US state of Virginia’s 495 Express Lanes to open as early as 17 November

The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) says the 495 Express Lanes -the 14-mile corridor of new high occupancy toll (HOT) lanes on the Virginia side of the Capital Beltway - will open as early as November 17, 2012. Drivers are being advised by VDOT that they will need an E-ZPass to use the 495 Express Lanes and an understanding of how they work before they can take advantage of them. “The 495 Express Lanes are on track to open earlier than expected in November which means drivers must take steps
November 7, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
The 5131 Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) says the 495 Express Lanes -the 14-mile corridor of new high occupancy toll (HOT) lanes on the Virginia side of the Capital Beltway - will open as early as November 17, 2012.

Drivers are being advised by VDOT that they will need an E-ZPass to use the 495 Express Lanes and an understanding of how they work before they can take advantage of them. 
 
“The 495 Express Lanes are on track to open earlier than expected in November which means drivers must take steps now to prepare to use the new lanes,” said VDOT commissioner Greg Whirley. “This facility will have a regional impact on all travellers. We need drivers to be prepared for the changes in traffic patterns and new rules of the road. If you plan to use the Express Lanes, make sure you are equipped with an E-ZPass.”

The 495 Express Lanes are two new high occupancy toll (HOT) lanes in each direction from the Springfield Interchange to just north of the Dulles Toll Road on the Virginia side of the Capital Beltway. Drivers will need an E-ZPass to use the Express Lanes as there are no toll booths or options to pay cash. Carpoolers will need the new E-ZPass FlexSM to permit a toll-free trip on the Express Lanes.

“The 495 Express Lanes will be easy to use, but this is the first road of its kind in the region,” said Tim Steinhilber, 891 Transurban’s general manager for the 495 Express Lanes Project.  “Drivers need to educate themselves on how to use the lanes and make sure they are equipped with an E-ZPass so they can take advantage of a faster, more predictable trip.  We have developed a number of resources to help drivers learn about the lanes and strongly encourage all Northern Virginia drivers to take advantage of these tools.”

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Get paid faster for your work by being efficient, optimised, and careful with resources… get connected now
    September 1, 2023
    In this, the third roundtable meeting in World Highways’ series of Connected Construction discussions, Guy Woodford discusses the implications of developments in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine control with world-class experts in their field. Find out what Elwyn McLachlan, vice president of Civil Solutions at Trimble, Murray Lodge, senior vice president and general manager of Construction at Topcon Positioning Group, and Magnus Thibblin, vice president Heavy Construction at Hexagon Geosystems have to say about how you should be positioning your company for a successful future.
    Read More
  • The drive for US road funding: will corporate America get a seat?
    September 13, 2017
    Trumponomics aims to use public money for pump-priming an even greater amount of cash from the private sector to improve America’s crumbling roads. But is political will matching corporate America’s enthusiasm for more private investment, asks David Arminas If there were ever a test case for comparing public-private partnerships and design-build contracts, the recently completed Ohio River Bridges Project is it (see previous article).
    Read More
  • Free flow tolling technology is booming
    April 10, 2013
    Jon Masters reports on the latest moves in the free-flow tolling segment. Free-flow tolling of roads and discrete infrastructure, such as bridges and tunnels, is an area of transportation that appears to be booming. Tolling in general is on the up, often still as a means for funding road projects where public sector budgets can no longer cover the necessary costs, but not exclusively so. Several high profile examples of road user charging for ‘demand management’ – the reduction of congestion as part of a wi
    Read More
  • Road user subscriptions will fund the road ecosystems of the future says ERF Lab
    December 14, 2018
    The highway of the future will not be a physical asset created and maintained by the construction industry … it will increasingly be seen as part of an emerging global services sector. “Every day we hear about Mobility as a Service (MaaS), but what about Roads as a Service?” says Christophe Nicodème, general director of the European Union Road Federation (ERF). “The role of the road is changing. We need to think much more carefully about planning (highway) infrastructure in terms of people’s needs. We must
    Read More

Highlighted Content