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A community-organized carpool network plans to establish slugging operations along the I-66 corridor beginning in September 2026, offering commuters a free alternative to solo driving.

The I-66 Slugging Network, described as a coalition of residential groups and public agencies, will operate morning slug lines departing from two locations: the Monument Drive Commuter Parking Garage in Fair Oaks and the University Boulevard park-and-ride in Gainesville. Vehicles will serve four employment centers—Rosslyn, L’Enfant Plaza, Navy Yard, and Metro Center transit stations—before returning with afternoon reverse slug lines.

To use the I-66 Express Lanes toll-free, vehicles must carry at least three occupants and have an E-ZPass Flex switched to HOV mode. Organizers selected the pickup and drop-off locations based on commuter demand, express-lane access, direct-trip feasibility, and available backup transit options.

Organizers consulted with people involved in established slug lines along the I-95 and I-395 corridors near Springfield, though the two networks operate informally and are not directly affiliated.

“As return-to-office trends continue, organizers saw an opportunity to give more commuters a timesaving, free, and sustainable alternative to driving alone,” according to a network spokesperson.

The I-66 Slugging Challenge is scheduled to begin Sept. 14, with federal funding supporting an incentive program that will reward commuters for logging slugging trips. The challenge offers opportunities to win as much as $1,000 in prizes. The network has not announced a numerical participation target, though organizers say their long-term goal is to make slugging a reliable, continuing option for I-66 commuters.

The slugging network emerges as the I-66 Express Lanes continue operations following their 2022 extension outside the Capital Beltway from Dunn Loring to Route 29 in Gainesville.