I-95 Southbound: Exit 148 (Quantico) Monday - Thursday, 9 p.m. - 10 a.m. Single and double lane closures with intermittent full stops at mile markers 148–146 as construction continues for 95 Express Lanes Fredericksburg Extension.
- 9 p.m. Single lane closed 10 p.m., Two lanes closed, Midnight – 3 a.m. Full, intermittent traffic stops for up to 30 min. intervals, 4:30 a.m. Two lanes open while one southbound lane remains closed and 10 a.m. - All southbound lanes open.
- Exit 126 (Spotsylvania): Monday – Friday, 9 p.m. – 4:30 a.m. Single and double lane closures with intermittent full stops at mile markers 125–124. Beam placement for construction of new Route 17 (Mills Drive) overpass.
- 9 p.m. Single lane closed, 10 p.m. Two lanes closed, 11:30 p.m. – 3:30 a.m. Full, intermittent traffic stops for up to 30 min. intervals and 4:30 a.m. All southbound lanes open.
- Exit 110 (Ladysmith) to Exit 104 (Carmel Church) Sunday – Thursday, 9 p.m. – 5 a.m. Single and double lane closures for mobile operation to mill and pave at mile markers 108-104.
I-95 Northbound: Exit 110 (Ladysmith) Sunday – Thursday, 9 p.m. – 5 a.m. Alternating lane closures for paving work at mile markers 111–112, near the Ladysmith interchange.
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95 Express Lanes Fredericksburg Extension (Fred Ex): "The 10-mile mainline between Garrisonville Road and Route 17 is anticipated to open southbound at 10 p.m. on Thursday, August 17. The Lanes will be ready for northbound traffic the following morning, August 18, per normal summer reversal schedule. Remaining access points along the project corridor are anticipated to open late 2023."
The extension runs from Garrisonville Road (Route 610) in North Stafford to Route 17 (Warrenton Road) near Fredericksburg. At the Stafford County Courthouse, Gov. Glen Youngkin will open the new lanes during a ceremony on Wednesday, August 16, 2023.
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VDOT/Transubran: “The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and Transurban North America will partially open a 10-mile extension of the 95 Express Lanes in August to reduce congestion on the Interstate 95 corridor through Stafford County and Fredericksburg, connecting the region to Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C.”
“The extension will continue the 95 Express Lanes from the current terminus just south of Route 610 (Garrisonville Road) to near Route 17 (Warrenton Road) in Stafford County. In August, northbound I-95 through travelers approaching from the Rappahannock River area will be able to enter Express Lanes using a left ramp entrance near the Route 17 interchange.”
“Southbound Express Lanes travelers will be able to drive an additional 10 miles south in the new facility to the Route 17 area. Exiting travelers can enter local I-95 southbound travel lanes near the Rappahannock River to access the Route 17 or Route 3 interchanges or continue in the I-95 southbound through travel lanes.”
“Two reversible Express Lanes will carry traffic northbound or southbound in the I-95 median according to the 95 Express Lanes operational schedule. Motorcycles and buses travel toll-free, and vehicles carrying three occupants or more travel toll-free with an E-ZPass Flex set to HOV ON. Vehicles with one or two occupants pay a variable toll with an E-ZPass or E-ZPass Flex set to HOV OFF. Learn more about the rules of the road.”
“Additional new access points to and from the Express Lanes near Marine Corps Base Quantico and Courthouse Road will open in late 2023. Following the reopening of the I-95 general-purpose lanes from exits 130 to 133 in late 2023, local traffic seeking to enter the northbound Express Lanes will use a new flyover ramp near Route 17.”
“The nation’s oldest transportation-related construction group recognized the innovative partnership between I-66 Express Mobility Partners, FAM Construction, and the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT). The announcement was made at ARTBA’s 35th annual P3s In Transportation conference, held at the Grand Hyatt hotel in Washington, D.C.”
“The Innovation of the Year award recognizes projects and organizations which demonstrate outstanding achievement in establishing, delivering, and operating P3 transportation projects in the United States.”
“The $3.7-billion multi-modal Transform 66 mega-project – among the largest P3 infrastructure projects in the US this century – won the competitive annual award for its innovative methods throughout the procurement and construction phases. Construction of the Transform 66 project is slated to be fully complete by the end of the summer of 2023.”
Some of the engineering innovations in the Transform 66 Outside the Beltway project include self-propelled modular transporter systems, advanced Lidar technology developed by Ferrovial Construction, and the rubblization of more than one million square yards of concrete pavement – one of the largest rubblization projects ever in the US – reducing the project’s carbon footprint by reusing rubblized concrete.
“The Transform 66 Outside the Beltway has required some smart innovations and out-of-the-box thinking,” said Luis Vazquez, CEO of I-66 EMP. “We’re proud to receive this P3 award from ARTBA, and we look forward to continuing a long, beneficial partnership with VDOT.”
With the region’s elected officials gathering at their annual retreat this Friday and Saturday, the Coalition for Smarter Growth continued to urge reform of the region’s transportation priorities.
