GW Parkway's Northbound Lanes To Close In Arlington To Remove Crashed Car

ARLINGTON, VA — The National Park Service plans to close both northbound lanes of the George Washington Memorial Parkway in Arlington on Sunday to remove an abandoned car that careened two hundred feet off the road on a snowy day more than a year ago.

The NPS said it plans to close the lanes between 6 a.m. and 4 p.m. on Sunday, March 5 from Spout Run Parkway to Chain Bridge Road (VA 123). The southbound lanes will remain open.

“As a critical link in the national capital region's transportation network, closing the parkway is never a decision the NPS makes lightly,” the park service said in a news release Thursday.

A large crane will be used to pull the car from the side of the hill next to the Potomac River, requiring both northbound lanes to be closed.

The NPS will also temporarily close parts of the Potomac Heritage Trail near the vehicle for up to half an hour at a time while the work is happening.

The abandoned car is located below the parkway next to the Potomac River near Donaldson Run. The car left the road during a snowstorm in January 2022.

Rescue personnel from three local jurisdictions worked in tandem on Jan. 3 to rescue the man who was trapped inside a four-door Acura sedan stuck on the embankment.

Arlington Fire & EMS and rescue personnel from the City of Alexandria Fire worked their way down the embankment to extricate the driver. They then lowered the patient down to the Potomac River, where a D.C. Fire and EMS Fireboat was waiting.

The man survived the crash and was transported from the scene to Virginia Hospital Center with non-critical injuries, according to the U.S. Park Police. He suffered a broken arm and leg, according to reports.

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