Recently Completed: Route 29 at Vint Hill Road, Fauquier County

Traffic on Route 29 through Fauquier County now has a straight shot into Northern Virginia with the opening of the northbound lanes just south of the Prince William County line. The lanes reopened to traffic on schedule late Friday, Aug. 2.

Video of Blasting (link to VDOT YouTube channel)
This is a montage of two controlled detonations of the roadway just south of the Route 215 (Vint Hill Road) intersection. The first blast took place on Friday, July 12, the second was Monday, July 15.
Please credit the Virginia Department of Transportation in any relink or reuse.

Frequently Asked Questions, "Cut the Hills" Safety Improvements  

What to Expect During the Closure,  14 MB

Alternate Routes & Temporary Truck Restricted Routes, 13 MB 

Purpose and Need of Route 29 Northbound Improvement

The purpose of the U.S. Route 15/29 improvement project at Route 215 (Vint Hill Road) is to address safety by improving the current substandard stopping sight distance in the northbound lanes of Route 29 on the approach to the Route 215 intersection in Fauquier County. The project will:

Address substandard vertical alignment. There is a need to improve the vertical alignment of the northbound lanes of Route 29. The existing vertical curves on northbound Route 29 approaching the Route 215 intersection provide sight distance for an equivalent 35 mph design speed, well below the 60 mph design speed of the Route 29 corridor.

Improve safety along the northbound approach to the existing signalized intersection. The U.S. 15/29 and Route 215 intersection consistently ranks as the highest Targeted Safety Need in the Culpeper District with the greatest potential for safety improvements based on statewide statistical data. High speed approaches and heavy volumes create conditions where substandard geometrics contribute to frequent crashes due to motorists overdriving conditions. There were 113 crashes from 2013 to 2017 within the approximate project limits.

Project limits: From approximately 0.63 miles south of the Prince William County line to the intersection of Route 215 (Vint Hill Road).

What is Proposed?

The Virginia Department of Transportation, Fauquier County and community stakeholders are working toward consensus on improvements to the Route 29 Corridor between Warrenton and Prince William County.

This section of Route 29 is heavily used by local traffic, daily commuters and travelers from other areas of Virginia and beyond. Approximately 50,000 vehicles use this section of the corridor every day, including significant commercial truck traffic.

VDOT has identified several specific locations where safety improvements are needed based on recent crash history and trends. These include the intersections of Route 29 and Route 215 (Vint Hill Road), Route 600 (Broad Run Church Road) and Route 676 (Riley Road).

VDOT proposed improvements using alternative intersection designs that have proved to improve safety and reduce crashes when implemented in other locations. Fauquier County and the local community requested that additional study be undertaken to determine the most appropriate improvements for those locations.

VDOT and Fauquier County have convened an advisory panel of community stakeholders to assist in the development of strategies for improvements on the northern Fauquier County section of Route 29. The goal of the group is to develop collaborative solutions that will ultimately become projects to improve safety, ensure access and spur economic development while preserving the efficient movement of local and long-distance traffic along the corridor.

Using public comments and other information from previous meetings, the panel members have identified seven defined interests that must be considered as they work toward solutions:

• Safety: including motorists, pedestrians and other users
• Throughput: local traffic as well as long-distance and commuting users
• Access & convenience: getting to and from businesses and neighborhoods
• Economic development: including continued success of established businesses
• Home & property values
• Historical areas
• Environmental considerations

At each advisory panel meeting there will be an opportunity for the panel to review and discuss any comments received from the public since the last meeting. Members of the public may contact any panel member or send comments directly to the panel's support team by email to Lou.Hatter@VDOT.Virginia.gov.

News Releases

"Pardon Our Dust" Meeting June 11 Will Provide Information About Construction, Roadway Closure, May 23, 2019 

Plans Advance for Rt. 29 Northbound Closure in July; Traffic Will Detour Using Rt. 17 to Marshall, May 2, 2019 

Route 29 North to Close for 3 Weeks in July During Safety Improvement Project, Feb. 22, 2019

Route 29 New Baltimore Advisory Panel

Panel Members

Meeting Schedule

• January 23, 2020
• April 23, 2020
• July 23, 2020
• October 22, 2020

The April 23 and July 23 meetings were canceled due to the COVID-19 public health emergency. A Powerpoint presentation updating the status of the projects can be found below under "Meeting Presentations."

