Trucker Convoy Crosses Into DC As Police Deal With Gridlock

WASHINGTON, DC — A trucker convoy that had been circling the Capital Beltway to protest COVID-19 mandates crossed from Virginia into the District of Columbia Monday afternoon to begin a second week of protests.

D.C. police blocked Interstate 395 exits in into downtown as hundreds of trucks, cars and SUVs in the People's Convoy entered the city.

Heavy traffic congestion was reported Monday afternoon on I-395 in Virginia and crossing the 14th Street Bridge into D.C. due to the trucker convoy.

"Changing things up a little bit today. Getting a little closer to the swamp," the People's Convoy Facebook page said Monday morning. "Cars first, followed by RVs, and then trucks."

After arriving from Hagerstown, Maryland, where the protesters have set up camp for the past 10 days, the convoy followed I-395 to I-695 in D.C. early Monday afternoon before crossing the Anacostia River. The convoy was then expected to return to the Beltway before going back to Hagerstown.

"Due to demonstration activity on I-395, I-695, and I-295 motorists should expect traffic delays in reaching your destination," D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management said in an alert. "If possible, you should consider delaying travel on these routes or use alternative transportation such as Metrorail."

The Metropolitan Police Department closed a number of streets and highway exits in order to keep traffic moving through the area. "These rolling road closures are occurring in real-time as they are needed, and will be lifted as soon as they are no longer necessary," the D.C. emergency agency said.

Dave Statter, who runs the Statter911 news site, said traffic was still slow along I-395 near the Pentagon at 3 p.m. Monday. The first vehicle of the convoy passed by the Pentagon around 1 p.m., he said.

By 4:30 p.m., all freeway exit closures had been lifted, but delays from the demonstration activity may linger, D.C. emergency management officials said.

The convoy left the Hagerstown Speedway at 10 a.m. on Monday. Instead of circling the Beltway again, organizers decided to go through the city to display “a bigger presence,” convoy leader Brian Brase said in an interview with The Washington Post.

SEE ALSO: Trucker Convoy Joined By Sen. Ted Cruz, Washington Post Reports

The convoy entered D.C. for the first time since it began Feb. 23 in California on its cross-country trip to the D.C. area.

The People's Convoy planned to hold a two-week protest on the National Mall starting Monday. But the group's application with the National Park Service was partially denied because of other events already booked during that time frame, the Post reported.

The NPS was working with the group on another date, location and the conditions for the protest. But the People’s Convoy withdrew its application Sunday night, a park service spokesman told the Post.

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) rode with the lead truck in the convoy last Thursday. "There ain't no ignoring a senator riding in the lead truck," Brase said. "That's basically an endorsement of what we're doing."

Leaders from the People's Convoy had met with Cruz and Senator Ron Johnson earlier last week, while the rest of the group circled the Capital Beltway. In their meeting with the senators, the truckers said they would not leave the D.C. area until their demands were met.

The People's Convoy did not protest over the weekend due to the snowstorm on Saturday. The caravan also took the day off last Wednesday due to rain moving through the D.C. area.

RELATED: Trucker Convoy Taking A Day Off Due To Rain, Group Says