Charlottesville Urban Area Regional Transportation Network
CATS2015 and CHART2025

The CATS2015 plan, which was completed in 1995, predicted large increases in the amount of regional traffic traveling through the City and surrounding Urban Area, particularly from North to East. CATS2015 proposed the following road projects to handle the increase in traffic:

•	Avon St. Extended to Route 20 connector 
•	Southern Parkway
•	Widening of Rt 29 to 6 lanes between South Fork and Airport Road
•	Meadowcreek Parkway
•	Route 29 bypass Alternative 10
•	Widening of Rt 20 North and South, 250 East and West, from City boundaries

Of these projects, only the Avon to Route 20 connector has been completed, along with some widening of roads adjacent to the City borders.

Analysis of the predicted traffic impacts of the CATS2015 road projects showed a significant increase in congestion within the City limits. Many City arterials showed traffic volumes which were two to four times their rated capacity and severe congestion was predicted for the 250 bypass, from McIntire Road to Pantops. An eastern connector study was suggested as a possible way to mitigate the problems on rt 250, but no study was ever undertaken. Grade separated interchanges on Rt29 were also recommended for study. 

In the seven years since the CATS2015 plan, development of the urban ring has greatly expanded, accompanied by very little investment in regional transportation infrastructure. At the same time, City and County have expressed preference for a finer grain of road networks, alternative transportation, and mixed use development, (DISC in County, Economic Corridor Study in City), rather than the traditional and expensive major bypass solution identified in CATS2015. Accommodating  the desire for a finer grained road network and preserving natural resources, while making up for lack of recent infrastructure investment and limited future funding, will be a major challenge for CHART2025.

For a fine grain network to be successful, there are three road segments that are of critical importance to the area. These segments are in areas where development is planned in the immediate future and lack of immediate transportation planning will result in significant lost opportunities. These segments are:

•	North Grounds Connector – this could be a potential bottleneck on the 250 bypass if an at-grade intersection is built or if the interchange is not designed properly.
•	Hydraulic Road “Superblock”- the Northwest corner of this highly congested intersection is about to be developed and a proper grid network is essential to the flow of traffic and health of existing businesses, residences and ecological systems (this area contains several tributaries to Meadow Creek).
•	North Pantops – if any eastern connector alignment is to be effective, the traffic must avoid the bottleneck at 250 and Route 20. An appropriate grid must be put in place ASAP, before the North side of Pantops is consumed by residential development.

Several other projects are high priority for a regional network. These include:

•	29 Corridor improvements – these should focus on reducing the trip time from North to South of the County. In addition to adding interchanges at congested intersections, it may be necessary to change land use policy to prevent any future at-grade intersections from creating further congestion.
•	Eastern Connector  – This is the only project with the potential to prevent increasing congestion on Pantops and the 250 bypass. This road should be designed as a two lane, 35mph road, similar to the Meadowcreek parkway, with a carrying capacity of 20,000 trips per day.
•	Southern Parkway – this road is predicted to take 5,000 to 7000 trips a day off Avon Street and points North, as it enables Southern County neighborhoods to access 64 and the 250 bypass.
•	Interchange at Meadowcreek Parkway and 250 bypass – In order to prevent MCP traffic from causing major bottlenecks (similar to those at Hydraulic and Rt29) an interchange will be required. Preliminary study indicates that route 250 traffic could be routed over a traffic circle, which would handle MCP traffic and turning movements. The design of the interchange must be accelerated so that the interchange can open at the same time or before the MCP is completed.

Enhancing the local network is the greatest near term priority. Transit, bicycling, and walking should be featured prominently, as should preservation of the Rivanna watershed (including the South Fork below the dam, Meadow Creek, Moores Creek and all significant tributaries). The following local road networks are in need of further development:

•	The Airport road area – Once dubbed “Intersectionville” because of the lack of planning for a grid network, this area has the potential to live up to DISC expectations if existing roads can be incorporated into the new grid network that will be created by the Hollymead Town Center. The grid may incorporate future interchanges on Rt 29.
•	Berkmar road extended – While the bypass is unlikely to see any funding for the foreseeable future, the northern part of the right-of-way, including  a second crossing of the South Fork below the dam, could be incorporated into a Western access road, possibly with future interchanges on Rt 29,  that would reduce congestion on 29, and create opportunities for transit, bike, pedestrian and mixed use development.
•	North Rio Rd area – Commencement of phase I of the Meadowcreek Parkway will accelerate development in this area. New development should build on and reinforce the existing neighborhood grid, rather than continuing the pattern of one-way-in, one-way-out subdivisions. Phase II of the MCP should go no further North than the existing Free State Rd, to avoid impacting the South Fork watershed.
•	Southern Development Area – Five new planned developments on Old Lynchburg Rd and Sunset Ave will severely overtax these existing roads. Some new road alignments must be found to handle the anticipated development.
•	Central City – There have been a number of proposals for enhancing the urban grid in the Central City, including pedestrian improvements to Main St, 2nd Street and Preston Ave, replacing the Vinegar Hill street network in the area around Jefferson School and the City Yard, extending Water Street to Meade Avenue and extending the Downtown Mall out to the side streets.

The following projects are likely to generate more controversy than those identified previously, but should nevertheless be considered for further study:

•	Western parkway – Following an alignment similar to that of the Western bypass, but going no further than Rio Rd. This would be a two lane, 35mph road, similar to the Meadowcreek parkway, with at-grade intersections at Barracks Rd and Hydraulic Rd. By reducing the design speed and keeping to two lanes, the watershed and most neighborhoods can be avoided and cost is substantially reduced.
•	Hydraulic / Greenbrier connector – has potential to reduce congestion on Hydraulic Rd.
•	Near Southern Parkway – North of Route 64, this road will not do much to help Avon Street traffic, but will allow for some development South of the City. Care must be taken not to adversely impact Moore’s Creek
•	Far Southern Parkway – Will allow for further development to the South of Lake Lake Reynovia
•	New interchange on Interstate 64 to serve Pantops – This interchange would be just east of where 64 crosses the Rivanna and railroad and would help to relieve congestion on Pantops. The interchange would be a bit closer to the 250 interchange than VDOT likes, but should still be feasible.
•	Interchange at Avon St and 64 – This would be a more expensive but also more convenient and environmentally friendly alternative to the Southern Parkway. VDOT has consistently expressed unwillingness to do this.
•	Middle Eastern Connector – Connecting Polo Grounds Rd to Route 20, this road will likely encounter opposition, but may be preferable to using Profit road as the de-facto Far Eastern Connector.
•	Connect Berkmar Dr to Commonwealth Dr and move light at Fashion Square to align with Berkmar Dr. – This would be a substantial improvement to the secondary grid adjacent to Rt 29 and would help to alleviate congestion on Rt. 29.