Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin recently announced a 10-mile extension to the Interstate-95 Express Lanes that will allow drivers to pay a fee to bypass the regular lanes.
The extension will stretch from Stafford County to Fredericksburg, in the outer suburbs of the nation’s capital will officials open Thursday night.
A public-private partnership between the state and Transurban to extend the Express Lanes has been in the works since 2018. At the time, officials expected the $670 million project to finish in 2022.
The Express Lanes will reverse directions based on the primary traffic flow, typically northbound in the morning and southbound in the evening and run parallel to the regular lanes. The I-95 and 395 Express Lanes, which run from the Potomac River at the District of Columbia border to the Rappahannock River in Fredericksburg, is the longest reversible road in the U.S., according to Gov. Youngkin’s office.
Vehicles with three or more occupants can use the lanes for free with an E-Z Pass Flex transponder. Others can use the lanes by paying a toll that varies depending on traffic volume.
While drivers will have access to the full 10 miles of the extension late Thursday, construction work will continue to build access and exit ramps at several points over the next few months.
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Source: The Virginia Pilot
