STERLING,Va. – A major upgrade is coming to a commuter route in Loudoun County that could shorten commutes and business trips for thousands of people.
Virginia’s Department of Transportation, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority and Loudoun County have signed an agreement to widen a 5.3-mile stretch of Route 606/Old Ox Road from Evergreen Road to the Dulles Greenway to four lanes. The widening project is part of a planned, 18-mile loop around Dulles International Airport.
The project would ease the commute for more than 21,000 motorists who travel between Route 28 and U.S. 50 along Old Ox Road – about three times the number of vehicles the road was originally designed to handle.
Loudoun Board of Supervisors Chairman Scott York says the fix will save as much as 30 minutes per trip.
“Our commuters have suffered for years with major backups on this road because we go from four lanes down to a significant segment of two-lane road,” says York.
Dulles Supervisor Matt Laterneau, who uses the road every day says the upgrade has been a long time coming.
“It’s been such a persistent source of frustration, that I think many of our citizens lost hope that it would ever be fixed,” Laterneau says.
Construction will start in the fall of 2014 and will take three years to complete. The project will cost $106 million.
Follow @WTOP on Twitter.
