Workers still active in 95 Express Lanes zone By Robert Thomson...

Workers still active in 95 Express Lanes zone






By Robert Thomson November 21 at 2:49 PM

The express lanes operations center, which has overseen the Beltway HOT lanes for two years, is preparing for the opening of the I-95 version in December. (Robert Thomson/The Washington Post)
The 95 Express Lanes are nearly ready to open, but the 29-mile-long work zone is still active with last-minute construction, said Michelle Holland, communications director for the Virginia Department of Transportation’s Megaprojects office.
So watch out for work crews and lane closings during the final preparations. This work is likely to be particularly intense during the December weekend when the high-occupancy toll lanes open. Workers already have begun to unveil some of the 300 new signs associated with the express lanes, but the final wave of sign-unveiling will occur during the opening weekend.
Project managers still have not announced an exact date for the start of HOT lane operations, and it will depend on the weather, but I think a good guess would be the weekend of Dec. 13-14, with the first commuting day in the lanes being Dec. 15, if my scenario proves correct. Virginia officials are planning a Dec. 10 ceremony to anticipate the opening, after 28 months of construction. Look here on the blog for frequent updates and FYIs, whatever the December opening date turns out to be.
Even after the lanes open, workers are likely to be in the area for many weeks finishing up. Another VDOT project directly related to the express lanes operation is the continuing work on the new auxiliary lane on the right side of northbound Interstate 395. This is the area where the northbound express lanes will end, and the auxiliary lane should help ease traffic there. The auxiliary lane is scheduled to be done by the end of December.
Officials with VDOT and Transurban, the company that will operate the 95 Express Lanes along with the two-year-old 495 Express Lanes on the Capital Beltway, say they are looking to make the December opening as smooth as possible, despite the complexities of opening some new entrances and exits and switching a portion of the existing HOV system used in peak periods to a full-time HOT lanes system.

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One example: Project managers are working on transferring the gate-keeping responsibilities at the lane access points from VDOT to Transurban. This is a crucial step, because the lanes will continue to be reversible. Because the new HOT lane system will have a direct link with the remaining part of the HOV system, Transurban will take over responsibility for all the gates along the HOV/HOT lane route, and the hours for operating either northbound or southbound will remain the same.
This weekend
From 11 p.m. Friday through 8 a.m. Saturday, VDOT plans to close the HOV lanes between the D.C. line and Dumfries Road (Route 234) for work on the express lanes project. The HOV lanes will close again at 11 p.m. Saturday, reopening at 4 a.m. Monday.
Looking forward to Thanksgiving, VDOT plans to suspend construction along the I-95 corridor, as well as elsewhere right around the holiday. But watch for work crews to be out again after the holiday has passed.

Robert Thomson is The Washington Post’s “Dr. Gridlock.” He answers travelers’ questions, listens to their complaints and shares their pain on the roads, trains and buses in the Washington region.