Subway Update: All Four Tysons Stations Under Construction, Piers Rising Along Route 7

The coming of the subway which has turned Routes 123 and 7 into massive construction zones of  cranes, barriers, shifting lanes and bouncy driving, is now 35 percent complete.

 The ribbons of steel and concrete that will sweep the Silver Line from the median of the Dulles Connector Road  over  Route 123 and into Tysons have totally changed the look of our community.

•  Construction of all four stations in Tysons is underway.

• Mining of the inbound and outbound tunnels to carry trains under the Routes 123/7 interchange is complete. Waterproofing and reinforcing of concrete are taking place.

• Piers  that will carry the tracks down the middle of Route 7 are rising.

• Route 7 has been dramatically widened to create the wide median where tracks and stations will be. You can’t really tell that with all the construction.

•   The guideway bridges that carry the Silver line from Route 7 to the median of the Dulles International Airport Access Highway are under construction.

"The bridges that will carry the tracks for the future Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project trains from the Dulles Connector Road (Route 267) into Tysons Corner are almost complete, photographs of which provide a dramatic view of the Tysons skyline and a hint of the future of this changing economic center," The Dulles Corridor Project said in its update report.

One of the most challenging part of the construction remains – building the bridges carrying the tracks over the Capital Beltway.

Project officials are now working with the Virginia Department of Transportation to refine work plans that will cause more significant closings on the Beltway. Full closures may be scheduled in mid to late Summer. 

Construction began in March 2009 on the Silver Line that will eventually run from the East Falls Church station to Dulles Airport. It's being built in two phases:

Phase 1: Will run 11.5 miles from East Falls Church to Wiehle Avenue on the eastern edge of Reston. It will include four stations in Tysons Corner-Tysons east, Tysons Central 123, Tysons Central 7 and Tysons West. Construction began in March 2009 and is scheduled to be completed in late 2013.

Phase 2: Extends the line another 11.6 miles from Wiehle Avenue in Fairfax County to Washington Dulles International Airport and on to Route 772 in Loudoun County. New stations will be built at Reston Parkway, Herndon-Monroe, Route 28, Dulles International Airport, Route 606 and Route 772.

Tolls collected from the Dulles Toll Road are paying for more than half  of the $52.6 billion cost of the subway construction.

Getting on the subway in McLean, getting off at Dulles Airport and flying to Paris --- priceless.