Remarks by Deputy Secretary Downey on the "E" Street Corridor Traffic Restoration Plan |
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Mortimer Downey, United States Deputy Secretary of Transportation
April 2, 1998
REMARKS PREPARED FOR DELIVERY
DEPUTY SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION MORTIMER DOWNEY
E STREET CORRIDOR TRAFFIC RESTORATION
WASHINGTON, D.C.
APRIL 2, 1998
Good morning. I’m Deputy Secretary of Transportation Mortimer Downey, and I’d like to welcome you to this morning’s announcement of a new step in our partnership with the District of Columbia. I’m joined by Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton and by Bob Stanton, Director of the National Park Service.
Three years ago this month, the tragic bombing in Oklahoma City served, unfortunately, to alert us to our vulnerability to terrorism. One of the many steps we took to protect federal buildings across America was to restrict traffic on sections of several streets near the White House.
The restrictions meant that E Street, right in front of us, had to become one-way. This and other traffic restrictions and realignments were, and are, necessary to protect the White House and its occupants from any possible harm.
However, Transportation Secretary Rodney Slater recognized the impact that these restrictions have had on downtown Washington. They’ve added to congestion and inconvenienced residents, commuters, and visitors to the national capital region.
The Secretary directed us to work with the District government and the National Park Service to find ways to improve mobility in this area, and we’ve come up with one.
We want to make this entire section of E Street two-way again, eliminating parking and widening the street’s narrowest parts so that it can handle two lanes of traffic in each direction. That’s going to help traffic flow throughout downtown.
Today, we’re committing $500,000 in federal funds for design and engineering work on this proposal, to conduct the necessary environmental reviews, and to evaluate its impacts on the area. Our Federal Lands Highway office will carry out these activities in partnership with the District, through its Public Works Department, and with the National Park Service.
They’ll consult closely with other affected groups, including the National Capital Planning Commission, the Commission of Fine Arts, and the Secret Service, as well as our neighbors, the Red Cross and the Corcoran Museum.
Assuming this proposal receives the necessary approvals, we’re ready to follow through with the approximately $1.5 million it will take to make it a reality, everything from street widenings to signage to repaving to landscaping.
This commitment adds to other recent transportation improvements we’ve proposed here in the District, such as modifying the Mount Vernon Square Metro station to better serve the new Convention Center and providing the final installment of federal funding for construction of the 103-mile Metro Rail system.
Together, these examples of President Clinton’s commitment to the District of Columbia will make possible a major step forward in the region’s transportation network, serving District residents, commuters, and visitors to the national capital region.
Over the years one of our strongest partners, not just in the proposal to reopen E Street but in all of these transportation initiatives, has been Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton. She’s been instrumental in helping the Administration to shape the President’s proposals, and I want to publicly thank her for her leadership and her many contributions to this partnership.
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Source: U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT)