Coming home to Fairfax Station on the northbound Fairfax County Parkway, can you still exit at Popes Head Road? As of this week, no. The new interchange has been open since June, and that ramp is one of two still closed. A few miles south, VDOT scheduled the westbound Burke Centre Parkway left turn onto the southbound Parkway to close for good on Monday morning, Oct. 26, weather permitting.
Two VDOT projects meet at Fairfax Station, and they run on different schedules. The Popes Head Road triple-roundabout interchange is listed for completion in late fall 2026. The south widening between Route 123 and Nomes Court/Ladues End Lane runs to mid-2027. For the next several weeks, both ends of the neighborhood's Parkway access work in only some directions.
Where the Parkway Works, and Where It Doesn't
Here is how each crossing stands as of VDOT's project pages, both last updated October 23, 2026.
| Crossing | Open | Closed or changed | VDOT's route instead |
|---|---|---|---|
| Popes Head Road | Southbound Parkway to Popes Head, east or west; Popes Head to northbound Parkway | Northbound Parkway to Popes Head; Popes Head to southbound Parkway | Up the Parkway to Braddock Road, then back |
| Burke Centre Parkway | Westbound right turn to northbound Parkway, scheduled to drop from two lanes to one on Oct. 26 | Westbound left turn to southbound Parkway, scheduled to close permanently on Oct. 26 | Eastbound Burke Centre Parkway, then southbound Route 123 |
| Route 123 interchange | Third left-turn lane on southbound Parkway ramp; third northbound lane on Route 123 | None listed | None needed |
The two ends of the neighborhood are changing in different ways. The Popes Head closures are temporary and should end within weeks. The Burke Centre change is permanent. The Route 123 interchange has picked up capacity this year.
At Popes Head, Braddock Road Is the Turnaround
The interchange partly opened around 10 a.m. on Tuesday, June 2. Popes Head Road reopened on its new overpass, and two of the four turning movements began carrying traffic. The other two have been detoured ever since, and both detours run through the same place. VDOT sends northbound Parkway drivers bound for Popes Head up to westbound Braddock Road (Route 620) and back down the southbound Parkway. Drivers leaving Popes Head for the southbound Parkway go north first and turn around the same way.
The size of the project makes more sense next to the traffic counts. According to FFXnow's May 27 report, VDOT estimates 69,000 to 72,000 vehicles a day on the Parkway at this crossing and 1,700 to 3,600 a day on Popes Head Road. The $82.4 million project replaces a signal that stopped the heavier flow for the lighter one. Three roundabouts and two bridges let Parkway traffic keep moving.
The end looks close. On October 9, VDOT announced overnight interchange closures from Sunday night, Oct. 11, through Thursday night, Oct. 15, and again Oct. 18 through 22, for "final paving and striping work." That release and the current project page both say the closed ramps reopen "later this fall," and the page lists completion as "late fall 2026." VDOT has not posted an opening day for the last two ramps. Until it does, the Braddock Road detour is the route.
At Burke Centre Parkway, the Change Is Permanent
At the south end, VDOT scheduled Monday, Oct. 26, around 9:30 a.m., weather permitting, for two permanent changes on westbound Burke Centre Parkway. Under that schedule, the left-turn lane onto the southbound Fairfax County Parkway closes, and drivers headed that way take eastbound Burke Centre Parkway and southbound Route 123 (Ox Road) to reach the southbound Parkway. The two right-turn lanes onto the northbound Parkway become one. VDOT plans to convert that lane to a free-flow right turn by mid-2027.
The two projects differ here. The Popes Head detour goes away once the last ramps open. VDOT describes the Burke Centre left-turn closure as permanent. Southbound trips from that intersection shift to Route 123, which is the part of the corridor that has gained the most this year. A third left-turn lane opened on the southbound Parkway ramp to Route 123 in June 2026. A third northbound travel lane on Route 123, from Chapel Road to the bridge over the Parkway, opened in August.
The volumes explain why VDOT is adding lanes on both roads. Within the south project's limits, the Parkway carries 62,000 to 71,000 vehicles a day on average, and Route 123 carries 34,000. The project widens about two miles of the Parkway from four lanes to six between Route 123 and Nomes Court/Ladues End Lane. Its estimated cost is $126 million.
