In Design: Fairfax County Parkway Widening and Popes Head Road Interchange

Note: A design public hearing will be held Thursday, Dec. 12 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at James W. Robinson, Jr. Secondary School, 5035 Sideburn Road, Fairfax, VA 22032. A presentation will begin at 7 p.m. If cancelled due to inclement weather, the meeting will be held Monday, Dec. 16.

A fourth public information meeting was held Nov. 6. 

Meeting Materials and Displays: Fairfax County Parkway Widening from Route 123 to Popes Head Road, Fairfax County Parkway Widening from Popes Head Road to Route 29, and Popes Head Road Interchange Rendering and Potential Environmental Resource Impacts

The Environmental Assessment is now available.

Popes Head Interchange

Plans to replace the traffic signal at Fairfax County Parkway (Route 286) and Popes Head Road (Route 654) with an interchange, including access to the future Shirley Gate Road extension and Patriot Park, are being further developed and refined.

The preferred design option for the Popes Head Road interchange is Triple Roundabouts that will allow traffic to flow freely via two new bridges over Fairfax County Parkway.

Fairfax County Parkway Widening

Plans to widen about five miles of Fairfax County Parkway from four lanes to six between Route 29 (Lee Highway) and Route 123 (Ox Road) are being further developed and refined.

The widening will also include:

• Improving the Route 123 interchange and the Fairfax County Parkway/Burke Centre Parkway intersection. 
• Providing a continuous shared-use path within the project limits by constructing the missing segment from Burke Centre Parkway to Route 123.  

Within the project limits, Fairfax County Parkway averages up to 85,000 vehicles a day and Popes Head Road averages up to 4,000.

Estimated Costs
Preliminary Engineering: $14 million
Right of Way Acquisition and Utility Relocation: $19.5 million
Construction of Popes Head Interchange: $73.3 million
Construction of Fairfax County Parkway Widening: $183 million
Total: $290 million

These project costs are estimates and subject to change as the project design is further developed. The Popes Head Road interchange is fully funded and the Fairfax County Parkway widening is partially funded, with additional funding sources being evaluated as they become available. This project is financed with federal, state and local funds, including Smart Scale and Northern Virginia Transportation Authority funding.

Benefits 

These projects aim to reduce congestion and improve safety and accessbility for drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians.

Major Milestones 

First Public Information Meeting - December 2017
Second Public Information Meeting (Series) - September and October 2018
Third Public Information Meeting - January 2019
Fourth Public Information Meeting - November 2019
Design Public Hearing - Dec. 12, 2019
Design Public Hearing Comment Deadline - Dec. 23, 2019
Begin Right of Way Acquisition - To be determined as project delivery method is finalized
Begin Popes Head Interchange Construction - To be determined as project delivery method is finalized
Begin Fairfax County Parkway Widening Construction - To be determined as additional funding becomes available