Maryland Buc‑ee’s fans are getting a second Virginia location — and it’s closer

Buc‑ee’s fans in Maryland soon won’t have to travel so far to visit the cult-favorite Texas convenience chain.

Despite a heated public hearing, local officials in Stafford County, Virginia, approved a new location near Exit 140 on Interstate 95 — about 75 miles closer to Baltimore than its Mt. Crawford, Virginia, store and a more convenient stop for Marylanders heading south.

When the gas station chain opened its Mt. Crawford location nearly a year ago, thousands of Marylanders flocked there within its first months.

One Baltimore man took off work to visit the new store on opening day, and a Pasadena couple celebrated their wedding anniversary with a day trip there. They were among a handful of Maryland-based Buc‑ee’s fans who welcomed the establishment’s opening in June 2025.

Now the new spot will cut the Buc‑ee’s commute from Baltimore almost in half, from over three hours to Mt. Crawford to a little under two.

The wildly popular warehouse-sized convenience stores are often filled with Buc‑ee’s-branded sweets, car decals and merch. Some goodies get snapped up and resold online for fans far from the gas stations.

The vote to approve the project came after days of debate among residents and county government officials in Northern Virginia. People supporting and opposing the gas station superstore packed an hourslong public hearing on Tuesday, with some holding anti-Buc‑ee’s signs and others dressed in the store’s merchandise.

One man in a Buc‑ee’s beaver mascot costume brought the gas station’s snacks to taste test them at the podium and remarked that he no longer wanted to order the food online and wait for it to be delivered: “I need this now.”

Another supporter sported a Buc‑ee’s jersey and carried a beaver plushie holding a “Say YES to Buc‑ee’s in Stafford” sign.

“It is not a gas station, it is a shopping destination where travelers can stop, rest, spend money and sometimes get gas and charge their cars,” she said, adding that the company would bring jobs and tax revenue.

Residents who opposed the development worried about a drop in home values, an increase in traffic in their small community and a desire to have other businesses develop there.

“Stafford is already known as a drive-through county. Do we really want to become known as a pit stop county?” said one business owner at the Tuesday hearing. “I would like to see the county I’ve proudly lived in for nearly 40 years aim for something greater than another gas station.”

A 5-2 vote finally approved the project just before 1 a.m. on Wednesday. It was not clear how quickly the Buc‑ee’s would be built.

Buc‑ee’s declined to comment.

The chain has gained a cult following since it opened in 1983. Its fans see Buc‑ee’s more as a travel destination than a gas station, especially since the stores are often tens of thousands of square feet — much larger than Royal Farms stores, a Baltimore-based chain with its own loyal fan base.

Banner reporter Cayla Harris contributed to this story.