VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Virginia Beach is getting a $14.9 million grant from the federal Department of Transportation (DOT) to build a section of a 12-mile-long pedestrian and bicycle trail through the city.
The funding will be used to construct a three-mile stretch of the Virginia Beach Trail spanning from the western city limit line with Norfolk at Newtown Road eastward to the Town Center area. It marks the first phase in the project to finish the remaining 10.5 miles of the west-to-east trail; the easternmost section has already been constructed in the Virginia Beach Oceanfront area.
According to the city's website, the project's first phase will include a pedestrian-bicycle bridge over ten lanes of Independence Boulevard to separate the trail from automobile traffic.
When fully completed, city officials say the trail will "serve pedestrians, bicyclists, wheelchair users, strollers, runners, workers, students, families, and tourists by providing a safe, non-vehicular travel corridor across Virginia Beach." It will be 10 feet wide and occupy a narrow strip of a former Norfolk Southern railroad right-of-way owned by the city.
The trail could also connect with the proposed regional South Hampton Roads Trail that could run through Suffolk, Portsmouth, Norfolk and Chesapeake.
DOT announced the grant on Wednesday as one of 385 national projects getting funding from the Safe Streets and Roads for All program, created by the $1 trillion 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law.
In an interview with 13News Now, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg explained that the Virginia Beach Trail could have several benefits for people living in the city.
"We know that an investment in this separated trail — this bike and pedestrian trail — is an investment in the future of Virginia Beach," Buttigieg said. "It has a number of economic benefits, it can help with the vibrancy of the central business district, it's going to be great for people using it [and] it could even mean less congestion by giving people an alternative way to get around on shorter distances."
The transportation secretary touted the safety benefits of the trail, saying paths that are better separated for bikes and pedestrians mean fewer fatalities from crashes involving bikes and pedestrians colliding with cars.
Buttigieg also explained that the trail could help people in underserved communities get to where they need to go, especially those who don't have a car at their disposal.
"I think about how many low-income people are in that situation whose economic opportunity might depend on being more easily able to get to a job or to an educational opportunity or to get across town," Buttigieg said, adding that a transportation option for pedestrians and bicyclists could really make a difference.
Following a 13News Now inquiry, a spokesperson said the City of Virginia Beach "appreciates the support for public safety improvements in our community and acknowledges the significance of the Virginia Beach Trail project."
The spokesperson added that the Virginia Beach Trail project's design phase has been funded and is in progress, and any grant funds would contribute to the construction costs.