Second VDOT Apron and Concrete Driveway in Woodbridge, VA

This Woodbridge, Virginia homeowner already had a driveway and apron on one side of the front yard. His daughter was moving in with him, and the household needed more off-street parking and a second way to the house. We added a second entrance on the other side of the property: a new concrete apron at the street and a new concrete driveway that ends beside the front door, so the family can park and walk in from either side.

Why a second apron is harder to get approved

VDOT's access-management standards normally allow one driveway connection per parcel, so a second entrance is a case-by-case approval under the VDOT Land Use Permit, here reviewed by the VDOT Manassas Residency.

VDOT decides where a private entrance goes. Its Road Design Manual says VDOT reviews the frontage and places the entrance where it has the best possible sight distance; the owner's preferred spot can be denied if it is less safe. An entrance also may not sit in the functional area of an intersection or the influence area of a neighboring entrance, which is why corner lots and tight frontages are the hardest to get approved.

In our experience, a second entrance comes down to three questions: how far it sits from the intersection, how far it sits from the neighbors' driveways, and what a driver can see when pulling out. VDOT has typically asked us for about 30 feet from the intersection and about 30 feet from neighboring driveways, along with a clear line of sight. Fairfax County is the hardest place to get a second apron approved; we have had them approved in Prince William County, and Loudoun has reviewed requests from us, though we have not built one there yet. On this lot it could go right by the front door, and it was approved there.

What we built

The second apron sits in the VDOT right-of-way, built to the entrance standard on the permit and inspected by VDOT. Behind it, the new concrete driveway runs to the front door. The drawings VDOT uses for every apron are explained on our VDOT apron page.