Fairfax bridge troubles highlight larger road issues

The pavement surrounding three Fairfax County bridges buckled and required emergency repairs after the most recent rainstorm flooded area roads, prompting renewed calls for the Virginia Department of Transportation to address the worsening condition of local roadways.

The flood-induced repairs took place near two bridges on Browns Mill Road in Reston, and at a third on Swinks Mill Road in McLean. But the problems don’t end there.

Fairfax County has 28 bridges that state engineers have deemed “structurally deficient.” The state is responsible for repairing and maintaining all of those bridges, but at least a dozen have no work scheduled due to a lack of transportation funding for local road projects.

Many of those bridges are sparsely used. But others, such as the Old Keene Mill Road bridge over Accotink Creek, and the Hunter Mill Road bridge over Difficult Run, serve more than 20,000 drivers daily, according to a VDOT report.

“The flooding highlights the issues. But even if the bridges hadn’t flooded, the problem is still there,” said Fairfax transportation chief Kathy Ichter.

Fairfax officials earlier this year learned they would receive roughly $2,000 from the state for secondary road projects during the next six years.

Bridge replacement on many roads, as well as other basic road maintenance services such as lane striping and median maintenance, are funded by the secondary road budget.

To make matters worse, only 66 percent of the pavement in Fairfax County is considered to be in fair or better condition by VDOT, down from roughly 80 percent in 2005.

Ichter was quick to point out the state would never allow drivers to use a bridge if there were a possibility it could collapse. But cracked and deteriorated road surfaces and bridges likely will become common unless the state finds a way to fund more roadwork.

“This is a statewide issue, and we’re feeling it,” Ichter said.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors has repeatedly asked the state to address the local roadway funding shortfalls, so far to little effect.

“I haven’t gotten any response on the funding issue,” said Supervisor Jeff McKay, D-Lee, who is the county’s transportation committee chairman.

McKay said the talk among his district’s residents has shifted away from congestion complaints to “the fundamentals” such as crosswalk painting and median mowing.

“Until the state gets serious and addresses the issue, these problems are going to get much worse instead of better,” McKay said.

[email protected]