Embark Richmond Highway project gets $400K grant from FTA

Under the Embark Richmond Highway project, Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) will operate in the center of the divided highway.

Fairfax County’s planning efforts for bus rapid transit on Richmond Highway got a $400,000 boost from the federal government last week, the county announced today.

The Federal Transit Administration picked Fairfax’s Embark Richmond Highway project, as well as 15 other projects around the U.S., as recipients of $14.7 million in grants through the FTA’s 2016 Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Planning Pilot Program. The program says it is designed to support projects that improve access to public transit.

“The County of Fairfax will receive funding to expand an ongoing comprehensive plan amendment process to improve access to transit and enable high quality mixed-use development around future BRT stations along Richmond Highway (Route 1)” the FTA said of the award. “The planning work will support the continued expansion of Fort Belvoir, which currently has over 50,000 employees, by improving transit access to the facility and mitigating traffic congestion.”

Embark Richmond Highway is the county’s initiative to remake the corridor through a multimodal approach to transit and higher density residential and mixed-use projects. Bus rapid transit, which would consist of dedicated bus lanes in the center of Richmond Highway from Huntington to Fort Belvoir, is the lynchpin to Embark.

“This grant is another step forward in the county’s efforts to plan for the future growth in the Richmond Highway Corridor,” Tom Biesiadny, director of Fairfax County Department of Transportation (FCDOT), said in a statement. “These funds will directly assist our collective work currently underway to plan for and implement effective multimodal transportation and land use solutions for the Richmond Highway community.”

The Southeast Fairfax Development Corporation (SFDC), a nonprofit organization that promotes the redevelopment and revitalization of the Richmond Highway corridor, partnered with FCDOT to pursue the grant.

“Our Board acted quickly and decisively when the Fairfax County Department of Transportation approached us to serve as the grant partner at our Board of Directors meeting on May 18,” Edythe Kelleher, Executive Director of SFDC, said in a statement. “We knew the importance of securing the grant, particularly to the planning initiatives already in progress.”

Additionally, the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation  and FCDOT will each contribute $200,000, to match the TOD grant awarded by FTA, the county announced.