Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, December 7, 1994 TAG: 9412070147
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BRIAN KELLEY AND STEPHEN FOSTER STAFF WRITERS
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
The public may view the maps and ask questions about them from 3 to 8 p.m. today at the Blacksburg Holiday Inn.
Though preliminary, these are the first detailed plans the Virginia Department of Transportation has shown of the future interchanges around Christiansburg, Blacksburg and the Marketplace shopping center.
"Lots of line, lots of lines," quipped Blacksburg Town Councilman Michael Chandler.
Transportation officials stressed that the region's top priority is the bypass connector, not the smart road. If drawn as planned, the U.S. 460 bypass connector - known as Alternative 3A - radically will change the routes around Christiansburg and Blacksburg when finished in 2001. Planners used designs more common to urban areas to keep pace with the growth in population and traffic expected by 2021, including:
A high-speed interchange in Blacksburg akin to the crossroads of Interstates 95 and 66 in Northern Virginia and the interchanges of Interstate 295 outside Richmond. One of its designers called it a "spaghetti" interchange, a confusing maze when mapped from above but not to drivers. The on and off ramps will allow drivers to whiz to and from the connector, existing U.S. 460 and the smart road.
Blacksburg Councilman Waldon Kerns said the new interchange designs seem better than ones previously viewed, with easier access to downtown and less potential for traffic tie-ups.
But it won't be the scenic gateway Blacksburg officials like to promote.
"It's definitely going to put a different face on this part of Blacksburg," Chandler said.
Revamping the primary exit from Interstate 81 into Christiansburg by using mile-long parallel roads that keep exiting and entering vehicles separate from the main flow of traffic. Such designs commonly are seen on the Capital Beltway outside Washington, D.C.
A massive cloverleaf interchange directly beside the 2-year-old Falling Branch Elementary School near Christiansburg. Planners included it at the request of the Montgomery Board of Supervisors, which is developing an industrial park next to the school.
Falling Branch Road would be closed, and school buses would reach Falling Branch Elementary by entering the U.S. 460 bypass extension.
"It looks like it's going to serve the school better," said Supervisor Nick Rush.
No other traffic besides school buses and staff vehicles would use the exit for the school; the industrial park would have its own road.
Christiansburg Town Council members said the bypass connector will siphon traffic from the town's northern retail center, but they want that to make shopping more accessible.
"I don't think we'll be bypassed any more than we are bypassed now," said Councilman Ray "Eddie" Lester.
Though the bypass connector is scheduled to go out to bid in mid-1999, that could be moved up if no major roadblocks develop through today's public input, said Dan Brugh, VDOT resident engineer. Work on the first portion of the smart road, meanwhile, is set to begin in 1997.
Gov. George Allen has pledged $10 million to build the western third of the six-mile highway. That portion may be shortened to eliminate - at least for a time - the need to build a 900-foot bridge over the Ellett Valley, Brugh said. No money has been set aside for the remainder of the smart road.
Staff writer Kenneth Singletary contributed to this story.
by CNB