The section of S. Joyce Street that connects Columbia Pike and Pentagon City is getting a major facelift.
Road work is currently underway on S. Joyce Street, described as “one of the few places for cyclists and pedestrians to cross I-395 in Arlington.” The $1.8 million federal project will not only improve the aesthetics of the road — “more urban, and less highway-industrial” — but will result in significant functional improvements for road users, especially pedestrians and cyclists.
Among the changes, as described by the Federal Highway Administration:
- “Project will build a narrower median, leaving two through travel lanes in each direction, and provide much-improved ten-foot wide shared use sidewalks on both sides, plus three-foot buffers between the walkway and back of curb.”
- “New pedestrian-scale street lighting will be installed the length of the project on both sides.”
- “All guard rails will be removed (terminal median crash barriers will be installed).”
- “Large standpipes will be re-located out of the accessible pedestrian route.”
Construction is underway now and is expected to wrap up in September. The project also accounts for the planned Columbia Pike streetcar, anticipating that the streetcar will use the road’s inner lanes.
Officials describe the project as a “coordinated effort” involving the Federal Highway Administration, VDOT, the Pentagon, Arlington National Cemetery, the Navy Annex demolition project, and Arlington’s streetcar project.
Photo courtesy Arlington County