Woodbridge, Va. –– Residents and business owners in North Woodbridge are about to find out just how wide U.S. 1 is going to get.
State and Prince William County transportation officials will be on hand tonight from 5 to 8 p.m. to discuss a $228 million project to widen the four lane highway to six lanes, as well as construct an interchange at Gordon Boulevard (Va. 123) and U.S. 1.
Planners and elected officials have long said project is the impetus for new growth the long beleaguered section of Prince William.
The widening will take place between Mary’s Way and the Occoquan River, and Gordon Boulevard (Va. 123) will be widened to six lanes between the planned interchange at U.S. 1 and Interstate 95.
The interchange will carry Va. 123 over U.S. 1 in an effort to separate the lanes of traffic, connecting Va. 123 to Belmont Bay Drive, providing better access to a Virginia Railway Express station and the Belmont Bay mixed-use neighborhood.
The interchange using elevated ramps to carry cars up to an elevated Va. 123 will eliminate signal lights at U.S. 1 and Va. 123 and at U.S. 1 and Annapolis Way just prior to the Occoquan River
The light at U.S. 1 and Occoquan Road will remain, however, new through and turn lanes would improve traffic flow, according to VDOT.
The public hearing will take place at the Botts Fire Hall at 1306 F Street in Woodbridge.
Later this summer, the Prince William County Board of Supervisors will have to approve the project and construction would begin in 2014.
