Woodbridge, Va. — During a political debate this week, Prince William Chairman Corey Stewart (R, At large) said he will put more focus on widening the entirety of U.S. 1 in Woodbridge and the Dumfries area.
“We’re seeing a lot of interest, especially because of BRAC, the defense industry, the Stonebridge development that is now building another 58 acres of high-end retailers and office space… I think we are going to do that and I think the economic development of the eastern end [of Prince William County] is coming along just fine,” said Stewart.
The announcement comes after Woodbridge District Supervisor this summer finalized a deal to fully fund widening of U.S. 1 in North Woodbridge.
Prince William taxpayers since 1989 have paid for the construction of select roads, including Prince William Parkway and most recently the widening of U.S. 1 between Joplin and Bradys Hill roads in Triangle, with road bonds approved by voters.
The last round of road bonds were approved in 2006, and now that all of them have been funded, the Board needs to identify new road projects to fund, said Stewart.
U.S. 1 has already been widened from four to six lanes at Dale Boulevard, and with the exception of the Triangle area, remains to be four lanes throughout Prince William County. When adjacent Interstate 95 is congested, U.S. 1 is a popular commuter bailout.
While Stewart’s democratic opponent, Babur Lateef, calls for an extension of Metrorail from Springfield to Woodbridge to help ease congestion, But Stewart maintains heavy rail to the Potomac Communities “is a long way off.”
Stewart also said he will push to widen Va. 28 between the Prince William / Fairfax County line through Manassas to Va. 234 Bypass in the next round of road bonds.
