Background

The Route 29 Bypass Green Book was produced in January 2000 by the Charlottesville-Albemarle Transportation Coalition, Inc. CATCO is a local, citizens group opposed to the Route 29 bypass. Their report summarizes the project's history for the period between 1980 and early 2000. It outlines the steps taken by both bypass opponents and supporters. Most importantly, it presents the results of numerous Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, which provide critical background information that was not otherwise made available to the public.

While the local governments of the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County and the Metropolitan Planning Organization have long opposed this project, the Route 29 Bypass remains on the state's Transportation Improvement Plan (TIP). In 2003, the Virginia Department of Transportation and the federal Highway Administration each approved the Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement. This final analysis was required by the August 2001 court decision, and its approval exhausted all legal options for bypass opponents.

In recent years, both Commonwealth Transportation Board and Virginia Department of Transportation officials have acknowledged that the necessary funding for the bypass is not available, nor is it expected to be anytime soon. In 2003, Virginia Transportation Secretary Whitt Clement and CTB member Butch Davies stated that the bypass cost ranged between $240 and $250 million - almost double the original project estimate. These same officials have also acknowledged that the proposal is already outdated, and that the current alignment would not avoid development already occurring north of the proposed northern terminus.Straddling Route 29 to the north of this proposed terminus are approximately 5,000-acres of Albemarle's Growth Area; an area designated for development almost a decade before the bypass' proposed alignment.

Report (PDF Documents)
Table of Contents
Summary
Introduction
Map of 29 Bypass
History
Major Events Timeline
Names and Titles of Individuals Involved
Abbreviations Used in Report
A- Agricultural and Forestal Districts
B- Archeological Studies
C- Stated Purpose of Bypass
D- Construction Schedule
E- Project Cost Estimates
F- Cost-Benefit Analysis
G- Data Misrepresentations
H- MPO Design Advisory Committee
I- Environmental Statements
J- Federal Documentation
K- Hearings and Meetings
L- Proposed Interchanges
M- James Spineymussel
N- JLARC Study
O- MPO Resolutions and Actions
P- Noise Issues
Q- North Grounds Connector
R- Prudent and Feasible Alternatives
S- Public Opinion
T- Rehearing Request by Albemarle BOS
U- Resolutions and Agreements
V- Road to Ruin Report
W- Corridor Development Study
X- Federal Section 4(F) Issues
Y- SELC Lawsuit
Z- Sequencing of Transportation Improvements
AA- Stillhouse Mtn. Alignment
BB- Northern and Southern Terminus Revisions
CC- Traffic Analysis and Level of Service Analysis
DD- UVa's Position on the Bypass
EE- VDOT's Bias Favoring Western Bypass
FF- VDOT's Misstatements and Wrongful Actions
GG- Water Protection and Reservoir Concerns