As work continues on the Jones Branch Connector project, drivers can expect nightly closures on and around the bridge this week.
The ramps from the eastbound Dulles Toll Road and the eastbound Dulles Airport Access Road to southbound I-495 are scheduled to be closed from 10 p.m.-4 a.m. from today (Monday) to Friday (June 21), according to VDOT.
VDOT said drivers can take the following detours:
- eastbound Dulles Toll Road to southbound I-495: Eastbound Dulles Toll Road and southbound Route 123 (Exit 19A) back to the southbound I-495
- eastbound Dulles Airport Access Road to southbound I-495: Northbound I-495 and westbound Route 193 (Exit 44) back to the southbound I-495
- eastbound Dulles Toll Road traffic will still be able to access the southbound 495 Express Lanes
Additionally, Scotts Crossing Road closures between Jones Branch Drive and the I-495 Express Lanes will be closed during those times as well.
The closure will let workers continue work on the bridge, which is part of the $60 million project to relieve traffic along Route 123 at the I-495 interchange.
Pedestrians can expect the Jones Branch Connector sidewalk to open mid- to late summer.
The entire project is slated to finish this fall.
Map via VDOT
Pedestrians will soon be able to get over I-495 once the Jones Branch Connector’s sidewalk open, connecting North Central to Tysons East.
Currently, the Jones Branch Connector is undergoing construction for a $60 million project that will add two travel lanes and on-street bike lanes in each direction.
“Right now the Jones Branch Connector sidewalk is slated to open mid- to late summer 2019,” Michael Murphy, a spokesperson for the Virginia Department of Transportation, told Tysons Reporter.
Back in December, the Jones Branch Connector partially opened with one lane of traffic in each direction, but “Sidewalk Closed” signs have kept pedestrians away.
“By providing an alternate route across the Beltway and linking the Tysons East and Central areas, the Connector is expected to relieve traffic along Route 123, at the I-495 interchange, and at other congested intersections,” according to VDOT. “The road is expected to carry more than 32,000 vehicles per day by 2040.”
The project is slated to finish in the fall.
A meeting Wednesday in Vienna will provide information on a proposed design concept for the I-66 and Nutley Street interchange.
The proposed “dog bone” design is meant to improve traffic flow on Nutley Street and reduce construction impacts nearby, according to the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority.
Additionally, the project would connect shared-use paths with planned bicycle and pedestrian improvements around the Vienna/Fairfax-GMU Metro station, according to the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT).
The proposed redesign is a part of a larger project to transform I-66 stretching from I-495 in Gainesville to Dunn Loring near Route 29.
VDOT’s timeline for the interchange project is:
- spring 2019: clearing activities begin
- summer 2019: traffic shifts on I-66 near Nutley Street
- 2020: traffic shifts on Nutley Street and ramps and construction begins
- December 2022: express lanes open
Clearing has already happened around the interchange and parts of I-66, according to VDOT.
The June 5 meeting runs from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at James Madison High School (2500 James Madison Drive).
The meeting is free and will be in an open-house format with brief presentations at 7 p.m. and 8 p.m., according to a recent Town of Vienna newsletter.
Images via VDOT
A meeting Thursday (May 30) will seek community input on revamping aging bridges at a highway intersection in the heart of Tysons.
The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) plans to rehabilitate the intersection of Leesburg Pike (Route 7) and Route 123 in Tysons. The project will focus on the northbound and southbound bridges where Route 123 passes over Leesburg Pike. Built more than 50 years ago in 1965, the bridges are beginning to show their age.
This rehabilitation will restore the bridge to a like-new condition and will cost approximately $2.5 million. The project is part of VDOT’s routine “State of Good Repair” program, which keeps infrastructure across the Commonwealth well-maintained and safe.
Fairfax County has bigger plans for the intersection. Fairfax transportation planners hope to one day tear down those bridges and build an efficient, modern “continuous flow intersection” at the junction of the two highways. That design would enable a high capacity of automobile throughput, but would also let the county build an elevated park over the intersection.
As it stands, the highways sever those communities from one another and separate Old Courthouse from the Metro stations, but an elevated park would stitch them together.
If the project proceeds as planned, construction would begin in early 2020 and finish by the end of the year. VDOT did not provide any information about possible traffic impacts.
The public has an opportunity for in-person comment on VDOT’s rehab plan at a public information meeting Thursday from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at Freedom Hill Elementary School (1945 Lord Fairfax Road).
People can also provide feedback on the project by emailing Gang Zhang at [email protected].
