The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) in the US has announced that TransCore, a unit of Pennsylvania-based conglomerate Roper Industries, will design and build its I-66 Active Traffic Management (ATM) system on Northern Virginia’s main highway into the District of Columbia.

This new contract, which is worth $34m, is 90% federally funded and will support 34 miles of highway from the District of Columbia to Gainesville US-29 in Prince William County.

The I-66 corridor is one of the most congested interstates in Virginia and across the country, and the use of ATM technology can ease mobility along the corridor, while increasing safety and reducing fuel consumption.

"The system will be managed by the VDOT Public Safety Transportation Operations Center."

The ATM system will constantly monitor traffic and roadway conditions, gathering data using roadway monitoring equipment, such as vehicle detection sensors and closed-circuit television cameras.

It will provide dynamic message and lane control signing to advise travellers about incidents and delays by providing directions on lanes that are usable and guidance on merging traffic.

The system will open up shoulder lanes in response to incidents and to manage traffic as well as offer enhanced monitoring of the roadway to provide fast response by transportation, safety and law enforcement officials.

The system will be managed by the VDOT Public Safety Transportation Operations Center. TransCore, which will serve as prime contractor, will offer turnkey ITS design, construction, integration and testing services for the scheme, which is expected to be operational by the fall of 2014.