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Local Leaders Divided Over Dulles Airport Access Alignment
Posted by: Sprawl and Crawl ()
Date: April 18, 2014 08:31PM

Local Leaders Divided Over Dulles Airport Access Alignment
http://www.leesburgtoday.com/news/local-leaders-divided-over-dulles-airport-access-alignment/article_66bb1e3a-c652-11e3-b96e-001a4bcf887a.html

Ahead of a planned public input session Tuesday night in South Riding, the Virginia Department of Transportation has released its route for a new road intended to improve access to Dulles Airport from the south. The proposal has support from some members of the Loudoun Board of Supervisors, but those elected to represent residents and businesses in the area have concerns.

Formally known as the Dulles Air Cargo, Passenger, and Metro Access Highway, the Virginia Department of Transportation previously offered three different alternatives for the route: one that would build a new four-lane limited access highway from Northstar Boulevard north of Rt. 50 following the Broad Run floodplain to the intersection of Arcola Road and Rt. 606; an elevated four-lane highway along Rt. 50 and a four-lane highway parallel to Loudoun County Parkway; and six lanes on Rt. 50 and eight lanes for the Loudoun County Parkway between Rt. 50 and the Rt. 606 interchange.

But last summer, some members of Loudoun’s board pushed back on those options, saying they wanted to see something that followed more closely the Countywide Transportation Plan and melded with development in the area. They asked VDOT to return with another alternative.

As proposed the new option route would make Rt. 50 limited access, with six lanes for general traffic and two median lanes—one eastbound and one westbound—reserved for vehicles going to and from Dulles Airport. In addition, access to the airport lanes would be provided at the Rt. 50/Rt. 606 interchange and at the Rt. 50 interchanges planned at Northstar Boulevard, Gum Springs Road and Loudoun County Parkway. The plan also includes the widening of Old Ox Road between Rt. 50 and Loudoun County Parkway to six lanes. At $244.6 million, it is the least expensive of the options that follow existing and planned roadways.

Last week, VDOT formally recommended that alternative route for the Dulles connector road, and set a public input session for Tuesday, April 22, at Liberty Elementary School in South Riding.

Shortly after VDOT’s announcement, Supervisor Matt Letourneau (R-Dulles) emailed a statement to his constituents saying he and Del. David Ramadan (R-87), who also represents the Dulles South area, have “reached the same conclusion” that the recommended route is not the best for the Rt. 50 corridor. The statement called the option to build a new four-lane highway from Northstar Boulevard south of Brambleton “our preferred alternative.”

In Letourneau’s statement he raised several concerns with the option to add through traffic on Rt. 50, including impact on existing commuters who have long been dealing with construction and traffic delays caused by ongoing Rt. 50 widening efforts and that it could negatively impact local roads, particularly Tall Cedars.

“With much of the existing local access eliminated, Tall Cedars would become the primary route to access homes and businesses in South Riding and Stone Ridge,” Letourneau’s statement reads.

He also notes that it is “hard to believe” the road would “pay dividends” in supporting Dulles Airport, the future Metro stations and employment centers, with just one lane each direction and no opportunity to expand. The statement also raises concerns about the impacts on Rt. 50 businesses and the new HCA hospital, which is under construction, with a limited access road and the potential to take land and “even existing buildings” to make room for a larger Rt. 50.

In comparison, Leoturneau and Ramadan say a newly built road south of Brambleton would be better for the overall community. It is not, they stated, a cargo route, but instead will look like Loudoun County Parkway and it will be a quarter-mile south of any proposed residential development in Brambleton.

“[The new road] would essentially replace Evergreen Mills Road with a newer, expanded road that would help alleviate the congestion we currently experience,” the statement reads, adding, “[It] would provide access from the unbuilt section of Northstar Boulevard directly to Route 606. It would help alleviate existing logjams.”

The new road also remains the cheapest option at an estimated $239.7 million.

A few days after that statement to constituents went out, Supervisor Janet Clarke (R-Blue Ridge), who also represents part of the Rt. 50 corridor and Brambleton, characterized the email blast as generating “unnecessary concern.”

