Years after a pedestrian was killed in a hit-and-run crash on Shreve Road, Idylwood residents got their first look at infrastructure changes that local transportation planners hope will make the corridor safer and more accessible.
At a community meeting on May 29, the Fairfax County Department of Transportation (FCDOT) unveiled conceptual designs for a shared-use path on Shreve Road and improvements at the Route 7 (Leesburg Pike) intersection, where the roadway turns into Haycock Road after crossing the Falls Church City border.
The designs remain in their early stages and hadn’t yet been reviewed by the Virginia Department of Transportation, FCDOT project manager Marta Kebede noted at the meeting.
“We’re looking to get as much input as possible,” she told the dozens of residents in attendance. The county is accepting online feedback on the projects through Friday, June 13.
Questions cropped up about possible impacts on traffic and stormwater drainage, along with how the projects will tie into developments under construction or planned in the area.
However, the initial response to the proposed 10-foot-wide path and intersection reconfiguration was cautiously optimistic, with community members thanking and applauding county staff when the meeting ended around 8 p.m.
“Thank you for working on this and having [completion] dates I feel like are in my lifetime,” one woman said.
Another woman who questioned the demand for the path, given its proximity to the Washington & Old Dominion (W&OD) Trail, later clarified that she wasn’t “against” the project.
“I feel sorry when I see people walking to Metro. It’s clearly inadequate,” she said of the existing paths and sidewalks on Shreve Road.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors authorized FCDOT in May 2024 to begin designing a shared-use path on the east side of Shreve Road from the W&OD Trail west of Hickory Street to Route 7. The county has also partnered with Falls Church City to extend the path onto Haycock Road.
Though the two projects are technically separate, they’re being designed and will likely be constructed simultaneously, according to Kebede.
Designed to be shared by pedestrians and bicyclists, the Shreve Road path will be approximately 1,300 feet long with a grass buffer providing some separation from the roadway. While most of the path will be asphalt, a segment approaching the Route 7 intersection will be concrete with an ADA-compliant curb ramp, replacing an existing concrete sidewalk.
The roadway at the Route 7 intersection will be reconfigured with the elimination of one southbound travel lane to make room for a 6-foot-wide pedestrian refuge.
Near the W&OD Trail, the project will also add a crosswalk at Gordons Road, consolidate access to businesses to two driveways, and shorten the crossing in front of the Virginia Concrete Company’s site.
On the Haycock side of Route 7, the shared-use path will extend to Mustang Alley, providing an additional connection for students at nearby Meridian High and Mary Ellen Henderson Middle schools. Instead of replacing the existing sidewalk, the path will take the place of a travel lane.
According to FCDOT staff, Falls Church officials had advocating for preserving the existing sidewalk to give pedestrians a separate option from bicyclists. Fairfax County would’ve adopted the same configuration on Shreve Road, but extensive property acquisitions would’ve been needed to secure the right-of-way.
FCDOT staff expressed confidence that the improvements will result in a safer, more aesthetically pleasing roadway, one that adequately accommodates different modes of transportation.
“Whether one person uses it or a hundred use it, it’ll be better,” staff said.
Jeremy Hancock, who represents Providence District on the Fairfax County Planning Commission, told FFXnow that it’s “encouraging” to see the shared-use path move forward.
Prior to getting appointed to the planning commission in October 2023, Hancock co-founded a community working group with other area residents to advocate for safety improvements on Shreve Road after an intoxicated driver hit and killed U.S. State Department employee Betty Ana Bernstein-Zabza at the Hickory Street intersection on Aug. 4, 2019.
The Virginia Department of Transportation finalized a report with recommendations in late 2020, but outside of the addition of flashing beacons as a temporary fix that October, progress on implementing improvements has been slow.
Earlier this year, Fairfax County accepted grant funding for a Safe Routes to School project that will add three crosswalks near Shrevewood Elementary School, but it’s unclear when that will come to fruition.
The FCDOT is currently expected to finish designing the Shreve shared-use path and Haycock improvements next summer, with land acquisitions and utility relocations starting in 2027. Construction could begin in spring 2028 and finish around the fall or winter of 2029.
Hancock says his main concern is that the projects prioritize safety, particularly at the bend in Shreve Road before it approaches Hickory Street and at pedestrian crossings.
“This project’s going to take some time to get through,” Hancock said, “but it’s encouraging to see it on paper [and] to have the community provide feedback on the design and how they expect to use it, and we can just keep moving forward.”
