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Galen C. McBride
Rappahannock News Staff Writer
Commonwealth Transportation Board member Jim Rich, Don Askew and Bob Moore of the Virginia Department of Transportation and Piedmont District Supervisor Charles K. “Pete” Estes, faced a near-capacity crowd in the Sperryville Fire Hall on Jan. 8.
Rich arranged the meeting because of continued local opposition to a proposed left turn lane and widening of the intersection of U.S. 522 and U.S. 211 in Sperryville. Though the majority of comments from the public hearing strongly opposed the project, the Rappahannock Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to proceed.
“We are here again to listen to you to try to find consensus,” said Rich in his opening remarks. “Most of the people who contacted me understand the need for this project,” although some feared that “VDOT has a secret plan to four-lane U.S. 522 or install a stop light in Sperryville.” Both Rich and Askew assured the group that that was not the case, and further, that plans to convert county roads to four lane highways had been completely eliminated in the 1970s.
Emphasizing his respect for citizens’ feelings and the needs of the community, Rich stated, “I don’t believe in the cookie cutter approach to transportation. Road design should fit into the towns.”
Safety issue
Accident rates for the intersection were not available at the time of the meeting. Moore provided them to the Rappahannock News in a
See ROADS, Page A6
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