See, if you move urban, you won’t pay so much, and you can use public transit.
$17.00 will pay for an alternate route.
After four full days of Express Lanes on I-66 Inside the Beltway, the Virginia Department of Transportation reports that morning and afternoon commutes on Monday, Dec. 4, were faster than the same time last December.
The average round-trip toll price during peak hours was $14.50, with the average morning toll during peak hours of $10.70 and average afternoon toll during the peak hours of $3.80. This toll rate during peak hours is lower than the estimated average toll rate of $17.00 during peak hours discussed in 2015, as shown in the table.
Further analysis of the Monday morning rush hours indicates the following:
· A total of 13,473 vehicles used I-66 Inside the Beltway between the hours of 5:30-9:30 a.m.;
· Of this total 5,082 or 38% were carpoolers who traveled free;
· Only 39 vehicles, or 0.29%, paid the posted highest toll of $34.50;
· 34% of vehicles paid less than $10; and,
· Travel times were 10-12 minutes compared with 15-30 minutes last December.
Further analysis of the Monday afternoon rush hours indicates the following:
· A total of 16,307 vehicles used I-66 Inside the Beltway between the hours of 3:00-7:00 p.m.;
· Of this total 4,964 or 30% were carpoolers who traveled for free; and,
· Travel times were 10-12 minutes compared with 10-20 minutes last December.
“Contrary to the continued political rhetoric of critics, I-66 Inside the Beltway Express Lanes tolls have been based on sound planning and with the ultimate goal of improving travel for everyone,” said Secretary of Transportation Aubrey Layne. “We want to move more people, improve connectivity and provide additional travel choices. This is about unlocking gridlock on I-66 as Governor McAuliffe pledged.”
Additional data from Monday commute shows that travel on parallel routes such as Route 50, Route 29 and Route 7 were either similar or improved compared with last December. There was an incident that closed two of three lanes of traffic on Route 50 Monday evening that resulted in longer travel times for a period of time. Detailed travel time charts for these routes along with Interstate 66 are included at the end of this release.
VDOT is committed to transparency in the operation of the Interstate 66 Express Lanes and will release similar information over the coming days. VDOT is responsible for operating and maintaining the I-66 Express Lanes Inside the Beltway. A period of approximately three days is needed for tolling operators to process each vehicle trip on the Express Lanes, which provide information such as traffic volumes and toll pricing.
The Express Lanes, which allow any solo driver the ability to use I-66 Inside the Beltway legally for the first time ever during rush hours, are part of a comprehensive multimodal set of improvements to the I-66 corridor. Other key elements, which are moving ahead, include widening I-66 from the Dulles Toll Road to Ballston, and continued investments in new transit service and other services like carpooling incentives.
Update on I-66 Eastbound Widening Initiative:
On Thursday, Dec. 7, VDOT awarded an $85.7 million contract to Lane Construction Corporation of Chantilly to add an additional through lane along four miles of eastbound Interstate 66 between the Dulles Connector Road (Route 267) and Fairfax Drive (Route 237) in Fairfax and Arlington Counties.
The project includes ramp modifications at Exits 69 and 71, rehabilitation and/or repairs to bridges, construction of noise barriers eastbound and westbound and widening bridges and constructing a new grade-separated crossing of the Washington & Old Dominion (W&OD) Trail at Lee Highway.
Additionally, an auxiliary lane will be added to the existing I-66 eastbound exit ramp and a slip ramp will be constructed from the I-66 eastbound exit ramp to the Route 7 southbound entrance flyover ramp, providing more direct access to the West Falls Church Metro Station Parking Garage.
The additional eastbound lane will be open to traffic in fall 2020 and the overall project is expected to be complete in fall 2021.
Update on I-66 Commuter Choice Program and New Transit Services and Multimodal Improvements Benefitting I-66 Corridor:
Toll revenue generated from the I-66 Inside the Beltway Express Lanes supports the I-66 Commuter Choice Program run by the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission. All toll revenues after operating costs will be allocated to transit and other multimodal initiatives that provide a direct benefit for those who travel on the I-66 corridor by the Commission.
In July 2016, the Commonwealth approved $10 million to fund the initial group of multimodal improvements for I-66 Inside the Beltway. This proactive approach allowed VDOT, the Department of Rail and Public Transportation, the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission, local government and key stakeholders to advance ten meaningful multimodal projects that will ultimately move an extra 5,000 people through the corridor each morning.
