Why Beltway Traffic Came to a Standstill for Hours Monday

A "typical rear-ender" at midday Monday stopped southbound traffic on the Beltway (I-495) near the Dulles Toll Road for hours, backing up traffic into Montgomery County.

About 12:30 p.m. Monday, Michael G. Trio of Lexington, Va., was driving a tractor-trailer when he rear-ended a car, starting a chain-reaction accident involving five vehicles -- the tractor-trailer and four passenger vehicles, Virginia State Police said Monday afternoon.

Trio told state police his brakes failed, said 1st Sgt. Neil Johnson, area commander of the Fairfax Barrack of the Virginia State Police.

Trio was charged with driving defective equipment, which is a traffic violation, Johnson said.

Three people were taken to Fairfax Inova Hospital with minor injuries, Johnson said. They were not identified.

The southbound lanes of the Beltway were blocked for about an hour. Both Fairfax and Montgomery (Md.) counties issued severe traffic alerts telling residents that traffic was backed up at least three miles.

All lanes reopened by 1:45 p.m. but it took hours to untangle the backed-up traffic.