Millions of dollars in federal funds are coming to Fairfax County after a minibus funding package was signed into law earlier this month.
Approximately $7.7 million has been allocated for six different projects, including $3.1 million for a traffic safety initiative focused on Springfield.
According to the Fairfax County Department of Transportation, the initiative will fund safety improvements aimed at “significantly” reducing crashes at select intersections, including:
- Hanover Avenue at Monticello Blvd
- 7246 Commerce Street
- Commerce Street at the Richard Byrd Library
- Backlick Road and Bland Street
- Backlick Road and Springfield Blvd
- Commerce Street from Amherst Avenue to Old Keene Mill Road
FCDOT spokesperson Benjamin Boxer told FFXnow that potential changes include “[installing] pedestrian refuge islands, separated bicycle lanes, filling sidewalk gaps and signalized crossings.”
“Now that funding has been allocated to support improvements at these locations,” Boxer said, “FCDOT will be working with local officials, VDOT and the surrounding communities to determine which of the countermeasure options to implement at each location.”
FCDOT currently estimates that the overall initiative will cost around $5 million, but the estimate “will be revised as we work through process in consultation with local leaders, VDOT and the communities,” Boxer said.
Three other projects will each receive at least $1 million, including nearly $1.1 million to improve infrastructure at the county’s septic waste receiving facility.
The full list of allocations, detailed by Sen. Mark Warner’s office, is below.
- $3,150,000 for the Fairfax County Transportation Safety Initiative to make multimodal safety improvements at six locations with high crash rates in Springfield, helping reduce avoidable, serious accidents involving pedestrians and bicyclists.
- $1,092,000 for Upper Occoquan Service Authority to improve infrastructure at the septic waste receiving facility in Fairfax County
- $1,031,000 for the Fairfax County Police Department’s Real Time Crime Center to upgrade its technological operational capabilities, improving its ability to respond to and prevent criminal activities and emerging threats.
- $1,027,000 for George Mason University to develop domestic violence training tools, including new technology like virtual reality simulations, to assist law enforcement, social workers, and other frontline professionals in responding to domestic violence situations.
- $850,000 for the Fairfax County Government to construct a regional crisis facility for youth experiencing behavioral health challenges.
- $550,000 for Bailey’s Crossroads Health Access Partnership, Inc. to support the construction of a new medical clinic in Fairfax County and increase the clinic’s capacity to serve patients.
In all, more than $93 million will come to Virginia from the spending package, including $10 million to help decrease traffic congestion near Virginia Beach and $6.3 million to improve “safety and the visitor experience” at McAfee Knob near Roanoke.
In a statement, Sen. Tim Kaine said he was “thrilled” that the funds will “expand access to health care, make critical infrastructure improvements and more.”
“I look forward to getting on the road to celebrate these investments in our communities,” he said.
Warner echoed Kaine, but also noted that the legislation is only the first step in getting to where he wants to be “on important national priorities.”
“This bill is far from perfect,” Warner said, “but we were able to make headway on important national priorities including supporting Ukraine, lowering health care and prescription drug costs, boosting medical research and funding public housing.”
Both senators voted in favor of the legislation, which passed the Senate by a 71-29 margin on Jan. 30. After narrowly passing the House of Representatives, the minibus was signed into law by President Donald Trump on Feb. 3.
