Hunter Mill Road is the 7.2 mile
"Main Street" for the 5,000 Corridor residents. It was named a
Virginia Byway in 2002. The Hunter Mill Defense requested this designation from
Virginia's Governor and General Assembly to recognize the road as a scenic
and historic resource. Also, the area near the road is eligible for listing on
state and national historic registers.
Originally, Hunter Mill Road was a
Native American Trail. It's current alignment has remained essentially
unchanged since colonial times. The road was first paved in the 1940s and
has seen a host of illustrious travelers including George Washington, Civil War
General George Meade, and Colonel John Singleton Mosby. The Cartersville Baptist
Church, near the Dulles Toll Road intersection, was one of the first churches in
the Commonwealth founded by freed slaves.
Recent News About Local
Transportation
Virginia Department of
Transportation Accumulates Land for Wider Hunter Mill Road.
To the surprise of
many Hunter Mill Corridor residents, VDOT has acquired right of way sufficient
to accommodate four lanes in many places along the 7.2 mile Byway. The state
agency acquires right of way when individual parcels are developed or
subdivided.
Contace Bruce Bennett, HMDL Transportation Chairman at 703
759-5412 or bruceb36@cox.net for
further information about his research of Fairfax County maps and GIS data.
Hunter Mill Road Traffic Calming
Committee.
A workgroup of citizens, local and
state transportation officials have been meeting since October, 2002, to
identify and find solutions to safety issues of Hunter Mill Road. This
effort was initiated by Delegate Vincent Callahan at the request of HMDL.
It could determine the road's character for years to come. Residents of HM
communities have been appointed to the committee by Supervisors Mendelsohn,
Connally, and Hudgins. They include Bruce Bennett (Hunter Mll Road), Heidi
Hornstein (Hunter Mill Road), Elizabeth Abiles (Wayside), Linda Byrne (Oakton),
Zena Starr (Tamarack), Judy Beattie (Hunter Mill Country Day School), Bob Cave
(Oakton), and John Thoburn (Hunter Mill Road).
Please contact any member
of the committee or Bob Adams (Oakton), Chairman, at 703 242-9756 or Rwagtm@aol.com with comments or questions.
Dulles Rapid Transit - How Would
Bus or Rail Affect Hunter Mill Residents?
When Dulles Rail was being debated,
HMDL asked how increased commercial and residential development at rail stations
would affect local communities. Ultimately, the project's Environmental Impact
Statement did not analyze local impacts on school boundaries, roads, water, air,
or social services. Since Federal funding for the Tysons to Dulles Airport
portion of a heavy rail system is uncertain, Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and managed
driving lanes for the Dulles corridor are getting more attention. BRT advocates
say that specially built buses, operating in the Toll Road median strip, would
cost 95% less than heavy rail and carry almost as many passengers. They
add that BRT could be built now, without increases in tolls and taxes.