Busy Fort Eisenhower gate to restrict access at peak times

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AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Fort Eisenhower is making some entry changes at one of its highest-profile gates starting Monday.

Starting Feb. 5, only people with Department of Defense ID cards will be able to use the McKenna Gate (Gate 1) from 5-9 a.m. Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. The gate is at Gordon Highway and Jimmie Dyess Parkway.

All vehicle occupants must be Department of Defense ID card holders, children under the age of 10 with a DoD ID card holder or holders of a Gold Star Family automated installation entry card.

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Trusted travelers, temporary holders or people with other cards, including Department of Veterans Affairs cards, will not be permitted during the restricted times.

Security personnel will turn around vehicles that don’t meet the requirements, directing them to Gate 6, which is the main gate, or Gate 5 on Tobacco Road.

“The amount of morning traffic through our McKenna Gate poses safety concerns,” said Lt. Col. Hank Cartagena, the post’s director of emergency services and provost marshal.

One of the problems is that the flow of cars through the gate doesn’t always match the number of cars ing through the traffic light into the gate area. As a result, cars block the intersection far after the light has turned red.

“These changes are necessary to ensure the safety of our workforce, visitors, and the general public transiting adjacent state and county highways,” Cartagena said.

He added that so many vehicles are processed at the gate that it can reduce the effectiveness of the vetting process.

Limiting access during peak hours should reduce traffic by 30%, or 1,500 vehicles. An analysis determined current vehicle load during peak hours to be about 5,000.