Politics & Government

Online Chat Draws Resident Input on Silver Line, Connector

Fairfax County officials host program as part of weeklong outreach effort around bus service to the Metro line.

Fairfax County officials answered residents’ questions Tuesday regarding the first half of the Silver Line and the new Connector bus routes that will launch when the Metro line opens at the end of the year.

Nick Perfili, Dulles Rail Project Planner, and Christy Wegener, Connector’s manager of operations, led the discussion, part of a weeklong effort to gather input on the many changes coming to Connector service in the area.

The Fairfax County Department of Transportation’s (FCDOT) plan includes the addition of 12 new routes and restructuring of 20 existing routes, as well the elimination of six others.

Find out what's happening in Viennawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

One chatter in Tuesday's discussion asked about Route 722, which would run down narrow Churchill Road and past Churchill Road Elementary School. The resident feared the route would jeopardize the safety of the school’s students.

During a Monday meeting at Westbriar Elementary School in Vienna, residents also raised similar concerns about Route 432, which would run down Old Courthouse Road in Vienna.

Find out what's happening in Viennawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

In that meeting and Tuesday's chat, residents raised concerns about route layouts, bus frequency, parking facilities and more.

These issues emerged particularly around the Silver Line Circulator, which will have four routes around various parts of Tysons Corner "to provide that "last mile" connection for people coming from or going to the Tysons Silver Line stations."

In many cases, that "last mile" extends to the neighborhoods of Vienna residents.

In the online chat, one resident suggested "improved resident access to this route as well as eliminate several dangerous road crossings."

Read the full chat here.

You can read more about feedback Monday's meeting in Vienna here.

The last three meetings will take place in Herndon and Reston over the course of the next week. The locations are as follows. All meetings begin at 6:30 p.m.:

• Herndon: Wednesday, Herndon Town Council Chambers, 765 Lynn St.

• Reston: Thursday, Reston Community Center - Lake Anne, 1609A Washington Plz.

• Reston: Monday, Lake Anne Elementary School, 11510 North Shore Dr.

Wegener said comments would be accepted on proposals through Feb. 28 at fairfaxconnector@fairfaxcounty.gov.

Staff will consider comments and adjust plans accordingly in March, Wegener said; they will be updated online and available for review ahead of the second round of public meetings in early April.

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