| State Route 659 | |
|---|---|
| Belmont Ridge Road, Gum Springs Road | |
| Route information | |
| Length: | 16 mi (25.75 km) |
| Major junctions | |
| North end: | Riverside Parkway in Leesburg |
SR 7 in LeesburgSR 267 in Ashburn US 50 in South Riding |
|
| South end: | SR 234 near Bull Run |
| Location | |
| Counties: | Loudoun, Prince William |
| Highway system | |
Virginia Secondary Route 659, otherwise known as Belmont Ridge Road north of Arcola, and Gum Spring Road to the south, is a Virginia Department of Transportation maintained and administered road in the Washington D.C. Metropolitan Area. The road is heavily used by commuters in the suburbs and bedroom communities of Loudoun County, Virginia.
This approximately 16-mile (26 km) long north–south running road is mostly a 2 lane (a few parts are 4 lanes), but heavily traveled, connection between State Route 7 and Prince William County. The road’s actual northern terminus is the Nation Conference Center just off the shores of the Potomac River, but for all practical uses of the road the northern terminus is Route 7. The Southern terminus is State Route 234 just past the Loudoun-Prince William County border. There are two Luck Stone quarries along Route 659, one outside the community of Belmont Green just southeast of Leesburg, and another just inside the Loudoun side of the county border near Route 234.
The origin of the road's path is unclear (possibly the road had been a colonial byway, but no specific evidence is available to back up this assumption), but the road has been used by Loudoun County residents for years. The road had in previous years held a speed limit of 55 mph (89 km/h), but had been decreased to 45 mph (72 km/h) north of Arcola sometime in the last 20 years, and has always been 35 mph (56 km/h) through the town of Arcola. the speed limit remains 55 mph (89 km/h) south of Arcola on Gum Spring Road all the way to Route 234.
The road has been scheduled for improvements for some time now but has only been widened thus far to 4 lanes on a 1-mile (1.6 km) stretch near Brambleton, and a 300-yard (270 m) stretch just north of the GreenWay. Between Route 7 in Loudoun and Brambleton the road will have an ultimate condition of 4 lanes, other parts in Loudoun may have an ultimate condition of 6 lanes. In Prince William County, the road is planned with an ultimate condition of [to be filled] lanes. Many local residents and officials doubt that 6 lanes are ever needed. It would be like a major highway right in peoples back yards and it wouldn't help building a desirable and family friendly community. The most likely future improvements will be to repave the entire road as a 4 lane road with more traffic lights installed sometime in the next 4–8 years, however there are different plans for Loudoun and Prince William Counties.