Jones Branch Connector Opens in Tysons, VA

JMT joined officials from Fairfax County and the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) on March 5 to celebrate the opening of the new Jones Branch Connector, which runs over I-495 and links the eastern and western parts of Tysons.

At the ribbon cutting ceremony, Bill Cuttler, VDOT’s district construction engineer in Northern Virginia, said the $60.2 million project was a “once-in-a-generation transportation improvement.”

“We have on-road bike lanes, we have wide sidewalks, we have a future potential transit way in the median and connectivity to the Capital Beltway Express Lanes,” he continued. “This project has got it all.”

JMT provided design services to help Fairfax County and VDOT complete the Jones Branch Connector. The project was complex, as it involved widening an access ramp to the Express Toll Lanes in Tysons and connected across I-495 (which carries more than 120,000 vehicles per day) to a Metrorail station along Route 123.

Our design included widening an existing roadway and modifications to the HOV/HOT connections to I-495. The project also included one new bridge, widening two bridges over I-49, and utility work in adjacent developments.

The project “provides more options for Express Lanes customers, reduce traffic congestion and improve safety in the corridor.”