The transportation network in Tysons remains a work in progress, especially when it comes to facilities for non-car-based travel.
Recent years have brought some improvements, from the first segments of the Tysons Community Circuit to the addition of publicly accessible park space in central Tysons. The Tysons Community Alliance (TCA) hopes to draw more attention to those existing amenities with new signage.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors gave its support to the TCA’s proposed pilot project on March 18 at the request of Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik, whose motion was backed by fellow Tysons-area representatives Walter Alcorn (Hunter Mill District) and Jimmy Bierman (Dranesville).
“There continues to be a discussion about walkability around Tysons,” Palchik said. “… Thanks to some of our [transportation] staff, we have many paths that are already in place, and many that are unknown to people, even living there, as they are erected. So, the hope is that as we continue to improve walkability, just making it clear where there are path heads or walkways available, it becomes easier to know how to walk across Tysons safely.”
According to Palchik, Tysons has added 41 acres of public park space, and 41 transit, bicycle and pedestrian mobility improvement projects have been completed since the county adopted its 2010 comprehensive plan, which guides the 2,100-acre urban center’s future growth and development.
Launched in 2022 to help implement the county’s vision of its “downtown,” the TCA advocates for Tysons through marketing and community engagement, research and placemaking initiatives, such as public art installations or special events, intended to give the area a distinct identity.
The planned wayfinding signs pilot program falls under the “placemaking” portion of the TCA’s mission.
“These signs will provide directional guidance to key streets, Metro stations, landmarks, trails, and other significant locations while also contributing to a cohesive brand identity for Tysons,” Palchik said in her board matter.
For the pilot project, the TCA will install totem and directional signs at 11 locations. Six sites are on property owned by the Fairfax County Park Authority, including both ends of the Scott’s Run Trail in Westgate Park, Ken Lawrence Park off of Jones Branch Drive, and the sidewalk on Westbranch Drive across from The Mather.
The other five locations are on land near Tysons Galleria that’s privately owned and managed but publicly accessible, according to TCA Director of Placemaking and Activation Jason Zogg.
All of the signs are slated to be installed by the end of this June. While the text for each sign is still being finalized, Zogg says “the general focus is to guide people toward key public amenities,” including nearby parks and trails, major streets, Metro’s Silver Line stations and the future Tysons Community Circuit route.
The first three blocks of the community circuit — a 10-foot-wide recreational trail — were completed last year by the developer The Meridian Group as part of its expansion of The Boro. The trail will ultimately be 4.75 miles long and loop around the Tysons core, as dictated by the Tysons Comprehensive Plan.
“A key feature of the signs is that they will name the specific trail or park where the sign is located, helping people build a clearer mental map of Tysons, especially since many of these locations currently lack identifying signage,” Zogg said.
Depending on how the initial signs are received, and how negotiations with other landowners go, the TCA hopes to introduce more signs to other locations around Tysons in the future.
The TCA has also been working on placemaking projects to beautify the highway interchanges around Tysons and contribute artwork for a Dulles Toll Road bridge that the Virginia Department of Transportation is slated to rehabilitate next year.
