Community Urges VDOT to Locate Park & Ride Lot outside Rural Area

The Prince William Conservation Alliance is opposing a VDOT Park & Ride lot tentatively planned for the Haymarket section of the county’s Rural Crescent, but VDOT (Virginia Department of Transportation) says it is not a done deal.

The current preferred alternative plan would require the state taking land belonging to a working farm in order to make room for a park & ride.

The Alliance opposes not only the taking of the farm, located on rural Antioch Road but also the ramifications of the park & ride.

In a letter to Chairman Corey Stewart, dated Oct. 15, PWCA Chairman Charley Grymes wrote, “VDOT is ignoring the Prince William County Comprehensive Plan” as part of its plan to transform I-66 into a highway that includes HOT (High Occupancy Toll) lanes.

Grymes believes the Park & Ride is a step into opening the Rural Crescent in western Prince William.

“The proposal also includes construction of a new segment of Heathcote Blvd. off Antioch Road to access the commuter parking lot,” Grymes wrote. “This would invite an extension of existing Heathcote Blvd, which is also not included in the County’s Transportation Plan.”

The author argued that extending Heathcote Boulevard is inviting more urban sprawl into the area.

However, Michelle Holland, Communications Manager for VDOTs Mega Projects, said VDOT has heard from the community and wants to assure residents "this is not anything that has been finalized."

"That park & ride lot is a proposed location as part of the 66 Outside the Beltway preferred alternative. It is still proposed. Nothing has been decided in terms of the exact location," Holland told Bristow Beat, Tuesday afternoon.

Despite what people are seeing on VDOT maps, Holland said the details accompanying the I-66 widening outside the Beltway will not be finalized until 2017, leaving plenty of time for community input.

"Designs will continue to be refined and tweaked over the next year," she said. "I want to assure the community of people that we hear them."

VDOT is also interested in working with property owners.

"Our team is working to set up a meeting with the affected property owner and surrounding residents to further discuss their concerns," said Holland. "We will be taking a close look at this proposed park and ride lot location as with all of the proposed design concepts for the I-66 Outside the Beltway Project."

Holland provided the following information on where the 66 outside the beltway is in its progression.

There is a vote on Wednesday, October 21 at Noon by the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments’ Transportation Planning Board (TPB) on whether to adopt the I-66 Projects (Outside and Inside the Beltway) into the region’s Constrained Long Range Plan for air quality conformity purposes. This vote does NOT consider specific design features of the project, but rather the projects in general.

Next week, October 27 or 28, Virginia’s Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB) will vote on the project’s preferred alternative and phased approach, which does include design concepts such as the location of the park and ride lot.

Decisions on final design plans including the location of the park and ride lot will NOT occur until the project’s design public hearing, which will be held in early 2017. Over the next year, VDOT and its contractor partners will work to refine the project’s designs, and will present them to the public at this design public hearing. The public will be invited to provide formal comments and input, which will be considered by the CTB before approving final design.

Prince William County Chairman Corey Stewart will be hosting a Town Hall meeting to discuss the tolling of I-66 Inside the Beltway, this Thursday, October 22 at 7 p.m., at Battlefield High School, 15000 Graduation Drive, Haymarket.

The meeting was planned in conjunction with the I-66 Alliance. It will allow residents to ask questions about the project and voice their opinions.

During the October 13, 2015 Prince William Board of County Supervisors meeting, the Board voted unanimously on a resolution to oppose tolling I-66 inside the beltway.

The resolution can be viewed by clicking on this link, http://eservice.pwcgov.org/documents/bocs/agendas/2015/1013/11-F.pdf[eservice.pwcgov.org]

Holland said that VDOT representatives plan on attending the town hall meeting.