Herndon Marks Completion Of Van Buren Street/Herndon Parkway Project

HERNDON, VA — Local officials gathered at Haley M. Smith Park on Thursday morning for a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the completion of the Van Buren Complete Street and Herndon Parkway Intersection Project.

The total construction cost for the project was $12.38 million and 66 percent of that number — $8.21 million — was paid for through federal, regional and local grants that were obtained by the Town of Herndon.

"We would never be able to do this on a town's budget, with under 25,000 people, without raising the tax rates to the point no one wanted or could afford to live here," Herndon Mayor Sheila Olem said, during Thursday's ceremony.

The Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, Fairfax County's Herndon Metrorail Stations Access Management Study and the Virginia Department of Transportation served as the town's funding partners for the project.

"Eighteen months ago, we were out here doing the groundbreaking and now here we are gathering to kick off today at the Van Buren Street intersection of Herndon Parkway and talk about all these enhancements that are going to improve Metro access."

The following improvements were made as part of the Van Buren Street/Herndon Parkway intersection:

• Addition of curb-and-gutter
• Widening of lanes to 15 feet, to accommodate bike lanes
• Addition of 5-foot wide sidewalks with streetlights
• Addition of crosswalks and traffic signalization at Alabama Drive
• Improved pedestrian crosswalks with ADA pedestrian signals
• Improved Storm water management faclities
• Relocating of overhead utility lines

Last November, the town hosted another ribbon-cutting ceremony for the $5.9 million Bus Bays Project, which added pedestrian and vehicular access to the Herndon Metro Station. That ceremony took place just two weeks before the opening of Metro's Silver Line extension.

Related: Major Milestone Celebrated Outside Soon-To-Open Herndon Metro Station

Richard Smith, the chief engineer for the Town of Herndon, said that both the Bus Bays and Van Buren/Herndon Parkway projects we designed specifically to make access to the Herndon Metro Station easier and safer.

"These all combined and, in concert, provide a better improved and safer access for pedestrians and cyclists to the Metro facility," he said. "That's the driving force behind this."

NVTA CEO Monica Blackman reminded those gathered that the improvements weren't just about making it safer and easier for people to get to the Metro station.

Related: Metro Silver Line Extension With 6 New Stations Opens With Fanfare

"I hope everyone is thinking 'multimodal solutions,'" she said. "Oftentimes, people think roads, roads, roads, because our priority is congestion reduction. But congestion reduction doesn't mean building new roads all the time. This is active transportation. You have various modes that will now be able to be sustainable and integrate and provide that better connection to the Metro and that's really what we're all about."

Joining Olem, Smith, and Backmon to cut the ribbon Thursday were Town Manager Bill Ashton, Council Member Keven LeBlanc, Dranesville District Supervisor John Foust, Del. Irene Shin, and State Sen. Jennifer Boysko.