The Stafford County Board of Supervisors has decided to move forward with making sidewalk improvements on Mine Road.
This project would happen along Mine Road, starting at Highpointe Boulevard, and ending at Cathedral Lane.
In order to obtain the funding needed to complete the project, the Board will submit an application the Fredericksburg Transportation Management Area (TMA). The TMA currently has $162, 672 in available funding for these types improvement projects.
According to Jack Cavalier, Supervisor for the Griffis-Widewater district, the improvements to Mine Road are among the County’s top priorities.
“The Mine Road sidewalk project is among the County’s highest priorities to accommodate pedestrians safely and efficiently. If constructed, the proposed sidewalk project will connect to other existing sidewalks in the area, providing a network of opportunities for bicycle and pedestrian traffic to travel safely to and from existing and commercial developments. It will provide for safer access along a busy roadway that is frequently used by pedestrians traveling between their homes and commercial areas,” said Cavalier.
The Board would need to match the funding from the TMA with local funds in the amount of $40,688, according to Cavalier.
The application for funding Mine Road improvements will be considered at the Fredericksburg Area Metropolitan Planning Organization’s Technical Committee meeting in March.
If approved, the funding and application for the project would be handed over to the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and added to their Six-Year Improvement Program.
And while the road improvements will help many Stafford residents, there may be some challenges up ahead to get the project completed.
“While constructing a sidewalk may not seem complicated, there are a number of unique factors that make this project challenging including the fact that part of the sidewalk has to go over a creek, and we may have to expand the culvert that is under the road to accommodate the sidewalk,” Cavalier said.
The Board is considering additional grant requests for the future, to complete the sidewalk on Mine Road.
