A major project to improve the accessibility of Van Buren Street in Herndon is officially complete.
Known as a “complete streets project” in transportation jargon, the project widened Van Buren Street along a one-half mile stretch from Old Spring Street to Herndon Parkway.
Complete streets is an approach to designing streets that supports safety and access for all users, including pedestrians and bicyclists.
In addition to widening travel lanes to 11 feet, the project added curb-and-gutter and bicycle lanes in each direction. Other upgrades include the addition of 5-foot-wide sidewalks, crosswalks, and traffic signals at Alabama Drive. Overhead utility poles were also relocated and stormwater management facilities upgraded.
Construction on the project started in the spring of 2022.
At a Herndon Town Council meeting late last month, Town Manager Bill Ashton II said the project was substantially complete.
“We have had the contractors out there making some corrections to some elements that we found were deficient to the design,” Ashton said.
He also noted that the project has been in the works for years.
“This is a project that has probably been ten years plus in the making,” he said.