It’s Easy to Get Around in Central Virginia

Residents of Charlottesville and the surrounding communities enjoy excellent transportation options (including a driverless van!).

By Kevin Litwin on October 31, 2023

Amtrak

The economy of Central Virginia is moving right along, thanks in large part to a strong transportation network. 

Getting around in Central Virginia is easy, thanks to a great road network that includes Interstates 64 along with major U.S. highways, and the average commute drive time for workers in Charlottesville is 17.7 minutes. That is well below the national average of 27.6 minutes, as reported by the U.S. Census. 

If you prefer the train, an Amtrak station is within walking distance of downtown Charlottesville and the University of Virginia campus to connect residents to Washington, D.C., and the region also has an Amtrak passenger station in Culpeper.

Meanwhile, freight train service is provided by CSX, Norfolk Southern and Buckingham Branch Railroad, with a large portion of overall cargo hauled to and from the Port of Virginia, located only 90 miles away. 

Enjoy Flights from Charlottesville 

Charlottesville Albemarle Airport (CHO) is the major commercial facility for Central Virginia. CHO is served by carriers American, Delta and United that provide more than 50 daily nonstop flights to Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, New York/LaGuardia, Philadelphia and Washington/Dulles. Four general aviation airports are in Culpeper, Gordonsville, Louisa and Orange. 

“We had 750,000 passengers in fiscal 2019, then down to 270,000 passengers during COVID, and now close to 550,000 for 2023,” says Jason Burch, CEO of Charlottesville Albemarle Airport. “We anticipate full recovery by the start of 2024.” 

Burch says CHO serves Charlottesville and 10 surrounding counties. 

“It’s nice for passengers to know that when they land at CHO, they are within minutes of being at home,” he says. “We are open 24/7, and an amazing statistic is that this major airport runs with a core workforce of only about 50 people.” 

Ride in a Driverless Vehicle 

One of the newest and most interesting transportation advancements in the region is an autonomous (driverless) van that shuttles people who work within North Fork business park in Charlottesville. Employees can shuttle to many different locations in the 562-acre North Fork complex, including a café, fitness center or any of the nine office and laboratory buildings. 

The shuttle service is free and runs during every workday on a circulator route. One of the tenant companies at North Fork – Perrone Robotics – operates the autonomous van. 

“We focus on the transit of people and goods in defined zones such as airports, college campuses and corporate campuses,” says Nick Pilipowskyj, Perrone Robotics vice president of business operations. “These are areas where we can kind of predict how the roadways will be with traffic and pedestrians.” 

The autonomous van at North Fork is a 15-passenger Ford electric transit vehicle that was transformed to its driverless status with software developed by Perrone Robotics. 

“Per state regulations, we still have a safety driver on board who sits in a seat to monitor the vehicle and answer any questions from passengers,” Pilipowskyj says. “We call our retrofit autonomous system TONY, which stands for To Navigate You, and we’re getting really good feedback from our passengers.”