It's tough to make up for driving a four-lane, divided road through the middle of a once-quiet subdivision.

But Spotsylvania County supervisors are attempting to ease the hurt for residents of Ballantraye.

The opening of the Southpoint Parkway in December literally cut the 200-home community in half while creating a convenient link for other motorists between Courthouse Road (State Route 208) and U.S. 1.

A long concrete median prevents some residents from turning left out of their neighborhood, and a string of "No U-turn" signs forces them to drive a mile before being able to turn back in the right direction.

Furthermore, residents say motorists routinely race down the road at speeds far higher than the posted 35 mph.

The supervisors voted last night to lower the speed limit to 25 mph along the section of the parkway that passes through Ballantraye.

The rest of the road, which was built to serve the Southpoint II commercial complex, remains a 35 mph zone.

"When a road such as this is put in, we as a county owe it to the residents that are there to rectify the situation, to bring a sense of community back to what they have," said Supervisor Chris Yakabouski. "This is a first step."

Yakabouski said the county may also raise fines for speeders on that section of the parkway. At several other spots in the county motorists face an extra $200 fine if caught speeding.

Supervisors delayed a plan to remove the "No U-turn" signs along the Ballantraye portion of the parkway until the Virginia Department of Transportation has a chance to review the impact to driver safety.

Ballantraye residents say the speed limit change is welcome, but not enough.

Linda Damiano, president of the homeowners association, said she'd like to ban through-truck traffic, erect "Children at Play" signs and install crosswalks with flashing lights so residents can walk safely across the parkway.

Before the parkway opened, Ballantraye residents essentially lived at the dead end of what was called Wakeman Drive, a two-lane road with speed bumps and a posted speed of 15 mph.

Southpoint Parkway picked up at that dead end and ran down to U.S. 1 near the existing Southpoint development, just south of Interstate 95.

Massaponax-based W.J. Vakos & Co. paid to build the parkway, which leads to its 256-acre commercial complex, future home to a Wal-Mart Supercenter and a Lowe's, among other stores.

Ballantraye resident Chris Johnson said he knows his community won't be as quiet as it once was. But he asked supervisors to at least improve the situation.

"The road's there. It's going to stay. The Wal-Mart's there," Johnson said. "But you can't forget about the community that was there first."

To reach EDIE GROSS: 540/374-5428 egross@freelancestar.com