A major road project in Ashburn officially got underway today — this time, construction of the final missing piece of Riverside Parkway.
Riverside Parkway currently stretches to the west all the way to Leesburg where it runs into Fort Evans Road NE. It’s eastern end is supposed to connect with Loudoun County Parkway, on the north side of Route 7 near DC Prime steakhouse and the SpringHill Suites hotel.
But there is a gap — a missing stretch from what is currently Lexington Drive near Blue Mount Nursery over to LoCo Parkway.
Today, local leaders broke ground on that final stretch, a $23 million project. The construction should take about two years and wrap up on the fall of 2021. When completed it will provide another east-west route (really southeast-northwest) between Ashburn and Leesburg.
Wow, two years to build a road that does not include any bridges and is less than 1/2 mile? Have no idea why it would take anywhere near that long.
The entire Dulles Greenway – thirteen miles with four lanes divided, one significant bridge and several other bridges plus seven interchanges and toll plazas with considerably more grading and clearing involved, plus planning for the Metro right of way and major land acquisition, took two years to build. Of course, the crew was largely from Texas so there was incentive to get back home. But the road still works, now at six lanes. Early interstate highways were built at a pace of 20 mile stretches in just months in many areas.
This is flat. Land acquisition has been done. Some grading is done. Utilities exist. Drainage is not that complicated. What takes two years? Dragging it out may be good for the contractor, but not the taxpayer. Sounds VERY suspicious. Are we just dumber now? Is it hard to find workmen (there is still some unemployment in this area). I think that last link in Claiborne – which was longer – took more time. This is like the Russel Branch link, which also took less time.
So there is your story – what takes two years to build less than a half mile of road?
Could not edit. The Claiborne link took _less_ time. The delays were largely with inspections. Still, longer stretch, and not two years.
The entire Dulles Greenway – thirteen miles with four lanes divided, one significant bridge and several other bridges plus seven interchanges and toll plazas with considerably more grading and clearing involved, plus planning for the Metro right of way and major land acquisition, took two years to build. Of course, the crew was largely from Texas so there was incentive to get back home. But the road still works, now at six lanes. Early interstate highways were built at a pace of 20 mile stretches in just months in many areas.
This is flat. Land acquisition has been done. Some grading is done. Utilities exist. Drainage is not that complicated. What takes two years? Dragging it out may be good for the contractor, but not the taxpayer. Sounds VERY suspicious. Are we just dumber now? Is it hard to find workmen (there is still some unemployment in this area). I think that last link in Claiborne – which was longer – took more time. This is like the Russel Branch link, which also took less time.
So there is your story – what takes two years to build less than a half mile of road?
Delays were partly due to a community water well (serving the neighborhood north of there) existing where the road was to be built. They had to hook the entire neighborhood into the Loudoun Water system and seal the old well before any visible construction could proceed. Just like with Claiborne, it was utility relocation that impacted much of the timing.
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