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Virginia transportation officials are considering up to 11 miles of new express toll lanes on the Capital Beltway as they warn that already-frustrating trips near the Woodrow Wilson Bridge could become dramatically worse by 2050.
The Virginia Department of Transportation presented three possible paths for the southern stretch of Interstate 495 during public meetings on April 1, 2, 7 and 9. The study covers the Beltway from the Springfield interchange, where I-95, I-395 and I-495 meet, to the Route 210 interchange near National Harbor in Maryland.
VDOT’s traffic modeling projects severe delays if the highway remains unchanged. Westbound morning travel times could rise from 16 minutes to 52 minutes by 2050, while eastbound afternoon and evening trips could increase from 21 minutes to 54 minutes.
“Traffic conditions will get much worse,” Michelle Shropshire, VDOT’s Northern Virginia District megaprojects director, said at an April 1 meeting at West Potomac High School. She cited modeling from the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.
Three alternatives under consideration
VDOT is evaluating three options:
- Make no major changes to the highway.
- Add one express lane in each direction from Van Dorn Street to Route 210.
- Add two express lanes in each direction from Van Dorn Street to I-295.
Officials said none of the alternatives would eliminate existing travel lanes. The additions would be built within the available highway space, according to Shropshire.
Northern Virginia already has 94 miles of express or managed lanes. VDOT describes the Southside project as a way to close the last major gap in that network while offering more travel choices, easing congestion, improving safety and aligning the corridor with local and regional transportation plans.
More than 200,000 vehicles travel each day on average along I-495 between the Springfield interchange and I-295. VDOT estimates that during peak periods in 2050, one added lane in each direction could carry 1,600 more people, while two lanes could carry 2,400 more people.
Officials also said about half of today’s eastbound vehicles leave the Beltway at either Route 210 or I-295 in Maryland.
Drivers could enter or leave the proposed toll lanes at Van Dorn Street, U.S. 1, I-295 and Route 210. VDOT said the existing footprint of the U.S. 1 interchange would remain unchanged.
The project could also include new bicycle and pedestrian trails.
Holly Dougherty, president of the Mount Vernon Springfield Chamber of Commerce, welcomed the study and said the express lanes could become part of a broader transportation system supporting economic growth.
Questions over traffic, costs and future rail
Residents and transportation advocates raised concerns about financing, construction costs and VDOT’s traffic forecasts during the April 1 meeting.
Mount Vernon resident Greg Crider said VDOT appeared to be the only party at the meetings supporting the express lanes. He suggested the agency end the study and direct its resources elsewhere.
Stewart Schwartz, executive director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, argued that the study’s stated goal of extending the express lane network gives the toll-lane alternatives an advantage from the outset. He said that framing effectively excludes options centered on transit and transit-oriented development.
Schwartz also warned that additional highway capacity could attract more driving through a phenomenon known as induced demand. The Coalition for Smarter Growth maintains that the resulting traffic could erase congestion improvements within five to 10 years.
He further contended that the study does not adequately examine how the expansion could affect connecting roads, including U.S. 1, Telegraph Road and Van Dorn Street.
VDOT says space for Metrorail would remain
The Woodrow Wilson Bridge was designed with space that could eventually support transit or express lanes. VDOT officials said either construction alternative would preserve the possibility of adding Metrorail when regional leaders decide it is appropriate.
Agency documents say that rail preservation requirements would be incorporated into the federally reviewed environmental process. Any future agreement with a private concessionaire would also require the toll lanes to be convertible to rail transit.
Schwartz questioned whether those promises are strong enough. He said VDOT has not produced legally binding assurances that toll lanes would later be removed to make room for Metrorail, noting that future rail service was a major priority for the public, Alexandria and Prince George’s County during legal disputes over the bridge.
Mount Vernon Supervisor Dan Storck told residents that no final decision had been made and encouraged them to remain involved and press officials for answers.
Public comments were due April 21. A hearing on VDOT’s preferred alternative was scheduled for June, followed by a regional transportation planning board decision in mid- to late 2025. A hearing on the final environmental assessment was expected late in 2025, with a federal decision anticipated in early 2026.