Vienna: Provide input on Rt 123 over Rt 7 bridge rehabilitation Thu 5/30, 6:30-8:30PM at Freedom Hill ES. A presentation will begin at 7PM. More info: https://t.co/hntL5Ey4ib pic.twitter.com/3zOqUxykSL
— VDOT Northern VA (@VaDOTNOVA) May 24, 2019
Image via Google Maps
Bicyclists and drivers can expect new lane markings on Greensboro Drive by The Boro development early next month.
Last week, a self-identified cyclist questioned on Twitter when the road would get new striping.
“The new asphalt is nice, but total chaos,” the May 14 tweet said. “[The] eastbound bike lane, second travel lane, and center turn lane [are] all obliterated. And it’s been a few weeks.”
Jennifer McCord, a spokeswoman for the Virginia Department of Transportation, told Tysons Reporter that the roadwork is being completed by a developer under permit.
The developer gave this update on Greensboro Drive via the VDOT spokeswoman:
VDOT approved a temporary striping plan to allow bicycle traffic to share the southbound lane of Greensboro Drive between Westpark and Solutions until improvements to Greensboro, Westpark and Solutions have been completed. Currently, there are bicycle “sharrows” between Westpark and Silver Hill. Prior to Greensboro being milled and overlaid between Silver Hill and Solutions, a sharrow was installed and a remaining sharrow will be reinstalled.
In addition to the shared lane marking, the signal at the intersection of Westpark and Greensboro drives will be modified and new signals will be installed at Greensboro’s intersection with Spring Hill Road and Solutions Drive, the spokeswoman said.
“The contractor plans to mill and overlay Greensboro and Westpark the weeks of May 28 and June 3; then pavement markings will be placed relative to the bike lane from Westpark to Solutions,” McCord wrote in an email.
Drivers and bicyclists can expect temporary markings until the signal construction is complete. Once the work on the signals finishes, Greensboro Drive will then welcome new permanent markings, McCord said.
Hey @VaDOTNOVA is there a striping plan/timetable for Greensboro Dr in #Tysons? The new asphalt is nice, but its TOTAL CHAOS. Eastbound #bikelane, 2nd travel lane, and center turn lane all obliterated. And it's been a few weeks. Thanks! pic.twitter.com/B0oFCbUOEh
— Chris French (@chrislfrench) May 14, 2019
Updated 5/22/2019 — A new plan could widen the Beltway in McLean, but nearby residents say the plan won’t do anything to fix the bottleneck of traffic.
At a meeting in Cooper Middle School (977 Balls Hill Road) yesterday (May 20), the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) presented plans to add new toll lanes from the Dulles Toll Road to the American Legion Bridge to help alleviate a severe bottleneck in the region.
The plans for the toll roads have been in the works since last June, but the need for a solution to Beltway congestion was highlighted in March when a tanker crash paralyzed regional traffic.
VDOT’s plans call for the expansion of express lanes to the bridge and connections with the Dulles Toll Road. A connection to the George Washington Parkway is being considered, but options are included to not have the express lanes connect to the parkway.
VDOT officials said the three bridges in McLean that pass over the Beltway would be replaced and would include new pedestrian and bicycle facilities.
But for over an hour, McLean residents expressed outrage at the expansion of the Beltway and a perception that the decision had already been made behind closed doors. Residents who felt empowered by a recent rejection of a proposal to limit access to Georgetown Pike from McLean — a proposal that new state legislation means could come back — asked why this expansion was being treated as a done deal.
“[That] was a transportation solution for a neighborhood problem,” Susan Shaw, megaprojects director for VDOT, said at the meeting. “This project is a regional transportation project. We will consider input from communities, but we will also be considering transportation improvements for the region. If we only let direct impact communities decide — we would never provide any regional project.
One of the biggest criticisms — raised by State Senate candidate Nicole Merlene running against Barbara Favola — was that the success of the project seemed dependent on the expansion of the bridge and connection to toll roads on the Maryland side, projects that are still in early stages.
Shaw said that no traffic analysis was ready yet to show the impact of the toll lanes without improvements on the Maryland side, but she said that would be considered before final approval.
“We don’t have that traffic analysis yet, but I would expect there to be a bottleneck without increased capacity on the bridge,” said Shaw. “I think the question is, ‘Are there other improvements that we would see on this project? If there’s a period of time where Virginia is in on this project and Maryland is not, are there transportation benefits?’ That will be included in the assessment.”
