April 24, 2025, UPDATE: The Fairfax City Council voted on April 22 to pause the Pickett Road Connector Trail project to examine alternatives.

The Missing Link

At just less than a quarter mile long, the Pickett Road Connector Trail (funded and in design) is an important missing link in the city’s trail network. The new trail will connect more than 40 miles of regional trails, providing safe, off-street access to public transit, shopping and dining areas, employment centers, and parks.

Running north/south between Thaiss Memorial Park and the intersection of Fairfax Boulevard and Pickett Road, the new trail will connect the Wilcoxon and Cross-County Trails to the City of Fairfax Connector Trail, which leads to the Vienna/Fairfax-GMU Metro Station.

The 10-foot-wide, fully-accessible trail will provide a safe alternative to the narrow sidewalk along busy Pickett Road. Walkers and joggers, cyclists, and parents with strollers will enjoy the smooth, level surface interspersed with sections of boardwalk over wetland areas. The trail alignment was selected to minimize environmental impacts and create a memorable experience for trail users.

The estimated total cost for this project is approximately $6 million. The city was awarded funding from Virginia Smart Scale, a federal funding source for improving bicycle and pedestrian trails, highways, and Park and Ride facilities, and expanding transit and rail capacity.

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