By URIAH KISER
DUMIFRIES, Va. – It’ll be easy access for those who will live in the Potomac Shores neighborhood and town center being built along the Potomac River.
But for residents of Dumfries and commuters in Prince William County, a new traffic plan will mean drivers will no longer be able to make left turns at the busy intersection of U.S. 1 and Va. 234, will require drivers to use a series of new connector roads, and will force more traffic through the Route 234 Commuter Lot.
Developers of the new Potomac Shores neighborhood said the plan will bring more capacity to U.S. 1 and Va. 234 and improve traffic flow. They took questions from the Dumfries Town Council on Tuesday night, all of whom overwhelming oppose the interchange configuration that comes with a plan to extend the existing six-lane Harbor Station Parkway to U.S. 1, then renaming it Potomac Shores Parkway, and then building a cul-de-sac on Old Stage Coach Road preventing access to U.S. 1.
“This is a slow death of Dumfries,” said Councilwoman Gwen Washington. “I’ve lived here all my life, and with this new road configuration, with its loops to loops to get somewhere, if I didn’t already live here I would not come down here to visit or frequent the businesses after something like this was built.”
No left turns
As it stands, the junction at U.S. 1 and Va. 234 is a four-way intersection. Drivers headed north on U.S. 1 can turn left on Va. 234 and access Interstate 95 or travel to Manassas.
But in the new plan left turns would no longer be allowed here. Those who wanted to turn left from U.S. 1 onto Va. 234 and head north will instead have to continue on U.S. 1 north for about a block to a new signalized intersection, then turn left onto a planned connector road that would tie in with Wayside Drive at the entrance to Southbridge and the Route 234 Commuter lot, and then proceed up a hill through the commuter lot, enter a large roundabout, and then proceed to another traffic light at Va. 234 where they can turn right and continue to I-95 or Manassas.
Drivers who now use southbound Va. 234 and turn left onto U.S. 1 north would, under the new plan, follow the reverse pattern and would have to drive through the commuter lot on the Wayside Drive connector road to U.S. 1 and then turn left to proceed north into Woodbridge.
A wall and connector roads
All of this is contingent on a plan to extend Harbor Station Parkway (renamed Potomac Shores Parkway) to U.S. 1. Currently, U.S. 1, Va. 234, and the small two-lane Old Stage Coach Road all intersect. Under the plan, Old Stage Coach Road would no longer intersect and would be turned into a cul-de-sac, and a new 2,200-square foot retaining would be built to support the newly extended Potomac Shores Parkway.
It’s in this area on U.S. 1, just prior to the intersection with Va. 234 but past the junction with Wayside Drive, another four-lane connector road would be built to carry traffic from southbound U.S. 1 onto Potomac Shores Parkway. Drivers would not be able to turn left from U.S. 1 onto Potomac Shores Parkway under the new plan.
Potomac Shores developers also say this second four-lane connector road could some day be extended to rejoin U.S. 1 in the area of Tripoli Boulevard.
Truck traffic also a concern
The Potomac Shores development, now under construction, has changed owners three times since the economic recession hit in 2007. Originally, town officials said, the first owner of the project — known then as Harbor Station — was going to build a grade-separated interchange and flyover at U.S. 1 and Va. 234. All of the newly proposed improvements are at-grade fixes.
Dumfries Mayor Jerry Foreman doubts the connector road would eventually be built and extended to the area of Tripoli Boulevard.
“We’ve been talking since 1981 about improving Route 1 in the town, and in the past year we’re finally staring to get somewhere,” said a skeptical Foreman. “If this connector road is going to be built it has to happen now.”
Town officials are also concerned about a new ethanol transfer station being built on Cockpit Point Road. It’s just across the town border in Prince William County, but town officials expect at least 50 trucks a day to travel between U.S. 1 and the transfer station via Cockpit Point Road, and officials say this new road configuration could make it more difficult to get those trucks in and out.
Impacts to McDonalds
Intersection improvements will also impact a busy strip of businesses along the south side of Va. 234, where a McDonalds, Taco Bell, a 7-Eleven, Shell gas station, and a dry cleaner all sit. Dumfries Town Manager Daniel Taber said those businesses bring in a significant chunk of revenue for town coffers – up to $450,000 per year.
It’s here a new service road would be constructed under the new plan, where drivers would only be able to access these shops at a signal at the Wayside Drive connector road and the commuter lot.
Councilman Charles Brewer said business owners don’t approve of the plan, and he fears they’ll move elsewhere if the service road is constructed.
Potomac Shores developers said all plans for the intersection improvements have been vetted through the Virginia Department of Transportation.
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