Active Prince William

Advancing active mobility in greater Prince William, Virginia

Category: Advocacy (Page 7 of 13)

Design Public Hearing for PWC’s Route 234-Brentsville Road Interchange Project, December 8, 2021 at 6:00 PM

November 22, 2021 /
Prince William County’s proposed Route 234-Brentsville Road Interchange includes four treacherous at-grade shared-use path crossings of free-flowing high-speed roadways to link the Prince William Parkway and Route 234 sidepaths.   As an alternative to this dangerous and circuitous trail routing, Active Prince William advocates a simple trail overpass on the east/south side of this interchange to safely and directly link Prince William County’s two major trails.

 

From the Office of Coles District Supervisor Vesli Vega:

A public hearing on the proposed Brentsville Interchange Project will be held on Wednesday, December 8th at 6pm at the Lake Jackson Volunteer Fire Department, 11310 Coles Drive in Manassas.

The meeting can also be viewed live online at https://www.pwcva.gov/department/transportation/current-road-projects.  The Project team will make a short presentation beginning at 6:30 p.m. and answer questions for the duration of the meeting.

The purpose of the public hearing is to receive public comments on the design of the Route 234 Brentsville Road Interchange Project and associated Limited Access Control Changes in the Coles Magisterial District.  This Project will involve a change and break in Limited Access Control.

Preview the Project information and Design Public Hearing plans including the environmental documentation on the Prince William County Department of Transportation website at https://www.pwcva.gov/department/transportation/current-road-projects.  [Note: The five linked documents related to the current design are listed at the bottom, with links depicted in green.  The blue links are for the obsolete March 2020 design].

The deadline to submit comments is December 18, 2021.  The public may provide written or verbal comments at the Design Public Hearings, mail them to Ms. Mary Ankers, P.E., Project Manager, at the Prince William County Department of Transportation, 5 County Complex, Suite 290, Prince William, VA 22192, or email them to [email protected].   Please reference “Route 234 Brentsville Road Interchange Project PH Comments” in the subject heading.

Please find the Project Schedule Below:

Take the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority’s Public Input Survey

August 14, 2021 /

Update (8/25/21):  NVTA will conduct a pop-up, in-person outreach session on Thursday, September 2, from 5-8 pm at the Manassas Park VRE Station.

The Northern Virginia Transportation Authority (NVTA) is now undertaking its periodic (5-year) update of TransAction, its long-range multimodal regional transportation plan for all of Northern Virginia.

According to NVTA, TransAction is intended to guide the development of “safe, equitable, and sustainable transportation projects over a 20-year time frame.”

The two-year TransAction update process, which includes several public input opportunities, was launched with a public “open house and listening session” in January 2021 and will conclude with the NVTA board’s adoption of the updated plan in late 2022.

This summer and fall, NVTA is engaging the public “to identify transportation needs and trends”.  most notably through this online public survey. 

After briefly describing TransAction, the survey asks respondents to 1) select the factors that influence their use of various travel modes, 2) rank their top four priorities for transportation improvements, 3)  express their preferences for transportation infrastructure allocations, and 4) supply some demographic information.

Active Prince William encourages its supporters to complete this online public survey, which closes on September 16, 2021, to express their perspectives and support for better walking, bicycling, and public transportation.  The survey is also available in Spanish and Korean.

Our Recommendations for Upcoming NVTA Transportation Funding Applications from PWC

July 30, 2021 /

On July 19, 2021, Active Prince William sent the following email message to the Prince William County Planning Commission, which will soon be briefed by County transportation staff on the transportation projects that the County is considering for submission to the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority (NVTA) in Fall 2021 for  potential regional funding .  Various local transportation and elected officials, including the Prince William Board of County Supervisors, were copied on this message.

 

Active Prince William supports the integration of land use, housing, and transportation planning.  Having the Transportation Department brief the Commission on planned grant applications is a start.  That step should be followed by a formal public hearing and a vote of the Planning Commission.

New mobility infrastructure should substantially enhance the transit and bike/pedestrian network, rather than simply expand the road network and add a desolate side path.  Traditional “business as usual” planning for the next decade will sabotage the county’s commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 to 50% of the 2005 levels.  The transportation sector generates the greatest amount of greenhouse gas emissions in Prince William now.  The only way to meet the 2030 target is to reduce the carbon spewing from tailpipes in Prince William, and that requires a new approach to planning for multimodal *mobility* and access, rather than just paving more roads for drive-alone motorists.

