Henrico officials celebrate federal approval of I-64/North Gayton Road interchange plans

A traffic reduction and safety project envisioned by Henrico officials for more than two decades has finally earned federal approval.

The Federal Highway Administration recently signed off on the county’s plans to build an interchange at I-64 and North Gayton Road in Short Pump, green-lighting a project that county officials have been working in earnest to advance for about eight years.

The new interchange – and associated enhancements to the I-64/West Broad Street interchange about three miles to the east – “will have major ramifications on our future, specifically our community’s quality of life and continued prosperity,” Henrico County Manager John Vithoulkas said during a press conference Tuesday at the county’s western government center.

Construction of the North Gayton Road interchange could begin in about three years and be completed about three years later (perhaps sometime in 2029), Henrico Public Works Director Terrell Hughes told the Citizen. (County officials first must complete an environmental study and design work, which could take two to three years, he said.)

Work to improve the I-64/West Broad Street interchange likely would begin after the new interchange is completed and also is expected to take about three years, Hughes said.

The two projects are expected to cost about $250 million in total. Costly infrastructure projects often require funding from voter-approved bond referendums, but county officials aren’t planning to go that route with this project.

Instead, they are confident that they’ll find the necessary money from a combination of regional, state and federal sources, including the Central Virginia Transportation Authority (a regional entity that helps fund transportation projects in nine member localities through a 0.7% sales and use tax and a gas tax of 7.6 or 7.7 cents per gallon for gasoline and diesel fuels, respectively).

Three Chopt Supervisor Tommy Branin, who made the interchange project a key focal point when he took office in 2016, praised the bipartisan efforts of local, state and federal elected and appointed officials, including U.S. Representatives Abigail Spanberger (whose Seventh District formerly included the region) and Rob Wittman (whose First District encompasses it now).

“It’s the fastest approval we’ve ever received from the FHWA,” Branin said. “It also is the largest transportation and safety project this county has ever done in history. Our project will make a drive in Short Pump faster and more efficient. It will also reduce the risk of crashes, literally saving lives.”

Between Jan. 1, 2017 and Sept. 15, 2022, seven people died in crashes along the corridor between the I-64/West Broad interchange and North Gayton Road, Assistant Henrico Police Chief Lt. Col. Mike Palkovics said. During the same timeframe, an average of 800 crashes have occurred each year in the corridor, resulting in about 1,600 annual calls for police or emergency services, he said. Of those crashes, 475 resulted in injuries.

“For us, the most important part of this project is safety,” Palkovics said. “[T]his will improve efficiency, it will improve congestion, but most importantly it’s going to improve the safety for everybody."

The interchange will include a rare diverging diamond design, in which commuters on North Gayton Road will travel on the left side of the road instead of the right side while traveling on the bridge over I-64. The design (currently in place at an I-64 interchange in Zion Crossroads near Charlottesville and another at I-95 and Courthouse Road in Stafford County) eliminates the need for circular entrance and exit ramps to and from the interstate and has been shown to improve efficiency of travel.

In a recorded video message played during the press conference, Wittman praised Henrico officials’ “incredible efforts to bring everyone together.

“This is a great example about how the county worked together with state officials and federal officials to make sure we got approval for the Gayton Road project done quickly, to make sure solutions are in place to make sure that the planning and therefore in turn construction happen quickly," he said.

In another video message, Spanberger recalled meeting with county supervisors and officials in 2018 to discuss the interchange.

“They said, ’This is a priority, we’re gonna get it done, and we might call on you for help,” she said. “A couple years later, as the pace of things were not going at the laser speed that the county wanted, and that I think the constituents deserve, I got heavily involved.”

She recalled a late-night phone call with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg during which she told him “I gotta tell you about one more thing happening in the community I represent,” referencing the project.

“With this interchange,” she said, “we will really see the county address longstanding safety issues along the I-64 corridor and traffic congestion issues along the corridor. Frankly, I think the county is providing a blueprint for how to provide for our communities, how to gather feedback, how to listen to our neighbors and how to work with everyone – federal, state and local – to get it done.”

Right of way for the project is partially in place; the developer of Avenlea, a planned 1,600-home development northwest of the bridge (Markel | Eagle Partners) already has given the land necessary at that location to the county. The other land necessary for the project is owned by two separate developers, and Branin said he is confident that the acquisition process will be a smooth one.

As part of the I-64/West Broad Street interchange enhancement project, officials intend to rebuild a wider I-64 bridge over West Broad, which also will allow them to create sidewalks along West Broad for pedestrians, for whom travel in that areas currently is nearly impossible, Hughes said.

The North Gayton Road bridge already includes sidewalks, but it will be repurposed within its existing width to provide bike lanes as well, Hughes said.