At Fredericksburg, three bridges cross the Rappahannock River to keep traffic flowing at Interstate 95 and points east. West of I-95, the closest bridge is over 40 miles away, increasing congestion and stress for many drivers.
This fueled much discussion at the “Rappahannock River Crossing Parkway Alternatives Study,” a Fredericksburg Area Metropolitan Planning Organization meeting.
Officials are exploring the possibility of building the bridge as an extension of Commerce Parkway, just off Route 17 in south Stafford County. The bridge would cross the Rappahannock River and could connect to Gordon Shelton Boulevard, near Virginia Credit Union Stadium, where the FredNats play.
The project aims to alleviate local street congestion by establishing a new connection between Fredericksburg and Stafford, upstream from existing bridges carrying Interstate 95 over the Rappahannock River.
Virginia State Police: “Virginia State Police is investigating a crash involving a train in Stafford County. The crash occurred Sunday (Oct. 1), at 8:30 p.m. at the intersection of Route 658 (Brent Point Rd) and Route 633 (Arkendale Rd).”
“A 2020 Toyota RAV4 was traveling east on Route 658 when it inadvertently turned onto a private section of train tracks. As the Toyota attempted to turn around and exit the tracks it was struck by a southbound Amtrak train. The railroad crossing arms descended as the Toyota attempted to exit the tracks.”
VDOT Fredericksburg: “Route 17 and Route 17 Business (Warrenton Road) travelers in Stafford County will encounter overnight delays for several weeks in June near the Interstate 95 interchange at exit 133 (Falmouth/Warrenton).”
“Crews will be placing beams over the travel lanes for a new I-95 overpass. The overpass will carry the future local lanes of I-95 northbound as part of the Northbound Rappahannock River Crossing.”
While Stafford County leaders were careful not to use the word “study” last fall, the Boar Board of Supervisors asked officials at the Fredericksburg Metropolitan Planning Organization to research sites for a new river crossing to bridge the gap between Stafford and Spotsylvania counties and Fredericksburg.
The bridge would also serve as a bypass to river crossings on Interstate 95 and Route 1.
If you must travel, VDOT urges you to adjust your travel time based on road and weather conditions. Roads may be more severe based on forecasts north and west of the Fredericksburg area, warns the state agency.
Air temperatures will begin to fall today and stay below freezing over the weekend as well as pavement temperatures will grow colder, which can cause the potential for a flash freeze risk on any wet pavement. This may cause slick, hazardous road conditions. Icy conditions may occur first on bridges, overpasses, ramps, elevated surfaces, and in shaded areas.
Interstate 95 over the Rappahannock River in Fredericksburg [Photo: VDOT][/caption]
The Stafford County Board of Supervisors has expressed interest in researching a Rappahannock Crossing Parkway to alleviate traffic Interstate 95 corridor.
The Board approved a letter to the Fredericksburg Area Metropolitan Planning Organization requesting that it research options for a new bridge over the Rappahannock River, west of I-95. The Board also asked FAMPO to consider fiscal impacts, potential funding opportunities, route options, and effects on existing road networks.
The Board asked FAMPO to keep it and other localities informed of any developments in its research. Fredericksburg bypass studies were done in 2013 and 2019. Officials balked when a proposed road came too close to existing neighborhoods.
The Board chose "research" instead of "study," which had been used in a previous draft. Falmouth District Supervisor Meg Bohmke said "study" tends to have additional strings, such as federal and state funding. According to Bohmke, using the word "research" would give the FAMPO more flexibility.
FAMPO Director Ian Hollis was at the meeting to answer questions. Griffis-Widewater District Supervisor Tinesha Allen asked what the difference would be between research options now and previous studies.
Hollis said that previous studies had studied a bridge rather than the viability of many potential solutions. As of late, FAMPO's focus has been on rail and transit solutions, getting people out of cars and onto public transportation. Hollis said new methods of data collection could aid in the research, such as streetlight data which can map the origin and destinations of commuters; this method was not available for the previous studies.
Hollis also mentioned that there had been renewed calls for an outer-connector road network that could potentially alleviate traffic issues in the Stafford/Fredericksburg area corridor.
FAMPO's Citizen Citizen Transportation Advisory group's August meeting discussed the viability of an outer connector, which would include an eastern connector road from Stafford to Spotsylvania and a western connector through Culpeper and Orange counties.
Following that discussion, a push by Stafford Supervisors led Henry Scharbenberg, the group's chairman, to be booted from the panel. Scharpenburg pushed the idea of an outer connector without support from Supervisors, knowing an outer-connector road is not in the county's long-range transportation plan, Supervisors told Potomac Local News.
Culpeper and Orange are not FAMPO members and would need to join for the project to be viable, said Hollis.
During the meeting, Bohmke said that she was not in favor of an outer connector for fear of the possibility of urban sprawl.
Another concern from Allen and George Washington District Supervisor Tom Coen was a lack of communication between the organization and the county regarding matters on the connector.
Coen expressed concern that officials in nearby Fredericksburg seemed to know more about the issue than the county did and stressed that they should be kept in the loop if they were to be involved in such a project.
The Board approved the letter with a vote of 4-2-1. Allen abstained from the vote.
A temporary traffic pattern on the Interstate 95 northbound off-ramp at the exit 133 (Route 17) interchange in Stafford County will take effect tomorrow, June 24, to improve safety during construction of the I-95 Northbound Rappahannock River Crossing Project.
I-95 northbound travelers seeking southbound Route 17 toward Falmouth will now come to a full stop at the end of the off-ramp, then turn right. Drivers will no longer have to yield and then merge into Route 17 southbound traffic.
Manassas commuters will need to find another way around some key railroad crossings next week.
The first of three closures will take place on Tuesday, July 6.
