Taking of the Brown's property at Crooked Run Orchard by the Town of Purcellville to create the Southern Collector Road (SCR) was to alleviate the back ups on Main Street and prevent drivers from using Maple Avenue, south of town, as a commuting byway. Numerous signs dotted lawns along this avenue and other connecting roadways throughout the south side of town with, "Build the SCR now" and "I don't travel through your neighborhood, don't travel through mine." Although these streets are all public, some residents felt the need to express that they were somewhat private.
The town believed that by building this road that it would reduce traffic on those two arteries that deliver drivers to their homes south and west of town. West end of town? On any given day a glance and the windshield of the vehicles will tell you if they are town residents or not. There is a larger percentage of out-of-town residents traveling Main Street than residents. With the recently placed double turn lane at the off ramp of the Rt. 287 and Rt. 7 bypass, it was obvious that drivers were using Hirst Road as a main commuting roadway for those traveling to western destinations.
The real reason for the SCR will be to support the traffic for future developments located along the SCR and Rt. 690. As you will soon see, a new shopping center, Catoctin Corner, will appear south of Patrick Henry College in the northeast corner of the here-today-gone-tomorrow-and-back-again traffic circle. In the meantime, Rt. 287's new alignment tries to direct the traffic coming into town to the Purcellville Gateway Shopping Center, then to the SCR. Seems an avoidance of other retailers located on Main Street and 21st Street, which in the last few years brought vibrancy to the downtown area. If you are new to the area or just visiting, or weren't paying attention, the roadway leads right into their "friend's" new development.
What would have happened had a traffic circle and the SCR not opened. These two videos may give you an idea of what has changed since opening this road in July. A steady stream of vehicles coming through town off of Rt. 287 make a right hand merge into the circle and continue west on Main Street on a Tuesday at 5:20 p.m.
I know the SCR may be new to some, but it has been open since the beginning of the summer. As a resident and taxpayer, I can't justify the Town's expenses involved in this project. This video taken at 5:30 pm. on Tuesday, September 18, shows only fifteen drivers using it, in what would be the heaviest traffic flow hour.
Some simple math. The studies conducted prior to the project estimated it would alleviate 13,000 trips from the main artery (Main St.). As you have seen in the video above, those 15 cars help achieve almost half of their goal per day. But at what cost? The cost of the quarter-mile project was over $6 million. 13,000 trips divided by 365 days equals on average 35.6 cars per day. Now spread that cost of the project over 5 years and the cost per car is over $100 per trip. Quite expensive quarter mile, wouldn't you say?
So what was the real reason for the Southern Collector Road? We may never know what goes on behind closed doors, secret meetings and under-the-table deals to someone else's benefit. But I guarantee there is more development coming along this roadway. Taking 35 cars off can't nearly justify the expense to taxpayers, the loss of revenue and property for the owners, and the ongoing fight for 20 years. I guess to quote a local supporter of the road that "This land is God’s land and the farmer was just trying to keep it for himself." Those darn farmers.
