@dc.gov.
For more information, see the full project description of this summer’s “Extreme Makeover" bridge work.