Chesterfield supervisors recently approved a contract for road improvements in the Moseley area. (BizSense file)
With a trio of new schools teed up near Moseley, Chesterfield has approved a contract for nearby road improvements intended to increase connectivity in the growing area of the county.
The Board of Supervisors earlier this month OK’d a $43 million contract to Shirley Contracting Co. to design and build a north-south road to connect Westerleigh Parkway, which would be extended, with Duval Road in western Chesterfield.
The project involves the construction of a four-lane, north-south road with a bridge over Horsepen Creek. Also included in the project is a widening project on the nearby section of Duval to make it a four-lane road, a roundabout at the future intersection of the new road and Duval and shared-use paths for pedestrians and bicyclists.
Shirley’s bid beat out four proposals the county received, according to a staff memo.
Dubbed the Western Area Infrastructure Improvements Project, it is designed to improve connectivity in the growing western portion of the county and provide access to the new elementary, middle and high schools to be built to accommodate that population increase.
“It’s really a result of the growth in the area,” Chesterfield Transportation Director Chessa Walker said of the project. “A lot of rooftops have been approved out this way.”
The Western Area Infrastructure Improvements Project, shown as a dotted black line, would create a new roadway to connect Westerleigh Parkway and Duval Road. (Courtesy Chesterfield County)
The transportation improvements come amid work underway at the upcoming school facilities. Construction is in progress on a new middle school fronting Westerleigh, and county officials last week broke ground on an elementary school at the north end of the road project site. A high school is planned for property near the future intersection of Duval and the upcoming new road.
The road project involves the construction of a roughly 1.5-mile stretch to connect Westerleigh (Route 7495) and Duval (Route 668). The North-South Collector would run through the 700-acre eastern portion of the Upper Magnolia Green site that Chesterfield supervisors rezoned in 2022.
The road would run parallel to Otterdale Road and the proposed extension of the Powhite Parkway to the west.
A shared-use path is planned to run along the north-south road, and a shared-use path is also planned for the section of Duval subject to the project. The bridge that’s planned for the north-south road would be 200 feet long and also have four traffic lanes, and the shared-use path would traverse the bridge.
The installation of water utilities and drainage are also included in the project. Though not within the main project site, the construction contract includes an additional turn lane at the Woolridge and Otterdale intersection.
The road project would extend Westerleigh Parkway, shown to the right, and add a roundabout on Duval Road, in addition to linking the two roads. The upcoming elementary and middle schools are on the north side of the project area. (Courtesy Chesterfield County)
The approved design-build contract accounts for most of the overall project’s anticipated costs. Walker estimated that the entire project would cost around $60 million, a figure that includes the $43 million road construction contract as well as design work done by the county, right-of-way acquisition and other costs.
The road project is being funded with proceeds from a county bonds sale earlier this year devoted to transportation projects.
Construction is expected to kick off spring 2025, with an anticipated competition date of August 2027. The project would be built in two phases to keep pace with the schools’ opening schedule. The middle school is expected to open first, and is targeting a summer 2025 completion date.