It could take at least a year to study before the Federal Highway Administration would consider a request to to close nearly a mile of Interstate 395 in the District to expedite the construction of a major project, federal officials said Monday in a letter to the District Department of Transportation.  “Closing I-395, a facility that carries 90,000 vehicles per day, was not considered during the environmental review process,” of the Capitol Crossing project, Joseph C. Lawson, a division administrator with FHWA said in a letter to DDOT Director Matthew Brown. “In order to consider closing the facility, DDOT would be required to perform an appropriate environmental review to determine the impacts to the human and natural environment.”  The federal agency has been reviewing a letter DDOT sent last month asking for guidance in the process for closing the highway. DDOT said it was passing along a request from the developer of the $1.5 billion Capitol Crossing project to shut down I-395 between New York Avenue and D Street NW for 15 to 18 months. New York-based Property Group Partners says this could halve the construction time of a $200-million deck over the freeway’s entrance that will support the company’s 2.2 million-square-foot project.  The proposal has angered commuters, and public officials who learned about the plan through news reports. D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton has called a meeting for Thursday with members of the region’s Congressional delegations, DDOT and FHWA to discuss the request.  FHWA said if DDOT wants to pursue closing the section of freeway, it will need to re-open the environmental review process and this could take about 12 months. A freeway closure will not be implemented until the review is completed, the agency said.  Luz Lazo writes about transportation and development. She has recently written about the challenges of bus commuting, Metro’s dark stations, and the impact of sequestration on air travel.
Federal transportation officials say a study is needed before decision is made on whether to allow the partial shut down of the highway to expedite a construction project.f I-395 in D.C.