Plans advancing for proposed North Gayton Road-I-64 interchange project in Henrico's Far West End

Henrico County’s plan to improve the traffic pattern in Short Pump received support from the Virginia Department of Transportation and is a step closer to breaking ground, though funding hurdles remain.

The plan includes constructing a new Interstate 64 interchange at North Gayton Road and removing the on-ramp at the southeast corner of the I-64-West Broad Street interchange (which currently lets commuters heading east on West Broad enter I-64 westbound), changing how cars can get on and off the highway.

Next, the Federal Highway Administration must approve the plan, and then Henrico County will need to acquire land for the project, create a design, conduct an environmental study (which may take up to three years) and acquire construction funding. In total, the project is estimated to cost $250 million.

The FHA already provided the county with initial feedback, Henrico Public Works Director Terrell Hughes said.

“I think one of the big findings is we'll most likely need to consider sound walls,” Hughes said. “That's considered an environmental impact for some of the residences that live along I-64.”

The new interchange at North Gayton would provide a different way for commuters to get to northwestern Henrico County. It would provide the option to avoid the heavily congested area between West Broad Street and Pouncey Tract Road, where some of the county’s most crash-prone intersections are located, Hughes said.

Rear-end collisions often happen when traffic in the right lanes of I-64 is moving much slower than that in the left lanes. This speed differential is the result of a ramp operating over capacity and is a major reason why the Short Pump area has so many crashes, Hughes said.

Even when there isn’t congestion, there is a weaving issue with cars merging onto I-64 westbound, he said. Removing one of the loops in the West Broad Street interchange will force those cars to turn left to enter the highway, eliminating congestion and clearing a safer path at the off-ramp to Short Pump.

Henrico County has received support from lawmakers in the planning process. State Sen. Siobhan Dunnavant helped it gain endorsement from VDOT, and U.S. Rep. Rob Wittman is working to help it attain federal approval, Hughes said.

The county already has $4.985 million in funding for the design process and environmental study from the Central Virginia Transportation Authority, Hughes said. No funding yet exists for the possible construction project, but Hughes is confident that Henrico will have time during the environmental study to identify and acquire it.

The Central Virginia Transportation Authority is a regional entity that provides transportation funding from local sales and gas taxes. It has been a dedicated funding source for several projects in Henrico, Hughes said.

The county expects to receive a combination of local, state and federal funds for the eventual construction project, Hughes said. It is likely that North Gayton Road and West Broad Street will be part of two different projects because of the combined costs and traffic impacts during construction.

Commuters may have recently seen construction at West Broad Street and North Gayton Road, but that is a private development project that is not associated with the North Gayton interchange, Hughes said.

Some community members have expressed concern about not being able to walk under the West Broad Street interchange. In this project, rebuilding the interchange would give an opportunity to add pedestrian accommodation, Hughes said.

“As the project progresses, there will be additional opportunities for public engagement,” Hughes said. “We will have more public meetings, and we'll keep the public posted.”