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VDOT reports bridge delay and federal safety upgrades; supervisors press for more secondary-road funding
Summary
VDOT told the county the Baton Road bridge work is delayed by unexpected bedrock, but the district won federal Highway Safety Improvement Program funding to add wider edge lines, centerline rumble strips and curve warnings on several secondary routes. Supervisors pressed for more sustained funding for rural secondary roads.
A Virginia Department of Transportation representative updated the Dinwiddie County Board of Supervisors on May 20 that the Baton Road bridge is behind schedule after crews discovered bedrock at a higher elevation than expected.
“We had to get a very, very large jackhammer, to work on that bed rock and get it down,” VDOT said, and the agency estimated a one- to two-week delay while heavy equipment is mobilized.
VDOT also told the board that the district secured federal Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) funding targeted at rural routes. Planned treatments include wider edge-line markings, replacement of paved-over centerline rumble strips, additional curve-warning signs and improved guardrail delineators. The agency listed several secondary roads slated for work including 613 (Gills Bridge Road, White Oak and Squirrel Level), 627 (Court House Road — centerline rumble strips from Route 460 to the high school), and improvements on Lou Jones Road and Hamilton Arms Road. The agency said the HSIP dollars are federally funded and will not come from the county maintenance budget.
Supervisors raised other maintenance concerns: complaints about the turn lane into a Dollar General in Sutherland and worn rumble strips near Route 460 approaching the courthouse. VDOT said it will review site plans and may add shoulder stone for wider turning room by large vehicles. Several supervisors pressed VDOT and the senator for stronger, dedicated funding for secondary rural roads, criticizing Smart Scale as favoring larger urban projects.
The board did not vote on any VDOT items at that meeting; the appearance was an informational update.