In 2030, most cars will still be fueled by gasoline.  Virtually every project that paves more lane miles will increase Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) and greenhouse gas emissions from those cars.  To understand the impact of various proposed projects, the Planning Commission should identify the projected increase in VMT associated with each transportation project, and use that data when determining which projects to recommend to the BOCS.

The Planning Commission recommendations to the BOCS should be guided by the Strategic Plan.  The Strategic Plan calls for the County to develop in a sustainable way.  As you know, new transit and bike/pedestrian projects have the potential to reduce or minimize VMT and associated greenhouse gas emissions.  To be sustainable, the County must abandon the old school approach of just building more roads–and acknowledge that more roads have not reduced traffic congestion.

For the upcoming NVTA grant program, Active Prince William recommends submitting the following projects to the next NVTA funding round (FY26/FY27). As you can see, none of these projects’ main intent is to add lane miles.  All projects support Transit, Active Transportation, and/or Intersection/Interchange improvements.

  • Route 1/Potomac Mills BRT (TRANSIT) – NVTA 38/39
  • Dale Blvd Improvements (TRANSIT) – NVTA 241
  • VRE Second platforms – Manassas Line (TRANSIT) – NVTA 300
  • I-95 Ped/Bike Crossings (TRAILS/ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION) – NVTA 300/242/49/241
  • Balls Ford Road/I-66 Trail Improvements (TRAILS/ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION)  – NVTA 50
  • Route 123 Improvements (INTERCHANGE/INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENT) – NVTA 242
  • Wellington Rd/Sudley Manor/VA234 Interchange Improvements (INTERCHANGE/INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENT) – NVTA 222
  • Minnieville Rd/PW Parkway Interchange (INTERCHANGE/INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENT) – NVTA 279
  • Pageland Ln/Sanders Ln Safety Improvements (INTERCHANGE/INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENT) – NVTA 227
  • Route 28 STARS (INTERCHANGE/INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENT) – NVTA 29/32

Many of these projects do not match exactly with the NVTA Transaction description but the NVTA has set a precedent by funding innovative intersection improvements at University Boulevard and Prince William Parkway even though NVTA Transaction clearly requires “Construct Interchange at Prince William Parkway and University Boulevard.” (NVTA 324).  Active Prince William agrees with this approach as the intent of the projects is to improve the specified transportation segment.

Below is the list of projects that were not funded in the previous NVTA funding round (FY24-FY25).   As you can, see most of these projects’ main intent is to add lane miles that will induce new VMT and future congestion.  We need to stop advancing projects that continue to increase car dependency and have long-term adverse impacts on the climate and county budget.

  • Van Buren Road North Extension: Route 234 to Cardinal Drive (NEW ROADWAY)
  • Construct Route 28 Corridor Roadway Improvements (NEW ROADWAY/BYPASS)
  • University Boulevard Extension: Devlin Road to Wellington Road (NEW ROADWAY)
  • Wellington Road Widening: University Boulevard to Devlin Road (ROAD WIDENING)
  • Devlin Road Widening: Linton Hall Road to Relocated Balls Ford Road (ROAD WIDENING)
  • Route 234 and Sudley Manor Drive Interchange (INTERCHANGE/INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENT)
  • Prince William Parkway at Clover Hill Road Innovative Intersection (INTERCHANGE/INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENT)
  • Prince William Parkway at Old Bridge Road Intersection Improvements (INTERCHANGE/INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENT) | Funded via Smart Scale

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APW Urges Its TPB Members to Ensure New Transportation Plans Meet Climate and Equity Goals

June 24, 2021 /

 

On June 15, 2021–in advance of the June 16 meeting of the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB) at which the project submissions for updating Visualize 2045, the region’s long-range transportation plan, were scheduled for adoption –Active Prince William sent the following message to Prince William County’s two representatives on that regional transportation planning body–Prince William Board of County Supervisors Chairman Ann Wheeler and Neabsco District Supervisor Victor Angry.   We also sent similar messages to the TPB members who represent the Cities of Manassas and Manassas Park–Manassas Vice Mayor Pamela Sebesky and Manassas Park Mayor Jeanette Rishell.

