ALEXANDRIA, Virginia— A semi-organized flotilla of American flag-bearing vehicles, semi-trucks, and recreational vehicles attempted to gum up the D.C.-area Beltway on Sunday protesting pandemic restrictions.
But instead, convoy-goers found themselves separated by traffic and beat down by the circular highway.
The People’s Convoy set out from its home base of Hagerstown, Maryland at 9:30 a.m., with designs to be a “huge pain” to other drivers, organizers said, planning to circle the 64-mile Beltway twice at 40 miles an hour.
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In reality, the convoy might have caused slight delays to local Sunday commuters, but overall were left defeated by the Beltway after being separated by standard metro-area traffic. At the same time, select truckers bailed only after completing a single lap.
“The American people are done with government overreach,” a convoy participant in the passenger seat of a white SUV told The Daily Beast while traveling on the Beltway. Asked if anything was being accomplished by driving in circles, the car took off.
Elsewhere, truckers appeared tired after completing a singular lap.
At least six truckers pulled off at the I-270 exchange to head back in the direction of Hagerstown after completing one of two laps around 2:00 p.m.
Five residents had come out to cheer on truckers at an overpass near the McLean, Virginia area while waving American flags. One supporter told The Daily Beast they were there because of the “heal[ing]” nature of the convoy, which she hoped would help “a country [that] has been divided for so long.”
Back at base camp, organizer Brian Brase continued to pledge that truckers will increase the number of laps they will conduct on the Beltway this week if their unspecified demands aren’t met by lawmakers. On Sunday, the Beltway activities ran truckers an average of $200 in fuel alone. (A Daily Beast request for comment on whether the group intends to conduct laps on Monday went unreturned.)
The convoy, modeled after Canadian protests, picked D.C. as their finish for a cross-country odyssey aimed at airing grievances against vaccine mandates. One problem: some of those mandates have started to lapse anyway, as officials see signs the pandemic is easing.
By the time 3 p.m. rolled around, organizers back in Hagerstown called on truckers for immediate aid as storms were approaching their makeshift outpost at Hagerstown speedway.
“We need immediate help loading all supplies and donations into cargo bays before the rain showers come in,” an urgent text to truckers stated.
Read it at The Washington Post