A national poll of 2001 voters (90% of whom are drivers) released last week by Transportation for America revealed that two-thirds of Americans know highway expansions don’t cure traffic. Sixty-seven percent of American voters polled agreed that widening highways attract more people to drive, which creates more traffic in the long run, defeating the stated purpose for countless road expansion projects across the country.
In short, the public understands that “induced demand” is real, even if they are not aware of the term itself. Today, when officials in the DC region are planning for at least 900 more lane miles of highway and arterial road expansion and amid the ongoing debate over high-occupancy toll lanes for 495/270 in Maryland and 495 through Alexandria, the Coalition for Smarter Growth (CSG) urged officials to reconsider these plans. “CSG’s Induced Demand fact sheet for local, regional, and state officials – released today – makes clear the failures of road expansion,” said Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth.
“Induced demand is the widely documented phenomenon in which widening major roads and highways results in more driving (vehicle miles traveled) that generally cancels out any congestion-reduction benefits in as little as five to ten years,” said Bill Pugh, Senior Policy Fellow for CSG and author of the fact sheet which draws upon numerous national and international studies and includes local DC area examples.
“Unfortunately, elected officials in the DC region continue to propose over 900 lane miles of major road expansion and continue to ignore the reality that it won’t work,” said Schwartz. “They will end up wasting billions of tax dollars and make our quality of life worse, not better.”
The Council of Governments’ Transportation Planning Board is currently developing its Visualize 2050 regional “constrained” long-range transportation plan1 (the existing 2045 plan includes 900 lane miles in road expansion), and in Northern Virginia right now, counties and cities are submitting project applications for funding through the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority.
CSG has previously shown in its “On the Wrong Road” report that the NVTAuthority’s “unconstrained” Transaction 2050 plan would add 1000 lane miles of roads in Northern Virginia alone and induce growth in driving at 1.5 to 3 times the rate of population growth in the outer suburbs. The NVTAuthority has allocated over half of its regional funding to road capacity expansion projects, even though the agency’s own Technology Strategic Plan acknowledges the reality of induced demand.
Stewart Schwartz
Executive Director, Coalition for Smarter Growth
Editors note: Potomac Local News aims to share opinions on issues of local importance from a diverse range of residents across all our communities. If you’ve recently spoken at a Board of County Supervisors meeting, send us a typed copy of your remarks for publication to [email protected].
"During the single lane closure between 8 p.m. and 12 a.m., the 95 Express Lanes will be traveling southbound. The Lanes are regularly closed between 12 a.m. and 2 a.m. on weeknights for southbound to northbound reversal. When the reversal is complete, the entry points near Courthouse Road and near Garrisonville Road will remain closed until 4 a.m. The southern most entry point into the 95 Express Lanes during this time will be near Dumfries Road."
"Travelers are reminded to avoid distractions, reduce speeds, and stay alert for signage directing traffic."
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Press release: "Bolstering a relationship begun during the company’s clothing drive last winter, I-66 Express Mobility Partners (EMP) presented a check of $5000 to Prince William-based Boxes of Basics at a ceremony this morning at the not-for-profit organization’s offices in Manassas."
"The donation merits EMP the status of Silver Sponsor for 2023 and furthers Boxes of Basics’ mission of providing essentials – including clothing, school supplies, and personal hygiene items – to under-served children across Prince William County."
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“During the single lane closure between 8 p.m. and 12 a.m., the 95 Express Lanes will be traveling southbound. The Lanes are regularly closed between 12 a.m. and 2 a.m. on weeknights for southbound to northbound reversal. When the reversal is complete, the entry points near Courthouse Road and near Garrisonville Road will remain closed until 4 a.m. The southern most entry point into the 95 Express Lanes during this time will be near Dumfries Road.”
“To make traveling through the I-95 corridor in Stafford County easier and faster, the Fredericksburg Extension (Fred Ex) will pick up where the 95 Express Lanes currently end and will extend 10 miles south near Fredericksburg, VA. The lengthened lanes will connect with the 395 Express Lanes to create a connected corridor spanning nearly 50 miles from the Fredericksburg area to the D.C. line.”
The Interstate 95 and 395 E-ZPass Express Lanes operators announced changes to the reversal schedule ahead of Memorial Day weekend.
Higher than-average traffic volumes are expected for the weekend.Thursday, May 25 and Friday, May 26: Mid-day reversal begins 30 minutes earlier at 10:30 a.m. Lanes open southbound by about 12:30 p.m. Saturday, May 27: Standard Saturday schedule. Lanes run southbound until mid-day reversal at 2 p.m. Lanes open northbound by about 4 p.m. Sunday, May 28: Standard Sunday schedule. Lanes run northbound, no reversal. Monday, May 29: Lanes run northbound, no reversal.Significant getaway traffic on I-95 is expected to begin as early as Wednesday, May 24. By taking the 95 Express Lanes, we anticipate drivers can save as many as 60 minutes.
This year, traffic will likely be heaviest on Thursday, May 25. If you’re headed south, the best times to travel are:
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