Here’s a summary of the contentious June 16, 2021 TPB meeting, at which a proposal to craft a climate-friendly regional transportation plan for adoption  by 2024 was agreed to

The National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB) will be taking up a resolution at their June 16th meeting regarding a Visualize 2045 Alternative Build Scenario that would aim to achieve TPB climate and equity goals through the use of transportation demand management, transit, and land use strategies consistent with regional policy goals, a modified regional project list that reduces the number and scale of road capacity expansion projects in accordance with anticipated reduced travel demand, and with particular focus on public transportation and pedestrian/bicycle improvements needed to serve mobility disadvantaged populations.  This is being brought forward because the recently submitted project updates to Visualize 2045 will not meet the TPB climate and equity goals.

Due to the time and resource constraints at this point in the Visualize 2045 update process, Active Prince William recommends Prince William County support the following action plan to support meeting TPB climate and equity goals:

1)    Commit to completing the TPB Climate Change Mitigation Study and review it thoroughly at the regional and jurisdictional levels through the first quarter of 2022.

2)    Formally commit to assisting the TPB to develop a set of transportation policies and projects, by the end of 2022, which would be implementable at the jurisdictional and regional levels, consistent with the recommendations of the Climate Change Mitigation Study, that, when fully implemented will assure the region will meet its climate change mitigation goals

3)    Commit to take actions to officially adopt the projects and policies developed to attain the region’s climate goals within the transportation sector, and advance these projects into the region’s LRTP for a mid-term update to be completed in 2024

As voting members of the TPB, this is an opportunity for Prince William County to be a transportation planning leader as it relates to climate and equity in the region.   Supporting this initiative aligns with PWC BOCS Resolution 20-773: Regional Climate Mitigation and Resiliency Goals and the Prince William County Equity and Inclusion Policy.

The updated mobility chapter of the comprehensive plan should be aligned with this action plan.  Prince William County should also advocate these measures be included as the starting point for the next NVTA Transaction Plan.  To support this the Prince William County should advocate that the General Assembly act to modify the NVTA statute to align with your climate and equity goals.

The climate is not waiting. The time to act is now.

Our Comments on the Thoroughfare Plan Element of the Mobility Chapter in the PWC Comp Plan Update

June 24, 2021 /

On June 16, 2021, Active Prince William submitted the following general and specific comments on the Thoroughfare Plan Element of the Mobility Chapter in Prince William County’s Pathways to 2040 Comprehensive Plan

Comments on the Thoroughfare Plan Element of the Mobility Chapter in Prince William County’s Pathways to 2040 Comprehensive Plan

Active Prince William encourages Prince William County to refine its Thoroughfare Plan to support its climate and equity goals.  Please see the attached granular comments on each item in the Thoroughfare Plan that provide a more realistic plan to achieve by 2040.  Below are a few highlights.

  1. Dedicated bus lane infrastructure (Bus Only/BAT[Business Access and Transit]) should be planned for many major roadway arterials (ex. Route 1, Route 234 Business, Dale Blvd, Route 29)
  2. Roadway segments should be identified as “innovative intersection corridors” to replace previously planned lane-mile expansions (ex. Old Centreville Rd, Pageland Ln, Route 234, Prince William Parkway)
  3. Roadways through activity centers and commercial/mixed-use corridors should be redesignated as Urban Boulevards (UB) and Through Boulevards (UTB) (ex. Route 123 and Route 1 in North Woodbridge)
  4. Road diets should be considered for many roadway segments (ex. Occoquan Rd, Williamson Blvd, Lee Hwy/MNBP)
  5. Road capacity expansion should be configured as a managed lane (Toll, HOV, HOT, Bus, BAT). Adding any new unmanaged roadway capacity in the Washington region is unproductive at this point as it relates to future climate and congestion conditions and will only serve to induce SOV travel and increase VMT per capita.
  6. Major “managed lanes” roadway widenings should be packaged with dedicated bus infrastructure on nearby parallel roadways  (234 Bypass -> 234 Business, I-95 HOT ->Route 1)

Click here for our detailed comments on each roadway element in the Thoroughfare Plan.

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