Updated: VRE has plans to expand the platforms at its Woodbridge station

Virginia Railway Express has a plan to expand its capacity at the Woodbridge Station.

The state’s only commuter railway this week applied for $2.2 million from the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority to expand the station platforms form one to three.

The newly expanded platforms would provide grade-repeated pedestrian access and would be lengthened to the full length of a train, providing passengers easier boarding access to the commuter trains.

“This project will be coordinated with the Commonwealth of Virginia’s third track project. This project will: Enhance station capacity and convenience for passengers; Expand railroad capacity, operational flexibility, and resilience; Improve reliability and on-?me performance; Reduce highway congestion; and Reduce transportation-related air pollution,” the commuter railway pens in its grant application.

The $2.2 million funding request would be used for designing the project, and it only a drop in the bucket, as the entire project is expected to cost $29.7 million and be completed by 2027.

Virginia Railway Express’ Woodbridge station is located at 1040 Express Drive in Woodbridge, just off Route 1 next to Belmont Bay.

The project is one of two submitted by VRE, of the overall 41 projects, totaling $1.7 billion, submitted to the NVTA for funding in its 2020-2025 six-year plan. Other agencies jurisdictions requesting funds for other projects include the governments of Prince William, Fairfax, Loudoun, and Arlington counties.

The other projects include funding requests for roads, transit, and pedestrian and bikeways. NVTA says it will wight the projects to see which ones relive the most congestion relative to costs, and expects to award up to $400 million by this summer.

Residents can come to a scheduled public hearing on May 14 at NVTA’s offices locate t NVTA’s offices, located at 3040 Williams Drive, Suite 200, in Fairfax, to learn more about the projects and voice their options on which ones should be funded.

An open house will start at 5:30 p.m. and the public hearing will start at 7 p.m.

Update

After we published this post, the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority contacted us with new information that differed from what was posted on its website at the time of publication of this story.

Here’s a statement from NVTA spokeswoman Erica Hawksworth:

While we are currently accepting public comment (through 11:59 p.m. on May 24), there are going to be changes to our Public Hearing format, still TBD. We do know we’re strongly encouraging people to submit their comments in advance rather than showing up in-person, due to the COVID-19 situation and Governor Northam’s Stay at Home Order outlined in Executive Order Fifty-Five.

Submissions are being accepted in the following ways:

Email: S[email protected]

Online Submission Form: https://thenovaauthority.org/syp-comment/

Mail: Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, 3040 Williams Drive, Suite 200, Fairfax, VA 22031

First and Last Name, Contact Information, Comment on Project and Zip Code are required for the above submissions.

While the public is still able to come provide comment in-person at NVTA’s offices, would it be possible to share some updated information with your readers letting them know we’re strongly encouraging them to submit comments in advance?

We want to keep their safety top of mind. I realize our website was not yet updated with new information when you wrote.

Here is the updated info: https://thenovaauthority.org/syp-comment/.

As we work out what’s possible during these unique times, I wanted to provided you the most-up-to-date info.

Once we finalize our approach for the public hearing, our website information will be updated once again.

So, what’s listed on our updated website is subject to change.

We’re also taking an abundance of caution and cancelling this year’s Open House.

Instead, all materials that were to be on display at the previously scheduled Open House, are accessible at thenovaauthority.org/fy2024-2025-six-year-program-update/, and currently available for public comment.

What’s most important, is Northern Virginians’ safety. We want to hear from them but encourage the feedback from a safe distance – electronically or via postal service.