The public is invited to learn more and comment on a proposed project that would widen Route 2/17 (Dixon Street and Tidewater Trail) from just south of Dixon Park and Howison Avenue/nearby McKinney Street in Fredericksburg to Imboden Street south of Shannon Airport in Spotsylvania County.
The road would be widened to four lanes.
Additional proposed improvements:
- 10-foot-wide shared-use path along the eastern side of Route 2/17
- Crosswalk and pedestrian crossing signal equipment at the Shannon Park Drive and Mansfield Street intersection
- Improved bus stop at Dixon Park
- Intersection improvements at Lansdowne Road
The proposed improvements along Route 2/17 in Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania are two separate projects, but they would be built at the same time through a single construction contract.
The total cost for the improvements is estimated to be $70.6 million, funded through a combination of funds from Virginia’s SMART SCALE program and locality funds.
Fredericksburg submitted a SMART SCALE application to improve the Dixon Street/Lansdowne Road intersection by lengthening several turn lanes and widening Dixon Street to four lanes.
Spotsylvania submitted a SMART SCALE application to widen Route 2/17, add a shared-use path along the road’s eastern side, make pedestrian crossing improvements at Shannon Park Drive and Mansfield Street, and add facilities for a Fredericksburg Regional Transit feeder bus service from the Bowman Center to the Amtrak/Virginia Railway Express train station in Fredericksburg.
Dixon Street carries an average of 28,000 vehicles a day in the project area, and Tidewater Trail carries an average of 24,000 vehicles a day, according to a 2023 VDOT traffic count.
An in-person design public hearing on the work will be held July 23 from 5-7 p.m. at Elks Lodge #875, 11309 Tidewater Trail, Fredericksburg, VA 22408. In the event of inclement weather, the meeting will be held July 30 at the same time and location.
Residents can stop by the public hearing any time to review materials and discuss questions with Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and project staff. The hearing will be held in an open house format. No formal presentation will be delivered.
The public also can view project materials on the project page and submit comments using an online survey.
Comments on the project will be accepted at the public hearing and afterward through Aug. 2.
Comments may be emailed to [email protected]. Please reference “Route 2/17 Widening” in the email subject line.
Comments may also be mailed to Mr. Byrd Holloway, P.E., VDOT Project Management Office Team Lead, 87 Deacon Road, Fredericksburg, VA 22405.
Construction to improve Route 207 bridge in Caroline
VDOT also will start construction next week on a project to replace a bridge superstructure on State Route 207 (Rogers Clark Boulevard) northbound over the Mattaponi River in Caroline County.
Route 207 bridge in Caroline County
The $9.6 million project will replace the superstructure of the existing bridge. The steel-plate girders, concrete deck, railing, bridge approaches, and substructure repairs will be replaced during the project.
Construction will begin Monday. Crews will close the Route 207 northbound bridge late next month, and the road will remain closed at this location for about nine months. During the closure, Route 207 will be reduced to two travel lanes. All northbound traffic will be diverted to cross the Mattaponi using the southbound bridge, with one travel lane open in each direction.
The speed limit on Route 207 in the work zone will be reduced temporarily from 60 mph to 45 mph when construction begins. Work zone speed limit signs will be installed and covered ahead of the project and will be uncovered once work starts.
Weather permitting, the Route 207 northbound bridge will reopen to traffic in April.
An average of 12,000 vehicles a day travel on the highway.
Message boards will be posted to notify drivers of the upcoming closure and diversion.
The project contractor is Kokosing Construction Co. Inc.
