Traffic accessing Fort Belvoir and other local Army installations may be heavier in coming weeks as the Army implements 100% ID checks for a couple of periods until mid-June, according to recent press reports. An April 28 story in Military.com said the ID checks for all vehicle passengers are part of an Army-wide study of security guard staffing requirements.
In a recent Facebook post, Fort Belvoir announced the suspension from April 28 until further notice of its Trusted Traveler Program, which had been reinstated in November 2022 to make installation access easier. Under Trusted Traveler, drivers carrying certain types of Department of Defense (DoD) ID cards were able to vouch for all passengers in their vehicle.
Now, security guards at access gates will need to scan all passenger IDs. Any visitors who don’t have a DoD or military ID card will be required to receive a visitor pass at Tulley Gate’s Visitor Control Center, according to Fort Belvoir. Tulley Gate’s far-right commercial lane can also be used by visitors without a DoD/military ID or visitor pass, but passengers will need to provide a valid driver’s license or other form of official photo ID.
Fort Belvoir’s visitor access policy states that all visitors 16 years of age and older must have an access pass to enter the installation.
Earlier this year, Fort Belvoir Garrison Commander Col. Joseph Messina told community leaders about the staffing challenges that continue to keep several of the installation’s gates — including Lieber, Walker and Telegraph — closed for the time being.
Updates to this story will be provided as additional information is received from Fort Belvoir.
