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Politics & Government

North-South Corridor Meeting Wednesday in Manassas

VDOT scheduled the open house to provide information and collect input about two alternatives.

If you're going ...

What: Open house on the Northern Virginia North-South Corridor Master Plan Study

Who: Virginia’s Office of Intermodal Planning and Investment and the Virginia Department of Transportation

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When: Weds. 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Where: Four Point Sheraton

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10800 Vandor Lane, Manassas

An open house about a planned roadway that could link Prince William County to Dulles Airport and other major Northern Virginia centers is planned for Wednesday in Manassas.

The Northern Virginia North-South Corridor Master Plan Study open house is from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Best Western Battlefield Inn in Manassas.

It is the second of two open houses on the proposed roadway; the first is in Ashburn on Tuesday.

Virginia’s Office of Intermodal Planning and Investment will answer questions and take comments about the roadway during the meeting.

The study, underway since May 2012, is nearing completion of the evaluation of transportation options that connect major centers of activity within the corridor, which has been designated as one of 12 “Corridor of Statewide Significance” by the Commonwealth Transportation Board.

The 45-mile corridor generally includes the east and west of the Route 234/Prince William Parkway and the CTB-approved location of the Tri-County Parkway between Route 95 and 50, and connections to the Dulles Greenway and Route 7.

While supporters have argued that the airport and surrounding business community need additional access to grow as intended, opponents have raised concerns about creating a significant new western connection between I-95 and Route 7.

The Sierra Club released a study that called the roadway an example of one of the worst transportation projects in the nation.

If built, the roadway would play a role in keeping the country dependent on oil, the club said.

“Transportation infrastructure we build today will be with us for decades,” said Roger Diedrich, the transportation chair of the Sierra Club's Virginia chapter said. “This project fails to give us the choices we need in the 21st Century to keep us from driving deeper into oil dependence and climate disruption.”

 VDOT officials said the roadway would address the growing need for north-south travel and would connect the corridor with more sustainable transportation modes such as high occupancy vehicles and bicycle/pedestrian trails and "protect environmental, community and historical resources in any future plans for the corridor.”

The alternatives about which the public may comment are:

  • Alternative 1 would improve access to Dulles Airport, link several planned roadway improvements within the North-South Corridor; and expand bicycle and pedestrian trails throughout the corridor.
  • Alternative 2 would add high occupancy vehicle and high occupancy toll (HOV/HOT) lanes and high-frequency transit from I-95 to Dulles Airport. Carpools with three or more persons would ride free; others would pay a toll during peak periods. Alternative 2 also includes bicycle and pedestrian improvements in the corridor.

Funding options are also a consideration for the proposed alternatives.

There is also an open house in Ashburn planned for Tuesday. Here are specifics on that meeting:

  • Tuesday, Dec. 18, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
    Stone Bridge High School
    43100 Hay Road, Ashburn, VA 20147 

Anyone who requires special assistance to attend the meeting or provide comments can call 804-786-2085 or TTY/TDD 711.

Written comments about the study may be given at the open houses or e-mailed by Jan. 2, to statewideplans@governor.virginia.gov.  Comments may also be submitted to the study’s public outreach coordinator, Susan Sharp, Sharp & Company, 794 Nelson Street, Rockville, MD 20850.

More information on the study can be found online: vtrans.org.

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