Increase awarded for Rt. 7/287 Interchange improvements

At a recent meeting of the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors Finance, Government Operations and Economic Development Committee, staff, serving the Committee, recommended a contract increase for the Rt.7/287 interchange improvements. 

Located in the Town of Purcellville, the increase recommendation is for $80,232.94, bringing the overall total amount to $2,616,687.24. Volkert, a planning, engineering, and construction services company, is the lead contractor performing the work.

The interchange improvement is a Capital Improvement Program project slated to provide operational improvements to the entire interchange. This includes pedestrian and bicycle safety improvements to the W&OD Trail. Local tax revenue, cash proffer contributions, and Smart Scale money currently fund the initiative.

Thanks to a Virginia Department of Transportation study in 2012, proposed improvements became an integral part of the Smart Scale application. In 2019, an RFP was issued for Roadway and Civil Design Services for Rt.7/287 Interchange improvements. 

Of the nine proposals received and evaluated – carried out by a Proposal Analysis Group from the Department of Transportation and Capital Infrastructure – Volkert Inc. was chosen. Loudoun County entered into a contract with Volkert, under staff authority, not to exceed $2,000,000. The total negotiated cost of the contract was $1,992,802.20.

In 2021, the Board of Supervisors approved unanimously “an award authority increase of $61,900. The revision of the 30% plans include the American Disability Act compliant shared use path and associated modification to the designs, and revision of the 30% signal plans to incorporate an additional signalized pedestrian crossing at the Hirst Road intersection. This includes the addition of pedestrian actuated signals and pushbuttons.”

Since the contract award, updates to VDOT and County standards and policies have occurred and have required modifications to the design outlined in the Smart Scale application.

VDOT maintains Rt.7/287, but Rt.287 is also included in the Town of Purcellville’s 2009 Adopted Town-wide Transportation Plan. As a result, according to staff, town staff has commented on the interchange improvement plans and has requested modifications. Several comments related to safety concerns were addressed and integrated into the design by the design team.

According to a County report, the proximity of the proposed Rt.7/690 Interchange has also affected the analysis of traffic at the Rt.7/287 Interchange. Authorities anticipated Rt.7/690 Interchange would be operational when the Rt.7/287 Interchange was completed. Due to delays in the Rt.7/690 development, additional traffic analyses have been conducted to determine the effects of the Rt.7/690 delay on the operation of the Rt.7/287 Interchange.

The current request is pursuant to the Board’s Adopted Procurement Resolution, which requires agreements in excess of $2,000,000 be approved by the full Board. The design team has been tasked with conducting additional work on the Rt.7/287 Interchange due to updated VDOT and County standards and policies, as well as comments and actions taken by the town regarding this interchange and the proposed Rt.7/690 Interchange. As a result, Loudoun County Transportation staff requested Volkert perform additional tasks to support the interchange design since the Sept. 21, 2021 award authority increase.

Sufficient funding is available in the Rt.7/287 Interchange Improvements Capital Improvement Program project’s budget to increase the award of the contract for the Roadway and Civil Design Services to Volkert, Inc. by $80,232.94 for a new award amount of $2,616,687.24.