Leaders gather to open first segment of I-66 E-ZPass lanes

The nine-mile western segment, which spans Route 29 in Gainesville to Route 28 in Centreville, opened ahead of schedule on Saturday, Sept. 10. This westernmost portion is the first section of the 66 Express Lanes to open, and will provide early benefits to I-66 travelers including added capacity, smoother pavement, better travel reliability and new connections. The remaining 13 miles of new express lanes along I-66 between Route 28 and I-495 (the Capital Beltway) are scheduled to open in December 2022.

“Today’s early opening of the first section of the 66 Express Lanes allows the Commonwealth and its partners to begin providing long awaited relief to drivers who have dealt with daily congestion, unreliability, and most recently, five years of heavy roadway construction,” said Virginia Secretary of Transportation Shep Miller. “By the end of this year, we expect to open the remainder of the more than $3-billion 66 Express Lanes megaproject, benefitting I-66 travelers, and becoming a critical part of the Commonwealth’s planned 90+ mile express lanes network in Northern Virginia.”

The new western section of E-ZPass lanes is open to all traffic toll-free initially so that motorists can benefit from the additional capacity, become familiar with the new express lanes and access points, and open an E-ZPass account, if needed. Tolling and HOV rules are expected to begin by the end of September.

“Extensive planning and design, ongoing collaboration and hard work have made today’s early opening of the western section of the 66 Express Lanes Megaproject a reality,” said VDOT Commissioner Stephen Brich. “We are proud to be able to start delivering positive results to I-66 travelers earlier than expected, despite experiencing unprecedented times and a global pandemic for the last few years. Drivers should remain alert to the continued construction occurring on the eastern end of the corridor, as our team focuses on completing and opening this remaining section of 66 Express Lanes by the end of the year.”

Drivers can access the newly opened western end of the 66 Express Lanes through a variety of entrance and exit points including access from the general purpose lanes at each end of the segment, and via new dedicated ramps at Route 234/Sudley Road, Route 28, and Braddock and Walney Roads. Direct access is also available from two new commuter parking lots at University Boulevard (Gainesville) and Balls Ford Road/Century Park Drive (Manassas), which were built as part of the overall Transform 66 Outside the Beltway project.

Once tolling operations begin, eligible high occupancy vehicles (HOV) with an E-ZPass Flex set to “carpool mode” will be able to travel the 66 Express Lanes toll-free. The express lanes will also be available for motorists who choose to pay a toll, using either E-ZPass or by paying online at Ride66Express.com. In the initial tolling phase of the western segment, vehicles must have two or more occupants to qualify as HOV, and may include carpools, vanpools and commuter buses. Additional information on how to use the 66 Express Lanes can be found at ride66express.com.

The lanes will operate similar to those on I-95, 395, and 495.