All meetings will be held from 1-3 p.m. in the Board of Supervisors Meeting Room, Warren Green Hotel, 10 Hotel St., Warrenton

Meeting Agendas

Meeting #1 objectives, June 28, 2018

Meeting #2 agenda, August 30, 2018

Meeting #3 agenda, September 27, 2018

Meeting #4 agenda, October 25, 2018

Meeting #5 agenda, November 29, 2018

Meeting #6 agenda, January 24, 2019

Meeting #7 agenda, February 28, 2019

Meeting #8 agenda, March 28, 2019

Meeting #9 agenda, April 25, 2019

Meeting #10 agenda, May 23, 2019

Meeting #11 agenda, June 27, 2019

Meeting #12 agenda, July 25, 2019

Meeting #13 agenda, August 22, 2019

Meeting #14 agenda, September 26, 2019

Meeting #15 agenda, January 23, 2020

Meeting Presentations

Meeting #17 presentation, July 23, 2020

Meeting #16 presentation, April 23, 2020

Meeting #15 presentation, January 23, 2020

U.S. 29 Corridor Stakeholders Workshop, November 18, 2019

Meeting #14 presentation, September 26, 2019

Meeting #13 presentation, August 22, 2019

Meeting #12 presentation, July 25, 2019

Meeting #11 presentation, June 27, 2019

Meeting #10 presentation, May 23, 2019

Meeting #9 presentation, April 25, 2019

• Blasting video by Douglas Explosives
• Regional detour flier, "What to Expect"

Meeting #8 presentation, March 28, 2019

Meeting 7 presentation, February 28, 2019

• Regional detour map
• Alternate routes for local traffic

Meeting 6 presentation, January 24, 2019

Updated improvement scenarios, Route 215 & Route 600 intersections, November 29, 2018

Improvement scenarios, Route 215 & Route 600 intersections, October 25, 2018

Fauquier County Comprehensive Plan and Land Development Update, September 27, 2018

Route 29-New Baltimore Traffic Impact Study, 2011 data

Meeting Summaries

Meeting #1 summary & sign-in sheets

Meeting #1 notes, June 28, 2018

Meeting #2 minutes, August 30, 2018

Meeting #3 minutes, September 27, 2018

Meeting #4 minutes, October 25, 2018

Meeting #5 minutes, November 29, 2018

Meeting #6 minutes, January 24, 2019

Meeting #7 minutes, February 28, 2019

Meeting #8 minutes, March 28, 2019

Meeting #9 minutes, April 25, 2019

Meeting #10 minutes, May 23, 2019

Meeting #11 minutes, June 27, 2019

Meeting #12 minutes, July 25, 2019

Meeting #13 minutes, August 22, 2019

Meeting #14 minutes, September 26, 2019

Traffic Data and Project Information

Categorical Exclusion document, National Environmental Policy Act

Average annual traffic volumes on Route 29 between Route 600 and Route 215: Historical data 1997-2017, forecast trend to 2038

Heat map depicting crash frequency on Route 29 corridor, New Baltimore area

Crash severity at major Route 29 intersections: Route 215 (Vint Hill Road), Route 600 (Broad Run Church Road), Route 605 (Dumfries Road)

Crash details, Route 29-215 (Vint Hill Road) intersection

Crash details, Route 29-600 (Broad Run Church Road) intersection

Improvement Projects on Route 29 in New Baltimore, as of September 2018

U.S. 29-U.S. 15 Traffic Study, Prince William County, published November 2, 2018

Previous Studies and Resources

A number of studies and data collection efforts have been undertaken along this section of Route 29 during the past decade. The most recent was a facilitated study that was completed in 2016. The documents that were produced by that study are available using the links below.

Fauquier County Comprehensive Plan (link to county website)

New Baltimore Service District Plan (link to county website)

New Baltimore/Route 29 Community Stakeholder Team Final Report, October 25, 2016

Several surveys of environmental and cultural resources in the Buckland area were done as part of previous VDOT projects. 

Cultural Resources Investigation for Route 215 Project (draft final report), January 30, 2008

Archaeological Survey for Replacement of Route 15/29 Bridge over Broad Run, July 2007

Archaeological Evaluation of Sites on Route 215 at Buckland, April 2006

Archaeological Site Identification Study of Route 215, April 2002

Other meetings, information and feedback gathered during the past year are collected here for reference.

• Citizen Information Meeting comment sheets, Sept. 19, 2017
• Fauquier County meeting
• Community meeting, February 26, 2018
• Business meeting, March 1, 2018
• Delegate Elizabeth Guzman's Town Hall, April 9, 2018
• Northern Virginia District Six-Year Improvement Program public hearing transcript, April 30, 2018
• Culpeper District Six-Year Improvement Program public hearing transcript, May 7, 2018
• District Engineer's briefing on Route 29/New Baltimore to VDOT Commissioner, May 24, 2018

Benefits 

The purpose of the U.S. Route 15/29 improvement project at Route 215 (Vint Hill Road) is to address safety by improving the current substandard stopping sight distance in the northbound lanes of Route 29 on the approach to the Route 215 intersection in Fauquier County.