The initial projects, which are in effect now, encompass Prince William, Loudoun, Fairfax, and Arlington counties and the City of Falls Church. Transit services include three new bus routes, increased service on two existing routes and last-mile connections to Metrorail stations, new bikeshare stations near Metro, as well as a new park-and-ride lot in Aldie that will support current and future bus service. Additional projects launched include real-time traveler information and transportation demand management services that provide incentives to use transit or carpools.
The process to identify and select the next set of multimodal improvement projects is underway currently. Local governments have until Dec. 22, 2017, to submit projects for consideration. The Commission is expected to vote on its recommendations in the Spring, with final action by the Commonwealth Transportation Board shortly thereafter.
They will lie their azzes off. Trust but verify at least ten times.
By Kerry Clines
A groundbreaking ceremony on Monday marked the beginning of a $3.7 billion dollar highway project that will expand Interstate 66 to 10 lanes — three regular and two express lanes in each direction — outside of the Beltway in northern Virginia, wtop.com reports. The project includes plans for major interchange improvements, park-and-ride lots, and accommodations for bicyclists and pedestrians.
During the event, Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe praised the public-private partnership that has Express Mobility Partners designing, building, operating and maintaining the Express Lanes in exchange for toll revenues for at least 50 years. “We are now transforming the most congested area, the most congested road in the United States of America,” he said, according to the news agency, adding that the private consortium is tapping private and federal government transportation loans so no taxpayer money would be used on the project.
“We are taking a significant step today about moving more people, giving them more travel options so that they can go faster and more [reliably] on all different modes of transportation on I-66.”
Transportation Secretary Aubrey Layne said the express lanes would reduce congestion and increase reliable travel times. “Our goal here is to move more people through the I-66 corridor, and the improvements we’re putting in place today will do just that,” Layne said, according to the news agency.
The Express Lanes will rely on dynamic pricing — tolls will rise based on demand, with rising prices intended to avert some traffic to keep the lanes flowing. The project is scheduled to be completed in 2022.
By: Virginia Business
Construction is set to begin soon on the widening of Interstate 66 outside the Beltway.
The public-private partnership will include $3.7 billion in transportation improvements to the Interstate 66 corridor in Northern Virginia.
Plans include adding two express lanes in each direction alongside three regular lanes from the Beltway to University Boulevard near Route 29 in Gainesville. The express lanes will include tolls that vary depending on traffic conditions. The project will include space in the median that will be reserved for future transit.
The project also includes 4,000 park and ride spaces, new and expanded commuter bus service throughout the corridor, safety and operational improvements at key interchanges, auxiliary lanes between interchanges, and bicycle and pedestrian paths and connections.
Under a 50-year partnership agreement, I-66 Express Mobility Partners (I-66 EMP) assumes responsibility for all costs to design, build, operate and maintain the 66 Express Lanes. It requires EMP to pay $800 million for transit service in the corridor and $350 million in other projects to improve the I-66 corridor over the next 50 years.
I-66 EMP is a consortium of Cintra, Meridiam Infrastructure, John Laing Group Plc. and APG, and their design-build contractor, FAM Construction LLC, a partnership between Ferrovial Agroman US and Allan Myers.
The project’s financial close was reached on Nov. 9, securing the funding necessary to move forward.
I-66 EMP also will give the commonwealth a payment of $579 million to fund additional transportation improvements in the corridor. With input from local jurisdictions, the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority developed a list of recommended transportation projects for funding from this concession payment, which will be voted on in January 2018 by Virginia’s Commonwealth Transportation Board.
Among the recommended projects that the board will consider are an interchange at Route 234 and Balls Ford Road in Prince William, capacity improvements on the VRE Manassas line, and a new bus facility in Manassas.
“Today marks the beginning of the transformation that will take place on I-66 Outside the beltway over the next several years,” Javier Gutierrez, CEO for I-66 Express Mobility Partners, said in a statement. “When completed in 2022, we will be moving more people and offering more travel options on a safer and more efficient highway, and this will directly contribute to enhanced quality of life for people on this vital transportation corridor.”
It is beyond my comprehension that anyone would willingly or want to live in an area like that, with that kind of traffic EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.
The great thing about tolls is that they’re only used to pay for the highway. So if it’s $40 to travel 10 miles, that must be one hell of a highway - maybe gold-lined?
If some young reporter wants to turn over a few stones, they’d put in a Freedom of Information Act request to find out who gets to ride these tolls lanes for free.
I’d suspect most of the ‘movers and shakers’ in DC, along with their spouses and secretaries. For starters.
Some in Austin, TX have been double that. Flip burgers at $15/hr for four days and you’ll have used a whole day’s pay to get to work on Friday.