SELC and Partners Call for Proper Re-evaluation of Alternatives

The original study of potential locations for the Tri/Bi-County Parkway is out of date. As a result, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) are required to determine if a new study is needed, and the key question is whether the public and decision makers have the information they need to properly assess the environmental impacts of different alternatives in light of major changes that have occurred in the area over the past decade.

VDOT recently released a draft reevaluation of the proposal that only looks at one of the location options. Worse, the reevaluation breezes over or neglects altogether some of the biggest changes that have occurred, such as the construction of two new schools, and plans for a third, along the location VDOT favors.  Also, it all but ignores the cumulative impact that this and related proposals would have on the environment, historic resources, and rural preservation efforts in the Piedmont. 

SELC and our partners recently submitted a thorough comment letter detailing the need for a valid and objective analysis of the impacts of—and alternatives to—VDOT’s Tri/Bi-County Parkway proposal.  Click here to read the letter.