Washington Construction News staff writer
Fairfax County has budgeted $6.9 million for a new shared-use path and planting strip along Shreve Road at the Falls Church border.
The county’s Board of Supervisors on May 7 unanimously approved a resolution authorizing the Fairfax County Department of Transportation to begin the project’s design, land acquisition, and construction that will extend from the Washington and Old Dominion (W&OD) Trail to Route 7 in Idylwood, FFXNow reported on May 10.
The project will include a crosswalk near the intersection of Shreve Road and Gordon Road, benches near the entrance to the W&OD Trail, and stormwater management and drainage.
“While it’s a small connection, I know it will benefit my community, the Dranesville community, the Falls Church City community, and all those who use the W&OD Trail,” Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik said during the board’s May 7 meeting.
“The engineering piece of pedestrian safety is often the most expensive, but also the most effective,” she said.
The project is part of a broader initiative to enhance connectivity to Falls Church City’s West End, Mary Ellen Henderson Middle School, the Meridian High School campus and the West Falls Church Metro station, a Fairfax County staff report says.
The City of Falls Church plans to reimburse the county for construction costs using $6.9 million in funds awarded by the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority. The city authorized the arrangement, which makes the county responsible for design and construction, in February, the staff report says.
Construction is slated to start in the fall of 2026 and finish in the spring of 2027.
