Construction At Walter Reed Bethesda Gate To Prompt Intermittent Lane Closures

Work will soon be underway on a Jones Bridge Road gate to Bethesda’s that will force intermittent lane closures on the thoroughfare for the next two months.

Construction work has been completed at four of five of the base's gates, on Rockville Pike and Jones Bridge Road, county BRAC coordinator Phil Alperson wrote in an email.

The federally-mandated Base Realignment and Closure process drew 2,500 new employees to the military hospital last year, and is expected to nearly double the amount of yearly visitors to 1 million. A host of projects are underway on and around the base to help mitigate traffic problems.

“These gate upgrades will help address traffic in the area by working in concert with projects that are underway to improve pedestrian and vehicular movement at the Medical Center Metro Station and at intersections on Rockville Pike, Jones Bridge Road, Cedar Lane, Connecticut Avenue, and Old Georgetown Road,” Alperson wrote.

Work on the final gate, located at Jones Bridge Road and Gunnell Road, will prompt intermittent lane closures on Jones Bridge Road and a sidewalk closure for two months beginning Sept. 6.

The northern sidewalk along Jones Bridge Road from Rockville Pike to the Grier Road Gate will be closed from Sept. 6 through Nov. 9, with pedestrian detours in place, Alperson wrote. The intermittent lane closures will affect one lane of westbound Jones Bridge Road between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m.