The Washington & Old Dominion (W&OD) Trail will be momentarily off limits near Reston Town Center, as construction continues on a new pedestrian bridge.
The trail will be closed from Friday, July 26 through Sunday, July 28 while workers install the bridge, which will cross over the trail to connect the existing town center with the Reston Next development emerging around the Metro station.
The closure will affect less than a mile of the trail, extending roughly from the Crescent Park Drive offshoot past Reston Parkway. During that time, temporary signs will be posted directing W&OD Trail users to a detour on Bluemont Way, according to Reston Town Center.
RTC owner and developer Boston Properties (BXP) announced that it had hired contractor Clark Construction to build the bridge in December, stating that it would link the town center to the Metro station while also “significantly increasing the safety of those who utilize the trail.”
Though the trail closure will only last a weekend, additional work will be needed before the bridge can open.
“We anticipate completion of the bridge will be sometime this fall,” BXP Marketing Director Sapna Yathiraj said.
To complete the pedestrian connection from Reston Town Center to the Metro station, BXP has said it will build another bridge over Sunset Hills Road as part of a proposed development plan for a second phase of Reston Next, which will ultimately expand the town center with more than 4.4 million square feet of office, residential, retail and hotel space.
Pedestrians and cyclists on the W&OD Trail should be soon be able to utilize a bridge over Wiehle Avenue. The span was scheduled to open on Tuesday (July 9), but that has been delayed due to additional work needed to obtain a permit, according to the Fairfax County Department of Transportation.
