Media Contact: John Lisle at (202) 671-2004
(Washington, DC) The District of Columbia Department of Transportation (DDOT) is scheduled to begin installing streetcar tracks September 16 at the intersection of South Capitol Street and Firth Sterling Avenue. This work is part of the construction of the initial Anacostia streetcar line that is expected to be operational in late 2012.
Due to the nature of the work, during this phase of the project traffic through the intersection on South Capitol Street will have to be reduced to one lane in each direction. Additional delays of 5-10 minutes are anticipated and motorists are advised to use alternate routes if possible.
In addition to the lane closures, all turns will be prohibited from northbound South Capitol Street to Firth Sterling Avenue and Defense Boulevard. Instead, northbound traffic will be directed to take the following detour:
- East on M Street
- South on First Street
- Southwest on Potomac Avenue
- South on South Capitol Street in order to turn east on Firth Sterling Avenue or west on Defense Boulevard
Motorists can also access Firth Sterling Avenue using this alternate detour:
- North on South Capitol Street
- East on Malcolm X Avenue
- North on Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue
- West on Howard Road to Firth Sterling Avenue
The track work in the intersection is scheduled to begin at 9:30 am on Wednesday, September 16 and is expected to be completed on Wednesday, September 30, 2009. However, additional work will continue on South Capitol Street and Firth Sterling Avenue until December and motorists are encouraged to use alternate routes to avoid delays, including:
- I-295 North to Suitland Parkway to South Capitol Street
- Malcolm X Avenue to Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue to W Street to 13th Street to I-295 North
- South Capitol Street to Suitland Pkwy to I-295 South
- I-295 to 11th Street Bridge to Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue to South Capitol Street
For more information about the Streetcar project, please visit our website at www.ddot.dc.gov/dcstreetcar.