Stretch of U.S. 29 gets an upgrade

In the seven months since the accident that killed an Albemarle High School girl, many changes have been made to a stretch of U.S. 29 that was already considered dangerous.

Last week, the Virginia Department of Transportation started what will likely be the final improvement with the installation of new flashing-light warning signs.

That $159,000 project will account for the bulk of the overall expenditures for the section of the highway between Polo Grounds Road and Airport Road.

Combined, eight projects on the stretch of highway total $210,000.

“The immediate catalyst was the wreck” at U.S.29 and Ashwood Boulevard, VDOT spokesman Lou Hatter said of the work along the highway. He also noted that increased growth and traffic led VDOT to conduct a review of the roadway.

Early in the morning on May 9, Sydney Aichs was making a left turn onto U.S. 29 from Ashwood Boulevard in Forest Lakes. Authorities have said Kenneth Barbour failed to stop for a red light, hitting Aichs’s car with his tractor-trailer.

Aichs was pronounced dead soon after the accident. Barbour, 55, was indicted in June in Albemarle County Circuit Court on charges of involuntary manslaughter and reckless driving.

The family of the 16-year-old Albema-rle High School junior filed a $15 million lawsuit against the tractor-trailer driver and the company for which he worked.

The intersection was considered risky before the accident.

According to VDOT statistics, 102 crashes were reported at the intersection from 2003 to 2007. None of those crashes were fatal, but 47 people were injured.

The projects in the area of the intersection have included pavement markings and rumble strips; bush and tree trimmings; improved shoulders to allow for safer pullouts for police; and lowering the speed limit from 55 mph to 45.

Police have also conducted speed enforcement details on the stretch of highway.

The new warning lights will replace the current ones and will be coordinated with the Ashwood Boulevard signals to warn drivers of impending red lights.

The Forest Lakes community is pleased with how VDOT responded to its concerns following the fatal accident, said David Shifflett with the neighborhood’s community association.

The residents “spoke very loudly and came together” after the accident, Shifflett said. “Overall, we’re pleased with VDOT’s response.”

He said the association would like to see the median at the intersection graded to provide better line of sight for drivers, as well as improved rumble strips to warn drivers of the traffic lights. But he believes budget constraints will keep VDOT from doing much more.

Last week, VDOT announced a revised six-year plan in which nearly $50 million was cut from planned projects in the district, including several in the Charlottesville area.