C-Ville and The Western Bypass

Graelyn Brashear’s story in C-Ville on the Western Bypass is remarkable (archived: 2021); its depth, range, imagery and clarity are outstanding. Take 30 minutes to read it.

Also notable is C-Ville’s presentation of the story; it’s useful and makes a subject of this breadth easier to digest. I particularly like the Medium-like commenting, which is particularly useful for a story of this length. Really, go see it and read it (archived: 2021).

The Western Bypass debate/conversation/saga has been ongoing for so long that it’s often impossible for anyone – even long-time residents of Charlottesville (read: Charlottesville + Albemarle + Central Virginia) to fathom or comprehend the scope of both the proposed road and the political/business/transportation dynamics of the Western Bypass (and our region’s collective inability to efficiently solve transportation and planning challenges).

The C-Ville story is an outstanding summary.

I know this:

– Route 29 is a disaster. Hydraulic/29 and Rio/29

– For years, many of my clients target their home search locations as either “not North of Rio” or “not North of Hydraulic”

– The current termination of the Western Bypass is silly

… the current design of the northern terminus is flawed: Northbound traffic from the Bypass is dumped out onto Route 29 just before the light at Ashwood, where the highway narrows from three lanes to two.

I mean, really?

– I’ve told my clients for years that transportation is one of the Charlottesville-Albemarle area’s greatest detractors

– Charlottesville and Albemarle – and the entire region need to be involved in this conversation, not just “the City” or “the County”

Something has to be done, but it really needs to be done 25 years ago. The best solution? I don’t know, but I know that the flawed current proposal is severely flawed. If only our system allowed for a reasonable debate instead of politicians and interest groups fighting rather than compromising.

All this as another anti-Western Bypass group motivates (archived: 2017).

– What I’ve written about the Western Bypass

– Charlottesville Tomorrow’s extensive coverage about the Western Bypass