Virginia State Route 784 in

Prince William County Prince William County is located on the Potomac River in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population sits at 482,204, making it Virginia's second-most populous county. Its county seat is the independent city of Manassas ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

is a 7.95-mile (12.79 km) secondary state highway officially named Dale Boulevard for its entire route. It is a

divided highway A dual carriageway ( BE) or divided highway ( AE) is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation (BrE) or median (AmE). Roads with two or more carriageways which are ...

and acts as a major northwest-southeast thoroughfare through the southeastern area of Prince William County, serving

Dale City Dale City is a census-designated place (CDP) in Prince William County, Virginia, United States, located 25 miles south west of Washington, D.C. It is an annex of Woodbridge, Virginia. As of 2017, the total population was 73,384. The community is ...

(the road's namesake) as well as the

Potomac Mills Potomac Mills is a shopping mall located in Woodbridge, Virginia, in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. The first mall developed by the Mills Corporation, it was acquired in 2007 by Simon Property Group. Simon claims it to be the largest o ...

community and southern

Woodbridge Woodbridge may refer to: Places Australia *Woodbridge, Western Australia formerly called ''West Midland'' *Woodbridge, Tasmania Canada *Woodbridge, Ontario England *Woodbridge, Suffolk, the location of ** Woodbridge (UK Parliament constituency ...

area.

Route description

Dale City

State Route 784/Dale Boulevard begins at the SR 642 (Hoadly Road)/ SR 643 (Purcell Road) intersection in northern Dale City where it continues southeast serving many residential areas and providing primary access to

park A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compuls ...

s, and

shopping plaza A shopping mall (or simply mall) is a North American term for a large indoor shopping center, usually anchored by department stores. The term "mall" originally meant a pedestrian promenade with shops along it (that is, the term was used to ref ...

s in the area. SR 784 then intersects Ridgefield Road and soon Delaney Road and eventually heads south into central Dale City at the intersection with SR 640 (Minnieville Road). The road continues southeast from there and passes through more residential areas before intersecting Benita Fitzgerald Drive then Gideon Drive (which heads north towards

) and heading east passing the PRTC OmniRide Transit Center and forming a

cloverleaf interchange A cloverleaf interchange is a two-level interchange in which all turns are handled by slip roads. To go left (in right-hand traffic; reverse directions in left-driving regions), vehicles first continue as one road passes over or under the ...

with

Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1, US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between M ...

Woodbridge

After crossing I-95, SR 784 enters

, continuing southeast and shortly intersecting with Potomac Center Boulevard, providing access north to the

Sentara Northern Virginia Medical Center Sentara Northern Virginia Medical Center (SNVMC) is a 183-bed, for-profit community hospital serving Prince William County and its surrounding communities. Potomac Hospital, an independent, non-profit community hospital, merged with Sentara Heal ...

and the

Stonebridge at Potomac Town Center Stonebridge at Potomac Town Center, also commonly referred to as Stonebridge PTC or simply Stonebridge, is a lifestyle center in Woodbridge, Virginia, United States. It features a mix of retail, office buildings, and apartments. was developed by ...

shopping center, and Neabsco Mills Road, which heads south providing access to the

Northern Virginia Community College Northern Virginia Community College (NVCC; informally known as NOVA) is a public community college composed of six campuses and four centers in the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C. Northern Virginia Community College is the third-la ...

Woodbridge Campus and Freedom High School. SR 784 then ends at

U.S. Route 1 U.S. Route 1 or U.S. Highway 1 (US 1) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that serves the East Coast of the United States. It runs from Key West, Florida, north to Fort Kent, Maine, at the Canadian border, making i ...

, with continuation beyond the southeastern terminus as Rippon Boulevard heading towards the

Potomac River The Potomac River () drains the Mid-Atlantic United States, flowing from the Potomac Highlands into Chesapeake Bay. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map. Retrieved Augus ...

Major intersections

Places along State Route 784

Andrew Leitch Park Andrew is the English form of a given name common in many countries. In the 1990s, it was among the top ten most popular names given to boys in English-speaking countries. "Andrew" is frequently shortened to "Andy" or "Drew". The word is derived ...

* Dale City Neighborhood Library * Freedom High School * John D. Jenkins Neighborhood Park *

Woodbridge Campus * PRTC OmniRide Transit Center *

Public transportation

The

Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission (PRTC) is an American public transportation system in Prince William County, Virginia, Stafford County, Virginia, and Spotsylvania County, Virginia, plus two adjacent independent cities, Manass ...

(PRTC) operates a local

bus route A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for ...

along SR 784/Dale Boulevard, along with two

commuter lot A park and ride, also known as incentive parking or a commuter lot, is a parking lot with public transport connections that allows commuters and other people heading to city centres to leave their vehicles and transfer to a bus, rail system (rapi ...

s nearby the road, the Hillendale Commuter Lot and Dale City Commuter Lot.

Dale City Independence Day Parade

Since July 4, 1970, Dale City has held a nearly annual

Independence Day An independence day is an annual event commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or more rarely after the end of a military occupation. Man ...

parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, float (parade), floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually ce ...

along SR 784/Dale Boulevard from Mapledale Avenue and Queensdale Drive at Mapledale Plaza to the Center Plaza at Gemini Way near Minnieville Road. The parade usually consists of

parade float A float is a decorated platform, either built on a vehicle like a truck or towed behind one, which is a component of many festive parades, such as those of Carnival in Rio de Janeiro, the Carnival in São Paulo, the Carnival of Viareggio, the Ma ...

marching band A marching band is a group of instrumental musicians who perform while marching, often for entertainment or competition. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. Most marching bands wear a uniform, ofte ...

s from local schools, churches, and community groups,

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...

and

cheerleading Cheerleading is an activity in which the participants (called cheerleaders) cheer for their team as a form of encouragement. It can range from chanting slogans to intense physical activity. It can be performed to motivate sports teams, to ente ...

performances, and convoys of

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

police car A police car (also called a police cruiser, police interceptor, patrol car, area car, cop car, prowl car, squad car, radio car, or radio motor patrol) is a ground vehicle used by police and law enforcement for transportation during patrols a ...

s and

fire engine A fire engine (also known in some places as a fire truck or fire lorry) is a road vehicle (usually a truck) that functions as a firefighting apparatus. The primary purposes of a fire engine include transporting firefighters and water to an i ...

s, and PRTC

bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...

es. For 2018, the parade had an estimated 10,000 spectators and it is considered to be the largest 4th of July parade in Virginia. Due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, the 2020 Dale City Independence Day Parade was cancelled, therefore cancelling what would have been the 50th consecutive year the parade has been held on July 4 since its first year in 1970.

References

{{Transit in NOVA 784 Prince William County State Route 784 State Route 784