The Latest Transportation Updates Around the County

The Prince William County Department of Transportation and the Virginia Department of Transportation recently briefed the Prince William Board of County Supervisors on the status of road projects across the county.

Antietam Sidewalk

Prince William County Department of Transportation projects that are underway or recently completed include:

• Antietam Sidewalk — Construction on the project began in January and finished two months ahead of schedule. The sidewalk is open to the public. The project was the first “Safe Walk to School” project to be completed in the county. The program is a partnership between local jurisdictions and the federal government to promote safe walking and bicycling to and from school.
• Route 28, Phase II — Rights-of-way and utility relocations are completed for the widening project on Route 28 between Fitzwater Drive and Vint Hill Road. A contract has been awarded and the notice to start work is scheduled for July, with construction scheduled to be complete in November 2019.
• Route 28, Phase III — The county received an unsolicited bid to design and build a road widening project between Linton Hall Road and Pennsylvania Avenue. The county is scheduled to ask for competing bids in July.
• Vint Hill Road between Schaeffer Lane and Gary Glen Drive — Design completion for the extension is expected in September. Gasoline pipeline encasements will be extended as part of the project, which is scheduled for completion by late summer 2019.
• Discovery Boulevard Extension — Design authorization for the project was issued in January. The tentative construction contract award date is the spring of 2018.
• Burwell Road — The preliminary design phase to pave the rural road is ongoing. Advertisements for construction will go out in January.
• Innovation Pedestrian Improvements — Status review meetings are underway for pedestrian improvements along Discovery and University Boulevards and Innovation Drive. Survey notification letters were mailed to property owners adjacent to the improvement route. The design phase for the project is scheduled to be completed in December 2017.
• Southbound Dumfries Road Turn Lanes — Design comments from the Virginia Department of Transportation, or VDOT, and the county’s environmental and development services divisions are being addressed by the consultant for the project that includes two left-turn lanes from Dumfries Road to Hoadly Road. A meeting was held with VDOT and the consultant to resolve movement of traffic issues. Construction is scheduled this fall with a completion date set for the spring of 2018
• Dumfries Road Sidewalk Project — The design phase for the project to build a sidewalk between Counselor Road and Tayloe Drive began in June and is scheduled to be completed in December. Construction is scheduled to begin in March 2018 and end in September 2018.
• Blackburn Road Pedestrian Improvements — The preliminary design was sent to all review agencies in late May. Advertisements for bids to build the improvements are planned for November.
• Minnieville Road — Utility relocations are ongoing for the project to widen Minnieville road between Spriggs Road and Route 234. The design phase is ongoing to improve the westbound Spriggs Road intersection with Minnieville Road to include two left-turn lanes, two through-lanes and one right-turn lane. A prior dumpsite along the route required extensive earth removal and disposal. That work is underway. Storm pipe installation and relocation of utilities is ongoing. Construction is scheduled to be completed in October 2018.
• Smoketown Road-Opitz Boulevard Pedestrian Improvements — Final design comments are being addressed for the sidewalk that will run along Smoketown Road and Opitz Boulevard, and a task order to relocate a Verizon utility box is being processed. Final design plans were completed in May and construction is scheduled to begin this fall.
• Old Bridge Sidewalk — Construction bid documents are being prepared. The Lake Ridge Parks and Recreation Association has agreed to let the county enter its property to get the work done. Construction advertisements are expected to begin in July.
• Dumfries Road Shared-Use Path — Scheduling for utility relocations between Country Club and Exeter Drives is underway. A geotechnical report showed that a type of soil at the construction site will require the redesign of a retaining wall. Construction is scheduled to begin in October. Construction on another project segment on Dumfries Road between Four Seasons and Talon Drives is expected to begin this summer and end this fall.
• Powell’s Creek Pedestrian Footbridge — Utility work is ongoing for the project that started in December 2016. The project is scheduled to be completed by this September.
• Route 1, Featherstone Way to Mary’s Way — The rights-of-way authorization for the widening project have been approved and the county is working on gaining those rights-of-way. Utility relocation plans and estimates were submitted in June and are scheduled to begin in January. The estimated construction completion is April 2021.
• Southampton Street Sidewalk — Final design for the sidewalk construction project between Montgomery Avenue and Pine Lane is scheduled to be completed in September. Construction is scheduled to begin this coming spring.
• Opitz Boulevard Sidewalk Project — The design phase for the project to build a sidewalk between Potomac Library and Potomac Center Boulevard is underway and scheduled to be completed in December. Construction is scheduled to begin in May 2018 and end in September 2018.
• Horner Road Sidewalk — The project will connect a missing sidewalk section along Horner Road between the entrance of Dean Kilby Elementary School and Forest Glen Road. Design started in May and is scheduled to end in October, with construction set to begin in December and end in May 2018.

The status of current VDOT projects include:

• I-66/Route 15 Interchange Reconstruction — Construction continues with paving and signal installation on the project that is scheduled to be completed late this summer.
• Route 1/123 Interchange — The construction to span Route 123 over Route 1and the railroad will be phased. Phase I will include widening Route 1 between Annapolis Way and Mary’s Way. Phase II, which is so far unfunded, will include the interchange. Roadway and retaining wall construction is underway. Pile driving is completed for Phase I, and day-and-night closures are ongoing for undergrounding utilities.
• Old Centreville Road — Initial bids for the bridge reconstruction over Bull Run came in higher than expected in December 2015 and the job was re-advertised in the fall of 2016. Construction is now underway and is expected to be complete late this year. Southbound beams are in place. Traffic can pass each way, in turn, on one lane that is controlled by a temporary signal.
• Route 1 Widening in the Town of Dumfries — Design for the project to widen Route 1 in the Town of Dumfries between Route 234 and Brady’s Hill Road from two to six lanes is underway, but the project was not selected for funding under the current scenario by the Commonwealth Transportation Board. The board selects projects through the state’s SMART SCALE program, a process that evaluates projects based on need and performance levels.
• Route 234 Pedestrian Improvements — Design for the project to build a sidewalk between Four Seasons Drive and Fortuna Center Plaza have been enhanced to include developer improvements. Advertisements for bids are expected to go out in the spring of 2018.
• I-95 and Ashdale Plaza Ramp Modification — Construction is underway on the ramp from southbound Interstate 95 to westbound Dale Boulevard. Construction is scheduled to be completed by late this summer.
• Blackburn Road at Rippon Boulevard — A survey has been completed for the installation of a traffic signal at the intersection of Blackburn Road and Rippon Boulevard. Comments received in February are being evaluated.
• Williamson Boulevard Signal — A survey is underway to install a traffic light and a turn lane at the intersection of Williamson Boulevard and Stonehouse Drive. Design will begin soon.
• I-66 Park and Ride, Haymarket — Preliminary design is underway to build a 230-space parking lot in the northeast quadrant of Interstate 66 and Route 15 in Haymarket. VDOT is working with an adjacent property owner for access.
• Transform 66 — Outside the Beltway — Community outreach meetings have been held and environmental assessments have been completed to add two new express lanes on I-66 between University Boulevard, in Gainesville, to Interstate 495. Public hearings on the design will be held this fall, with construction to start late 2017.

For more information about transportation projects in the county visit www.pwcgov.org/transportation.