County transportation was the main topic of discussion at Tuesday night’s meeting of the Gloucester County Board of Supervisors, as Virginia Department of Transportation Saluda Residency Engineer Lee McKnight provided his department’s quarterly update.

“There is a lot going on,” McKnight said. “We are in construction season here in Gloucester.”

McKnight said that work on the Fiddlers Green Road light turn lane signal is still pending, but he said that VDOT will get that work done. He said that VDOT is working on the Rural Rustic project on Bonniville Road in Guinea by resurfacing a previously gravel road, which should be done this summer. He also said that the Route 216 (Guinea Road) turn lane project is ongoing and spoke about the traffic switch that was to occur Monday morning, where they closed one of the left turn lanes onto Guinea Road. There would be additional ring time added to that signal for the left turns and there still could be some backups on Route 17. He said that VDOT would keep a close eye on that situation to ensure that traffic is flowing properly. He also talked about how asphalt paving was going on countywide.

Some bridge projects Mc-Knight mentioned were Route 3, Route 3/14, and Burke Mill stream. The rehabilitation construction of Burke Mill stream should start this summer.

He also addressed the Wood Cross Roads intersection, saying that preliminary engineering for the design phase is ongoing. A public hearing is to be expected but there is no date for it yet.

Supervisor Ken Gibson responded to the updates by McKnight by thanking him for an issue with some signage on Dogwood Trail that was addressed quickly; regarding the intersection of Route 17 and Woods Cross Road, he expressed his opposition to VDOT’s plan for a restricted crossing U-turn, urging a traffic light instead.

“We have been trying to address this for years, through packing this building, through 600 people signing petitions, through letters to the editor and unfortunately my conclusion is no matter what the citizens of Gloucester County say, VDOT is not going to change its position on Woods Cross Road, “ said Gibson.

Gibson sent a letter to Gov. Glenn Youngkin, urging him to take executive action on the traffic light there. He also copied Secretary of Transportation W. Sheppard Miller III; the Commonwealth Transportation Board; VDOT Commissioner Steven C. Brich, P.E.; Congressman Rob Wittman; Senator Ryan T. McDougle; Delegate Keith Hodges; VDOT Fredericksburg District Engineer Marcie Parker, P.E.; and VDOT’s McKnight on that letter. He read his letter during the meeting.

During the public comment period that followed, Petsworth District resident Patty Brandt also addressed the dangerous Woods Cross Roads intersection.

“The only thing I have to add to this today is I have made it a personal project to follow how many crashes we have at that intersection,” she said. “Getting the info was like pulling my own teeth. But I found somebody within the state that was willing to help me with this information.” Brandt requested information for incidents after Oct. 29, 2023, when a deadly accident occurred there.

“What I was sent was on March 24th we had a property damage accident at that intersection. No fatalities. No injuries. On April 8th at that intersection, there was an accident. Two people injured and what I was told in an email is that the injured were the innocent party. And this one I remember fairly well, because we were headed to dinner in town here at Olivia’s and we come up to the intersection and there are car parts all over the median that are still there,” Brandt said. “There were no injuries but there was property damage. What are we waiting for? We are waiting on this,” she said, pointing in the direction of McKnight. “I sincerely hope that Mr. Gibson’s letter is going to make a difference to someone.”

She expressed her support for a light as well as addressing a comment McKnight has made in a prior meeting about how the R-cut worked well in Saluda, saying that that intersection is not like the one at Woods Cross Roads.

Construction on the R-cut was initially set for 2026 and VDOT is working to expedite the project.