A public hearing next week will focus on the proposed realignment of a heavily traveled road in Orange County.
According to VDOT, realigning two back-to-back low-speed curves on Rt. 601, Flat Run Road, would improve safety and connectivity along the route. The Locust Grove roadway, which connects Rt. 3, Germanna Highway, to U.S. 20, Constitution Highway, was identified as a priority due to a need to reduce the amount of roadway departure crashes and allow for more free flow movement.
The project would realign and flatten the pair of low-speed curves on Rt. 601 to meet a 40 mph design speed. The realignment would facilitate easier and more efficient movement along the roadway and allow vehicles to comfortably navigate the curves at the posted 40 mph speed limit. The southern curve has a 30 mph advisory speed while the northern curve has a 15 mph advisory speed.
According to VDOT, this segment of Rt. 601 has experienced a high-rate of crashes resulting in injuries. During a five-year period, Jan. 2019 to Feb. 2024, seven crashes involved vehicles departing the roadway, with one resulting in a fatality and three resulting in injuries. Six of the seven crashes occurred at the northern curve.
The $4.9 million project received the fifth highest cost-benefit ratio score among FY2018 SMART Scale applications, mainly due to its anticipated crash reduction potential.
A design public hearing on the project will be held July 9, 4:30-6:30 p.m. in the Locust Grove Campus Student Lounge of Germanna Community College, 2130 Germanna Highway, Locust Grove. Written public comments may also be submitted to VDOT Planning Engineer Trieu Nguyen at VDOT, 1601 Orange Road, Culpeper, VA 22701 or trieu.nguyen@vdot.gov by July 21. Reference “Route 601 Low-Speed Curve Realignment” in the subject line.
If approved, the project would be advertised in the spring of 2027 with utility relocation and right-of-way work next spring.
