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The intersection of Martin and Broadway streets will be replaced with a traffic roundabout over the next few months. Meanwhile, beginning Oct. 7, Martin Street will be closed to traffic. Broadway traffic will be rerouted onto a two-way detour.

Photo by Mike DiCicco

MCU underpass to close during traffic roundabout construction

2 Oct 2013 | Mike DiCicco Marine Corps Base Quantico

The underpass between Barnett Avenue and the Gray Research Center will remain closed for 11 weeks, beginning Oct. 7, during the construction of a traffic roundabout that will serve as the main entrance to the Marine Corps University campus.

The roundabout is being built at the intersection of Martin and Broadway streets, but a paved detour is now under construction, which will keep Broadway open in both directions. The detour, which will include an eight-foot walkway, will circle around the south of the intersection, running through the nearby parking lot.

The work is part of a larger build-out of the university’s campus, being carried out by CDM Smith/Coakley Williams joint venture on a budget of almost $100 million. This includes the current construction of the Warner Center for Advanced Military Studies and the Simmons Center of Marine Corps History adjacent to the research center, as well as a parking garage, and more construction is planned.

The roundabout, which will feature a fountain, landscaping and a large entry sign, is to provide a more attractive entrance to the campus, while also improving traffic flow and making the area more pedestrian-friendly, said Kim Crawford, project manager with Navy Facilities and Engineering Command.

“You won’t need to stop anymore. You’ll yield,” Crawford said, adding that the circle will also make it easier for pedestrians to cross at the intersection.

Eventually, the parking lot next to the coming traffic circle will be torn up to make way for the campus quad, and Crawford said the paved detour will be removed with it.

As the project gets underway, the entrance to the overflow parking lot just north of the intersection will be closed, and the rear entrance to the lot will be opened.

Martin Street will be closed with plastic Jersey walls that can be moved to allow emergency response vehicles to pass in the event the railroad crossings are blocked, Crawford said.

All other traffic will have to use Potomac Avenue or Henderson Road and Battery Avenue to access the university area from Barnett Avenue.

Ultimately, the area will include pedestrian-friendly plazas and walkways extending along both sides of all roads.

“This helps it to become a walking campus, and that was the original thought,” Crawford said.

— Writer: mdicicco@quanticosentryonline.com


Marine Corps Base Quantico