Capital Beltway High Occupancy Toll (HOT) Lanes, United States of America

The US Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has opened the 495 Express Lanes in Northern Virginia.

The $2bn project features two new high occupancy toll (HOT) lanes lanes in each direction on the Virginia side of Interstate 495 (I-495), which is also known as Capital Beltway and is one of the busiest roads in the region.

The 14-mile corridor expands the region’s high occupancy vehicle (HOV) network by linking with the planned Interstate 95 (I-95) HOV/HOT lanes, I-66 and the Dulles Toll Road.

The project involved the replacement of nearly $260m of old infrastructure, including 58 bridges and overpasses, upgradation of 12 key interchanges and new access points at Route 29/Lee Highway, Westpark Bridge and Jones Branch Drive.

US transportation secretary, Ray LaHood, said that the new lanes will lessen congestion, helping visitors, commuters and commerce move more efficiently around the Washington, DC metro area.

The project is a public-private partnership and received $588m funding under Virginia Department of Transportation’s (VDOT) Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) loan programme, $300m in federal aid and $600n in private activity bond authority, while the remaining funds were provided by VDOT and Capital Beltway Express, a joint venture of private companies Fluor and Transurban.

In addition to reducing congestion, the 495 Express Lanes are expected to improve access to Virginia’s largest employment centre, Tysons Corner, and Inova Fairfax Hospital.

"The new lanes will lessen congestion, helping visitors, commuters and commerce move more efficiently around the Washington, DC metro area."

While the fee to use the lanes will vary according to traffic volume, the state will use electronic tolling to ensure continuous movement of traffic. Carpools comprising three or more people can use the new lanes free of charge.

Federal Highway administrator Victor Mendez said that everybody driving in and around this highly congested area will benefit from these new lanes.

"This project created good jobs and will continue to support the region’s economic growth," Mendez added.

Construction of the h495 Express Lanes project generated over 16,000 jobs and $3.5bn of economic impact across the state.

Image: The new lanes are expected to ease traffic congestion on Capital Beltway, one of the busiest roads in the region. Photo: courtesy of VDOT.