“They are focusing on future more construction on Route 50, without telling people nothing would occur until the northern road network is complete and the current Route 50 improvements are complete,” she said in an email. “…All of the missing northern road network is in the Blue Ridge District and is moving along on a track where even the Gum Springs Road realigned to the new Stone Springs Blvd. is looking at being complete by the end of next year (2015). This new road will provide two lanes each way from Evergreen Mills Road and eliminate the bottleneck we have on the current Gum Spring Road.”

Clarke also noted that Rt. 50 has been planned as a limited access road with interchanges on the county’s transportation plans for years, so residents and businesses along Rt. 50 are aware of the coming changes.

“As we have seen on Route 7, the improvements for flow of traffic with these overpasses provide a tremendous relief to commuters,” she wrote. “Also, we have seen how the Dulles access road that runs down the middle of the 267 toll road from the airport to the beltway provides another tremendous benefit of easy access to and from the airport for commuters. That type of an access road is what we are talking about accomplishing with [the recommended route].”

She also noted that the right of way for the recommended route already exists since expansion of Rt. 50 to a limited access highway has been long planned, and that the new road south of Brambleton would have a negative impact on residents.

“[It] cuts through the Brambleton community and would take away a lot of valuable commercial tax base land, require many millions more in cost to build, require condemnation, and create an entrance to the airport part way up Route 606, still funneling masses of traffic up Route 606…” she wrote.

She also noted that VDOT is studying an area much wider than what the actual right of way and road will be.

The Loudoun Board of Supervisors is not expected to make its recommendation on a route until next month at the earliest, with the Commonwealth Transportation Board voting on its recommendation sometime after that.

VDOT is accepting comments from residents and property owners on the proposal through May 7. The environmental assessment of the project will be available through May 7 at the following locations:

• Brambleton Homeowners Association, 42395 Ryan Road, Suite 210, Brambleton, Monday-Friday 9 a.m.-5 p.m.;

• Gum Springs Library, 24600 Millstream Drive, Stone Ridge, Monday-Thursday 10 a.m.-9 p.m., Friday- Saturday 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sunday: 1 p.m.-5p.m.;

• South Riding Town Hall, 43055 Center St., South Riding, Monday-Friday 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; and

• the VDOT Northern Virginia District Office, 4975 Alliance Drive, Fairfax, Monday-Friday 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

Comments may be emailed to meeting_comments@vdot.virginia.gov with the subject line “DACPMAH Improving Access to Dulles” or mailed to Tom Fahrney, 4975 Alliance Drive, Fairfax, VA 22030.

Residents also are encouraged to attend the public hearing at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 22, at Liberty Elementary School, located at 25491 Riding Center Drive in South Riding.
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Re: Local Leaders Divided Over Dulles Airport Access Alignment
Posted by: What? ()
Date: April 18, 2014 08:35PM

"[It] cuts through the Brambleton community and would take away a lot of valuable commercial tax base land, require many millions more in cost to build"

Is any of that true? According to the map on the VDOT website, Alternative 2 would cut through undeveloped farm land, not "the Brambleton community" by any stretch of the term. And isn't it actually the cheapest option?

It's rare that I ever agree with any position that Del Ramadan takes on any issue, but the newsletter that Matt Letourneau sent out was well researched.

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Re: Local Leaders Divided Over Dulles Airport Access Alignment
Posted by: Gerrymanderer2 ()
Date: April 18, 2014 11:26PM

Didnt I hear this guy Del. Ramadan was also the only person working to lower the tolls on the Dulles toll road too? This guy seems like he's good honest peoples.

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Re: Local Leaders Divided Over Dulles Airport Access Alignment
Posted by: NDFtb ()
Date: April 19, 2014 07:40AM

I'm with Clarke on this one.

Widening/interchanging 50 and 606 provides secondary access to Dulles Airport and makes 50 a more viable commuter route, lessening traffic on other routes such as Waxpool and 7.

And yes -- Tall Cedars ought to be a local arterials for South Riding/Dulles South.

I'm not sure why Letourneau and Ramadan think South Riding/Dulles South ought to have a traffic jam-choked ride on 50 to points further east.

The other highways are more expensive (requiring condemnation) and potentially generate a great deal of opposition.

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