Lifecore Drive- Achieving Success through Public Private Partnership

About the Program

Category: Transportation (Best in Category)

Year: 2016

Fishersville is one of Augusta County’s primary growth areas and is home to Augusta Health and the Wilson Workforce and Rehabilitation Center. The region is served by Route 250, Route 285, and Interstate 64, but a safe and convenient connection between those routes was needed. Existing access was provided by a narrow gravel road and a one lane railroad underpass. Recognizing the importance of a new connector route, the road (Lifecore Drive) was programmed for funding by the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT). However, with funding for transportation improvements slashed year after year, the likelihood that the road would ever be built diminished. Rather than wait, Augusta County partnered with Crescent Development, a local developer, and Branch Highways to build the road as a locally administered public/private partnership. The road is built on a new alignment that includes a bridge over the railroad tracks and approximately 1 mile of new roadway. Completed in just over 2 years, the road was built for $13.7 million. With the opening of this road, not only is there better access to medical services, but the development potential of this area has expanded exponentially.