Tysons Corner Silver Line METRO Transit Hubs

Tysons Corner Silver Line METRO Transit Hubs
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LOCATION: Fairfax County, Virginia
CLIENT:Fairfax County, Virginia
DATE COMPLETED: 2012

Tyson’s Corner, the original “Edge City” of Washington D.C.’s suburban metropolitan area, was once a country crossroads. It grew quickly after the development  of  I-95’s circumferential highway, known as “The Beltway.”  In the car-oriented culture of the late 20^th century there was little if any consideration for public transportation.  In the 21^st century, major growth in population and economic development in Northern Virginia demanded extensions of D.C.’s new metropolitan rail system to incorporate changing commuter patterns and reduce traffic congestion.

Ed Hamm, working in conjunction with Nelson Nygaard while he was at Rhodeside & Harwell, developed new urban design and transportation concepts for the Tyson’s Corner Metro Stations.  The process included evaluating all existing planning documents and current development proposals to produce site-specific street plans at each transit hub. Considerations had to be made for a complex web of pedestrian and bicycle access needs, crossings, traffic lanes, bus stops, taxi stands, kiss and ride drop-off points and standing areas.  The urban design plans proposed the best adjacent uses to encourage economic development and urban vitality at each of the new transit hubs.  Proposals made for the Fairfax County Department of Planning and Zoning  encouraged major street tree canopy plantings, the development of raised buffer gardens and gateway plantings, the use of contemporary materials and green stormwater management techniques.