Leesburg holds an open house 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 12, at Town Hall on fixing the congested South King Street and Route 7/15 Bypass interchange, a $34.4 million project.
Leesburg wants to hear from drivers, walkers and cyclists who use the South King Street interchange with the Route 7/15 Bypass. The town will hold an open house on the project from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 12, in the lower-level conference rooms of Town Hall, 25 W. Market St.
The town announced the meeting in a news release Friday. People can stop by at any point in the 90 minutes.
Why the interchange is being studied
The interchange carries South King Street (U.S. 15) over the bypass at the south end of town. The town said it is “heavily congested” and, because of its age, “is not equipped to handle current or future traffic volumes.”
The first step is an Interchange Access Report, a traffic study that looks at what could be changed. After that come design plans and construction. The town’s project page does not give a start or completion date yet; both are listed as still to be determined.
The same page says proposed development nearby “will significantly increase traffic volumes at the interchange.” It also says the project would add sidewalks linking the newer neighborhoods southeast of the interchange to downtown.
What happens at the open house
According to the town, the project team will:
- explain the purpose, process and scope of the Interchange Access Report
- say what the study will address when it is complete
- take spoken or written comments on traveling South King Street, the bypass and nearby roads
- explain how those comments will be used in the study’s final recommendations
What it would cost, and who would pay
The town’s FY 2027 adopted budget puts the whole project at $34.4 million. It is project 28303 in the capital improvements program.
Planned spending breaks down this way:
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Design and engineering | $4.6 million |
| Land | $2 million |
| Utility relocation | $2.9 million |
| Construction | $24.9 million |
The budget shows $4 million in prior years. The remaining $30.4 million sits in “future years,” beyond the town’s six-year plan. The project page says future funding depends on federal, state or regional grants.
The listed sources are:
- the state, through the Virginia Department of Transportation: $15,202,500
- the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority: $12,718,568
- developer proffers: $2,483,932
- Loudoun County: $2 million
- a town line of credit: $2 million
The project is in the authority’s TransAction regional plan, the town said.
What it means for you
If you sit in traffic at this interchange, or walk or bike near it, the Nov. 12 open house is an early chance to shape what the study looks at. No design has been chosen yet.
You can’t make it? The town takes sign-ups for project updates on the project page. Questions go to the town’s Capital Projects department.
For the other road work in town, including the South King Street widening and the East Market Street plans, see our Leesburg road construction and closures page.
Have your say