Friday Night Over Fairfax Station Road
The bridge that carries the Parkway over Fairfax Station Road (Route 660) and the Norfolk Southern tracks has one more overnight work session this week. Weather permitting, VDOT's schedule for the northbound Parkway between Burke Centre Parkway and Nomes Court is:
- Alternating left and right lane closures from 10 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30, to 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 31.
- Intermittent traffic stoppages of no more than 20 minutes each, between 11:59 p.m. Friday and 4 a.m. Saturday.
After this weekend, the shifted lanes stay in place. VDOT describes the northbound Parkway between Burke Centre Parkway and the Fairfax Station Road bridge as shifted left "for the long term." The same applies to the southbound Parkway between Burke Centre Parkway and Route 123, and to the northbound lanes between Route 123 and the Clara Barton Drive overpass. Weekday off-peak and overnight lane closures will keep coming up on the Parkway and Route 123. They will also affect Burke Centre Parkway between the Parkway and Fairview Woods Drive, and Route 123 near the southbound Parkway ramps at Robert Carter Road.
Why the 45 MPH Limit Outlasts the Roundabouts
The two schedules overlap on speed. VDOT says the temporary 45 mph work-zone limit on the Parkway between Route 123 and I-66 stays in place for the rest of construction on the north and south widening projects. Both are scheduled to finish in mid-2027. So the lower limit near Fairfax Station is expected to last well after the Popes Head ramps open this fall.
Cameras have enforced the limit. When Fairfax County announced the program in May 2025, live enforcement was set to run 60 days at first, with the note that it "may be extended" if construction continued and the pilot worked. FFXnow reported in May 2026 that automated cameras were enforcing the 45 mph limit from Popes Head Road to Burke Centre Parkway. Neither the county nor VDOT has announced an end date for the cameras. The mid-2027 date covers the speed limit only.
What's Still Coming for Walkers and Cyclists
Both projects add paths and trails. Some of the most local pieces are still listed as unfinished:
- Patriot Park connection. A new shared-use path will link the Fairfax County Parkway Trail to Patriot Park at the Mott Community Center, south of Braddock Road.
- Parkway Trail and Popes Head sidewalk. The trail is being rebuilt through the interchange, and a sidewalk is being added on the north side of Popes Head Road.
- Ladues End Lane and Shirley Gate Road. Ladues End Lane is being extended to the new interchange, and the project is building the first segment of the Shirley Gate Road extension that Fairfax County is planning.
- South-end path and crossing. The south project includes a 10-foot-wide shared-use path along the Parkway between Route 123 and Burke Centre Parkway. It also adds a grade-separated bicycle and pedestrian crossing just north of Burke Centre Parkway.
- Sound wall. The wall along the southbound Parkway between Clara Barton Drive and Route 123 is being upgraded.
VDOT has not given separate opening dates for these pieces. The Popes Head items fall under the late-fall 2026 project, and the south-end items fall under the mid-2027 one.
Holiday Trips on the New Pattern
Several of the season's local events sit on roads this work affects. The Fairfax Station Railroad Museum is at 11200 Fairfax Station Road, the road the Parkway bridge crosses. Its fall festival, "Octoberfest at the Museum," runs Saturday, Nov. 7, from 12:30 to 5 p.m. The monthly model trains showcase follows on Sunday, Nov. 15, from 1 to 4 p.m. The museum's calendar shows it closed from Nov. 22 through Dec. 4. It reopens for the 35th Annual Holiday Train Show on Dec. 5 and 6. Saturday hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The museum's own pages list two different times for Sunday, so check with the museum before you go.
Burke Lake Park, at 7315 Ox Road on Route 123, holds its Winter Wonderland on Dec. 5, 6, 12, 13, 19 and 20, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The event includes the Holiday Express train, Santa, crafts and the carousel.
If this fall's Parkway changes have you rethinking how your daily drive fits the house you're in, or the one you're considering, Pat Fales and Pam Morgan Associates can help you look at routes and commute times around Fairfax Station street by street. Contact Us when you want a steady, local second opinion.
