The Virginia Department of Transportation will hold a “Pardon-Our-Dust” Citizen Information Meeting concerning construction of a grade-separated crossing over the Norfolk Southern Railway on Route 658 (Rockland Road) in Warren County, near Front Royal and the Virginia Inland Port.
The public is invited to attend Wednesday, January 17, from 5 to 7 p.m. at the North Warren Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company 10, 266 Rockland Court, Front Royal. VDOT will make a brief presentation at 5:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. The inclement weather date for the meeting is January 18 at the same time and location.
A construction contract valued at $11.8 million was awarded in October 2023 to Shirley Contracting Company LLC of Lorton.
Construction will begin in early 2024 with the new bridge open to traffic by December 2025. Route 658 (Rockland Road) will be closed in the vicinity of the NSRR tracks for the duration and traffic detoured via Routes 340/522 (Winchester Road) to the west and Route 661 (Fairground Road) to the east and north. Rockland Park will remain open to the public during construction.
Motorists currently experience random frequent and extensive delays at the railroad crossing with trains accessing the track multiple times per day. Train traffic includes trains traveling through the corridor or performing unloading operations at the Virginia Inland Port. The Route 658 grade-separated crossing consists of a bridge 220-feet long and 42-feet wide with a minimum vertical clearance of 23 feet over the railroad tracks, accommodating double-stacked freight containers, which will allow Route 658 traffic to travel uninterrupted on the bridge while trains pass underneath.
The project includes improvements to roadway approaches on Route 658 and realigns part of Route 705 (Fishnet Boulevard), the entrance to Rockland Park.
In 2019, Route 658 had an average daily traffic count of 2,200 vehicles per day, and by the design year of 2046, the estimated average daily traffic volume will be 5,990 vehicles per day.
The total estimated cost for the project is $20.6 million including preliminary engineering, right-of-way costs and construction. The project is funded in part by a BUILD grant awarded to the Virginia Port Authority by the National Maritime Administration.
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Rebecca Barnabi
