WASHINGTON — Relief is coming to commuters in Northern Virginia after the announcement that millions of dollars in transportation projects are being funded.
The increased sales, hotel and construction/existing structure taxes already in place are funding projects that had been too big to set in motion, says Northern Virginia Transportation Authority Chair Marty Nohe.
On the top of the list: widening Route 1.
“It really is the best relief valve we have for 95 when there are serious problems there,” Nohe says.
The road runs through Prince William and Fairfax counties and Alexandria.
“The local governments haven’t had a tool with which to work together. It has been difficult to address these challenges,” Nohe says.
Among the rest of the 18 newly funded projects in the region: Chain Bridge Road in Fairfax will be widened to six lanes; the Leesburg Park & Ride will see 300 more spaces; Belmont Ridge Road in Loudoun County will be widened; and access to the Blue and Silver lines will improve.
“We’re looking at adding buses. We’re looking at expanding the bus servicing area as well as adding additional transit routes,” he says.
Many of the projects, Nohe says, have been difficult to tackle in the past because they cross jurisdictions. Route 28 is a good example — but it will soon be widened to six lanes.
“NVTA has begun approving a series of projects — and there will have to be more in the future — to begin adding capacity closest to [Dulles] airport, where the biggest choke point is,” Nohe says.
Construction on most of the $95 million in projects will begin within the year. See the list of projects on the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority website.
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