Gate 19B at National Road to become new 24-hour gate

  • Published
  • By Derek Kaufman
  • 88th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio --  Beginning Feb. 1 the recently relocated Gate 19B at National Road will become the new 24-hour gate for Area B here. 

Base officials cited enhanced safety, security and traffic flow as key factors driving the decision. The change does not impact access to Wright-Patterson Areas A, C or Kittyhawk. 

The change will require base employees and visitors to use Gate 19B at National Road to enter or exit the base after normal duty hours during the week and on weekends. Gate 22B (I-675 at Exit 15) will then be open from 5:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Monday-Friday, excluding holidays. Gate 1B (Springfield Street) will remain open 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Friday, excluding holidays. 

Gate 19B was relocated on National Road to accommodate new BRAC construction in support of the Air Force Research Laboratory's new 711th Human Performance Wing complex. Base civil engineers said the bulk of new personnel supporting incoming BRAC missions arrive in 2010 and 2011 and this initiative will support their arrival. Construction vehicles currently building the complex have their own dedicated access and are unaffected by the change. 

Gate 19B is centrally located on National Road for convenient access to Col. Glenn Hwy, Airway Road, Kaufmann Road and Ohio Route 444. The new gate placement also supports expedient weekend access for visitors who ride aboard shuttle buses from the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force to the Presidential, Research & Development and Test Aircraft Galleries located on the controlled access portion of Area B at Wright-Patterson AFB. 

Col. Bradley Spacy, 88th Air Base Wing commander, said the number of personnel impacted by the change is expected to be relatively small, since the bulk of Wright-Patterson's Area B workforce work Monday through Friday and depart before 6 p.m. Most Area B visitors at night and during weekends are base people who utilize the Wright Field Fitness Center or are visitors to the National Museum's annex.
 
Previously, Gate 22B was the primary access point to Area B after regular duty hours. However officials said Gate 22B's location right off of Interstate 675 at exit 15 has been the site of a number of potentially dangerous incidents. Most involved motorists driving at night who have no base affiliation. 

"The new Gate 19B placement on National Road not only incorporates the latest security and force protection technologies, it also will minimize inadvertent attempts to enter the base by those non-base affiliated people who are often lost or disoriented, since it is not directly on the main thoroughfare," Spacy said. 

The colonel said drivers approaching Gate 22B at night at high speed or intoxicated place security forces and contract gate guards as well as the base populace at increased risk. 

Civil engineers said Gate 22B has been modified for secure electronic operation to allow the Wright-Patterson Fire Department to rapidly respond to any incident at the Prairies at Wright Field. 

"The security and safety of our base personnel remains our highest priority," Spacy said. "A lot of thought went into this change, which we coordinated with state and local transportation planners, police and fire departments, among others."

Col. Spacy said once the change is implemented, officials will continue to evaluate gate traffic and make adjustments to operating hours, if warranted.