The debate over a proposal to close a section of Ruritan Circle in Sterling is no closer to resolution than when it first surfaced last year.
The Board of Supervisors' Transportation Committee Monday gave proponents two more months to identify alternatives. "Think outside the box," said Supervisor Mick Staton, committee chairman.
"I don't like it when people dig their heels in," said Supervisor James Clem, committee member. "There has to be a compromise."
The committee told the Virginia Department of Transportation to do another traffic study at the intersection of Ruritan Circle and Church Street to see if a traffic light is warranted. Business persons on the circle said they would support closing a section of the roadway and converting it to trail use if safety issues, such as installation of a traffic light, would be addressed. VDOT has objected to the plan, saying there is not enough traffic to warrant the light, based on data from a 1999 traffic study.
David Mahoney, a Dewberry & Davis LLC project manager for the Route 28 and Route 625 interchange project, is seeking the abandonment. The move would coincide with the realignment of Church Road, also known as Route 625, and the bridging of Route 625 over the Washington and Old Dominion (W&OD) Trail.
THE INTERCHANGE PROJECT would add two lanes to Route 625 across the trail, which is owned by the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority. Under federal requirements, the Virginia Department of Transportation would have to obtain replacement land in exchange for the crossing. VDOT also would buy a small parcel southwest of the W&OD Trail intersection for a paved connecting path.
The project calls for one section of the trail to go under Church Road, because it is a dangerous crossing for bicyclists and pedestrians.
Proponents say abandonment is essential to widening and relocating the Route 625 approach to the Route 28 interchange bridge
SUSAN SHAW, VDOT manager of the Route 28 proposal, said her team would look for a possible solution.
John Harman, of the Route 28 LLC, told the committee that every alternative has been considered. "We've looked at it nine ways to Sunday," he said. If the committee denies the proposal, it will take another two years to go through the hearing process for another alternative. The interchange, however, will be completed on time, he said.
Kate Radicille, land administration and planning manager of the Park Authority, said they would have to "start from scratch. We've never had one that has not been approved," she added.
Staton complained that the supervisors were not notified early on about the proposal. He said he didn't want to delay expansion, "I can't recommend approval … when we already know it is not going to work out."