The curved One Tysons East project has hit a roadblock that could stall the project.
Akridge — the project’s developer — has put a temporary hold on the entitlement process for the office building while it works out right-of-way negotiations with the Virginia Department of Transportation over the Route 123 frontage, according to the Washington Business Journal.
Leadership at Akridge said the process should only take a couple of months, but in the meantime, the Business Journal says the project is classified by Fairfax County as “indefinitely deferred.”
The last major change for the project was in April when the building went through a series of design changes, including an effort to mitigate the likelihood of bird impacts with the building.
The project is part of a series of new buildings planned for Tysons East — a neighborhood around the McLean Metro station seeing rapid growth spurred in part by the opening of the new Capital One headquarters.
Image via Akridge
As construction gears up for widening Route 7 from Reston to Tysons, upcoming “Pardon Our Dust” meetings will provide information on the $313.9 million project and seek public feedback.
The proposed Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) project will transform nearly seven miles of Route 7 between Reston Avenue and Jarrett Valley Drive. The project includes widening Route 7 four to six lanes, adding shared-use paths, replacing the bridge over Difficult Run and revamping intersections along the corridor.
“These improvements aim to enhance safety, decrease congestion, increase capacity, and expand mobility for all users, as part of Fairfax County’s Comprehensive Plan,” according to VDOT.
VDOT will hold a public meeting next Tuesday (May 7) at Forestville Elementary School in Great Falls and a second one the following Tuesday (May 14) at Colvin Run Elementary School (1400 Trap Road). The meetings will run from 7-9 p.m. with a presentation at 7:30 p.m.
At the meetings, the team will share information on the design-build phase of the project, including the latest design and schedule, and the transition to construction work, as well as answer questions on stormwater management, right of way, environmental topics, traffic engineering and noise walls.
The current schedule for the project on VDOT’s website says, with expected completion in July 2024:
- late summer 2018-summer 2020: final design
- early 2019-early 2021: right of way
- spring 2019-summer 2023: utility relocation
- spring 2019-summer 2024: construction
Members of the public can provide input at the meetings and can email ([email protected]) or mail (4975 Alliance Drive) comments to VDOT by May 26.
Map via VDOT
A small parcel of forest along Prosperity Avenue leading into the Dunn Loring Metro parking garage is likely going to be replaced by a new substation to power the Metro.
The green space is a casualty of plans to expand I-66, which would displace an existing substation along the route.
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) is currently seeking permission to relocate the substation.
“The relocation will affect the existing open space for the entire 15.383 acres of the WMATA Property and will diminish it approximately 5,778 square feet,” WMATA said in the application.
But the substation isn’t the only thing that could be relocated. Last fall, the Virginia Department of Transportation announced plans that some residents along I-66 could be relocated to make way for the construction.
A Fairfax County Planning Commission hearing scheduled for June 26 will consider the plan.
Photo via Google Maps
The Jones Branch Connector is coming along, though construction has necessitated a series of weekend closures over the last few weeks.
A video put together by the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) laid out the goals of the Jones Branch Connector and a look at what’s ahead for the project.
MT @VaDOTNOVA: Check out the latest on the Jones Branch Connector project in Tysons! When complete, each direction will have 2 travel lanes, bike lane, multi-use path & wide median for future transit. @fairfaxcounty @VAExpressLanes @tysonspartners pic.twitter.com/PVLrSbFafe
— Fairfax County Government 🇺🇸 (@fairfaxcounty) March 18, 2019
The project first had a partial opening in December — with one lane of traffic opening in each direction — giving drivers a preview of the bridge that will connect east and west Tysons. According to the video, new bike lanes and sidewalks are planned to open sometime in the spring and a second lane opening in each direction.
“VDOT and Fairfax County have really partnered together to improve transportation in Tysons,” William Cuttler, a VDOT engineer, said in the video. “This $60 million project is going to go a long way to provide multimodal connections and helping to transform this city.”
Cuttler said the connection will aim to not only benefit drivers looking to cross over the Beltway, but also offer residents of western Tysons quicker access to the McLean Metro station at the east end of the bridge.
“Currently the Beltway operates as almost a barrier between the east side of Tysons and the west side,” Tom Biesiadny, director of the Fairfax County Department of Transportation, said in the video, “so building additional connection across the Beltway is really important.”
Mike McGurk, from Transurban corporate relations, said the Jones Branch Connector would also help the accessibility of the I-495 Express Lanes.
The project is expected to be completed this fall.
Photo via VDOT
