Everyone needs a good photo op: WTOP:
The Woodrow Wilson Bridge — the expansion of which has been touted as a major improvement along Interstate 95 — was to blame for huge delays on the day the bridge’s second span was dedicated.
Preparation for the event began early Thursday, and caused drivers to slow down to see what was happening. The ceremony started at 11 a.m. and ended around noon.
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At one point, the Inner Loop backups on the Maryland side of the bridge extended for more than 8 miles.
“There is definitely some rubber-necking going on, and some additional traffic. The message we would like to get out to motorists is, ‘Please keep driving,'” Wilson Bridge Project spokesperson Michelle Holland said of the backups.
For 5 1/2 hours, the backups were consistently 7 to 8 miles long.
WTOP Traffic Reporter Lisa Baden said it took drivers as much as 1 hour, 30 minutes to go those 7 or 8 miles.
“The port-a-potties are starting to look very tempting to the people sitting the backups for an hour and a half,” Baden said.
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Local leaders including Govs. Tim Kaine and Martin O’Malley, D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty and U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters were on hand for the dedication.
Sen. John Warner (R-Va.) tightened the last bolt on the bridge into place.