Re: Why did they build the Fairfax County Parkway??? What's the purpose of it?
Posted by:
West County resident
()
Date: February 20, 2018 10:42PM
In the knowwwwwwww Wrote:
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> The Fairfax County Parkway was opened in sections.
> I think from 50 to I-66 was one of the first, then
> followed by 50 to Franklin Farms sometime in the
> early 90s.
That's "Franklin Farm". Singular. It was open north to West Ox by early 1990, because that's when we moved out this way. Boy, did it seem pointless at that point, going to West Ox and stopping!
> Around 1990/1991 was when the Rolling to Hooes
> section was under construction, but it took
> forever, or seemed to... In or around 1995, the
> section from Hooes I-66 opened, and first opened
> with a speed limit of 35 mph like Pohick Rd had.
>
> For some reason, I think the last bridge at
> Braddock Rd or perhaps 29 was a delay, and that's
> why it took so long to finish.
>
> About the same time, the parkway was also extended
> to Elden St from Franklin Farms, but then again
> from Elden to Rt7 in 2000.
I think it was a bit earlier that it went from West Ox to the Dulles Toll Road; the chunk up to Elden was a year or two later IIRC. I was commuting to Tyson's up until early 1997, and I remember using it for the last few years of that, north to 267.
> My memory is close, but the dates might be
> slightly off...
Yep, close! And I'm only 100% sure of the first section being before early 1990. But it may have been brand-new at that point.