The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) in the US has entered into an agreement with Australian firm Fluor-Transurban for the construction of high occupancy vehicle and high occupancy toll (HOV / HOT) lanes on Interstate-35, Northern Virginia.

Under the deal, private firm Fluor-Transurban will spend $843m and the state will allocate $97m initially to build the HOT lanes for the $940m project.

The project will expand the existing HOV lane on I-95 to create HOV / HOT lanes along 28 miles of the highway between Edsall Road in Fairfax County and Garrisonville Road in Stafford County.

The current HOV lanes end in Dumfries in Prince William County.

Construction work could commence next spring and the toll road will enable improved access to major Virginia employment centres and military sites upon its completion by 2015.

The project to connect with Fluor-Transurban’s Capital Beltway HOT lanes project is slated to be completed by the end of 2012.