Community will have input on plans for widening Braddock Road
More than 200 people packed into the lecture hall at Lake
Braddock Secondary School for a meeting hosted by Braddock Supervisor John Cook
on options for relieving traffic congestion on Braddock Road.
The Braddock Road Multimodal Study, being carried out by the
Fairfax County Transportation Department (FCDOT) is exploring options for improving transportation on the Braddock corridor by car, bus, and bicyclists—with a focus on easing traffic for commuters heading to and from Tysons.
Fairfax County Transportation Department (FCDOT) is exploring options for improving transportation on the Braddock corridor by car, bus, and bicyclists—with a focus on easing traffic for commuters heading to and from Tysons.
The project has three components:
(1) Widening Braddock Road from six to
eight lanes between the beltway and Burke Lake Road. Michael Guarino, a
transportation planner with FCDOT said the study will consider several alternatives:
adding two HOV2 lanes (restricted to high occupancy vehicles with at least two people),
adding two HOV3 lanes, and adding two HOT (high occupancy toll) lanes.
eight lanes between the beltway and Burke Lake Road. Michael Guarino, a
transportation planner with FCDOT said the study will consider several alternatives:
adding two HOV2 lanes (restricted to high occupancy vehicles with at least two people),
adding two HOV3 lanes, and adding two HOT (high occupancy toll) lanes.
(2) Developing a transit center and garage with free parking at the Kings Park Shopping Center with about 500 spaces targeted
to commuters taking buses or carpooling. FCDOT Director Tom Biesiadny said the garage
most like would be behind the shopping center on a site occupied by an office
building, although no decisions have been made.
to commuters taking buses or carpooling. FCDOT Director Tom Biesiadny said the garage
most like would be behind the shopping center on a site occupied by an office
building, although no decisions have been made.
(3) Widening Braddock Road from four to
six lanes between Burke Lake Road and Guinea Road.
six lanes between Burke Lake Road and Guinea Road.
According to Guarino, the study will consider a range of
issues, such as how to enforce the HOT or HOV lane restrictions, whether the
bridge over the beltway should be widened, whether there should be at-grade or
grade-separated lanes, and how to improve the flow at major intersections, such
as Wakefield Chapel Road.
issues, such as how to enforce the HOT or HOV lane restrictions, whether the
bridge over the beltway should be widened, whether there should be at-grade or
grade-separated lanes, and how to improve the flow at major intersections, such
as Wakefield Chapel Road.
Cook called the study “trend setting” in that there will be “more
community involvement than ever before on a transportation project.”
community involvement than ever before on a transportation project.”
Cook asked community associations and homeowner associations
adjacent to Braddock Road to select people to serve on a citizen advisory group
on the project. It is chaired by Kevin Morse, the Braddock representative on the Fairfax County
Transportation Advisory Commission, and co-chaired by Thomas Kennedy,
the Braddock representative on the Trails and Sidewalks Committee.
adjacent to Braddock Road to select people to serve on a citizen advisory group
on the project. It is chaired by Kevin Morse, the Braddock representative on the Fairfax County
Transportation Advisory Commission, and co-chaired by Thomas Kennedy,
the Braddock representative on the Trails and Sidewalks Committee.
The citizens advisory group has about a dozen members, including residents of Kings Park, Red Fox Forest, Long Branch, Canterbury Woods, Ravensworth Farms, Danbury Forest, and other
communities. Cook also plans to host quarterly meetings for the public.
communities. Cook also plans to host quarterly meetings for the public.
The study would take about 18 months, and it would take
about seven years for design and construction. VDOT would have the final say on
what gets done.
about seven years for design and construction. VDOT would have the final say on
what gets done.
This project has been a long time coming, Cooke noted. The
Board of Supervisors adopted a plan to widen Braddock Road in 1990. It’s only
become feasible now, after the Virginia General Assembly approved a landmark
transportation bill last year.
Board of Supervisors adopted a plan to widen Braddock Road in 1990. It’s only
become feasible now, after the Virginia General Assembly approved a landmark
transportation bill last year.
Braddock Road scored high on a cost-benefit analysis carried
out by FCDOT to determine where to spend the new transportation dollars it will
receive from the state. The Board of Supervisors approved 75 percent of the
cost of the project over six years and would approve additional
funding as the project proceeds.
out by FCDOT to determine where to spend the new transportation dollars it will
receive from the state. The Board of Supervisors approved 75 percent of the
cost of the project over six years and would approve additional
funding as the project proceeds.
According to Cook, this part of Braddock Road handles about
72,000 automobile trips a day. “We want to give people options that don’t
involve driving,” he said, so improving bus transportation is a big part of the project. He would like to see more people take advantage of a new
Fairfax Connector route launched by the county in 2013 between the Burke Centre
VRE station and Tysons Corner using the beltway express lanes.
72,000 automobile trips a day. “We want to give people options that don’t
involve driving,” he said, so improving bus transportation is a big part of the project. He would like to see more people take advantage of a new
Fairfax Connector route launched by the county in 2013 between the Burke Centre
VRE station and Tysons Corner using the beltway express lanes.
Cook noted that a quarter of a million people are
expected to move to Fairfax County within the next 30 years, much of it due to the growth of Tysons. The plan approved by the BoS for redevelopment in Tysons
calls for 100,000 new residents and 100,000 new jobs.
expected to move to Fairfax County within the next 30 years, much of it due to the growth of Tysons. The plan approved by the BoS for redevelopment in Tysons
calls for 100,000 new residents and 100,000 new jobs.
As part of the Braddock Road study, FCDOT will also undertake a driver origin destination study; a traffic
analysis to assess vehicle merging and weaving issues; study license plate data from cars at the Kings Park Shopping Center; look at the the need for improved
bus stops, trails, and pedestrian crossings; and study noise levels, the impact on wetlands and
school bus routes, traffic signal coordination, and other issues.
analysis to assess vehicle merging and weaving issues; study license plate data from cars at the Kings Park Shopping Center; look at the the need for improved
bus stops, trails, and pedestrian crossings; and study noise levels, the impact on wetlands and
school bus routes, traffic signal coordination, and other issues.
Members of the audience raised lots of concerns about the project: Making Braddock Road too wide could turn it into a
concrete jungle. New bus routes are needed to get people to and from D.C. and
Metro stations in the evening, not just for commuters. Five hundred parking
spaces at the transit center isn’t enough to meet the demand. How would non-commuters
be kept out of the garage? Would commuters fill up the shopping center lot? And
would it become more difficult to exit from a neighborhood onto Braddock Road?
concrete jungle. New bus routes are needed to get people to and from D.C. and
Metro stations in the evening, not just for commuters. Five hundred parking
spaces at the transit center isn’t enough to meet the demand. How would non-commuters
be kept out of the garage? Would commuters fill up the shopping center lot? And
would it become more difficult to exit from a neighborhood onto Braddock Road?
5 responses to “Community will have input on plans for widening Braddock Road”
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18 months to plan and 7 years to complete? glad we're not in a hurry…
This really benefits the people outside the beltway, not much help for the traffic from Backlick to Braddock. Braddock/Backlick has to be one of the worst intersections in the area.
it was rated one of the two deadliest intersections in the state in recent years
There is probably no easy or cheap means of this but I always thought a bypass/tunnel/ramp straight from 495 to Burke Lake Road would really help congestion on Braddock. At least a ramp exit to Burke Lake Road i from Braddock going west.
Why should we think traffic will increase on Braddock just because it has in the past? The news tells us that by the time it is built there will be cars on the road with automatic collision avoidance systems. With the advent of self-driving cars, traffic will safely move faster in narrower lanes.