Thursday, March 28, 2013
Seven new locations will show miles and minutes to destinations beginning in April with additional signs expected by summer.
How slow can you go? That and other questions will be answered beginning Tuesday on Interstate 66, when motorists will begin to see travel times displayed on additional overhead message boards spanning the 35 miles from Washington to Haymarket. The Virginia Department of Transportation has posted the number of miles and minutes since August 2011 to key destinations at three locations between the Beltway and Gainsville. Several more locations will be added by summer — two on I-66 and four locations on major roads approaching I-66. Congestion Conundrum: Rail or Roads? We already know traffic in the Washington metro area is the worst in the country, according to the Texas Transportation Institute. How to alleviate congestion in Northern …
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Expect Northern Virginia roadways with 2+ inches of snow to be plowed and/or treated with chemicals.
The Virginia Department of Transportation is sending out 4,000 salt trucks and snow plows across Northern Virginia before 4 a.m. on Wednesday morning ahead of the snow storm coming to Northern Virginia. Once it begins snowing and later, you can find out when your street will be plowed by checking the VDOT Web site. Area roads are expected to be treacherously slick due to snowfall, and VDOT is tasked with maintaining 17,679 miles of roadways in Fairfax, Loudoun, Prince William and Arlington counties. “We are urging commuters to stay off the road on Wednesday and let our crews clear the roads,” VDOT maintenance engineer Branco Vlacich said in a press release. “Roads likely will be treacherous at times.” Major routes are treated with …
The high-tech system will span 34 miles of roadway along I-66 from the District of Columbia to Haymarket, Va.
The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and Governor Bob McDonnell announced a new high-tech system coming to Virginia's I-66 that is meant to help reduce congestion through better communication with drivers and improved traffic flow via lane control signs. The system, known as Active Traffic Management (ATM), is relatively new to American roadways, though it has been used on highways throughout Europe. "Conditions on I-66 in Northern Virginia demand the deployment of this innovative technology and commuters will benefit from improved safety and increased communication during incidents and congestion," Governor Bob McDonnell said in a press release. ATM systems continuously monitor traffic with high-tech tools like vehicle-…
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Project to widen bridge over Dulles Toll Road and add pedestrian facilities begins Friday, creating a single-lane traffic pattern through May 31.
A $3.4 million project to improve the Beulah Road bridge begins Friday, reducing the crossing over the Dulles Toll Road to a single lane for the next three months. On Friday, crews will install two temporary traffic signals on either end of the bridge on Beulah Road, which will direct traffic until the project is completed. Michael Gleasman, a Virginia Department of Transportation engineer, said the bridge is being widened to improve shoulder width and add pedestrian facilities. The bridge, which opened in September 1963, has never seen such a major overhaul; crews did routine maintenance repair, like deck patching, overlay and replacing elastometric joints, in 1996, Gleasman said. As it stands, the bridge has no pedestrian facilities. …
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
County needs 350 commitments to the plates before the Virginia Department Of Transportation will produce them.
Fairfax County residents will soon get to flex some county pride on their vehicles. The Board of Supervisors approved Tuesday the design for the county license plate they signed off on earlier this month. The plate will feature the county seal, county map and website links for the county government and Visit Fairfax, the county’s convention and visitor bureau. The license plates will cost $25 a year. The state will retain $10 of that price and the remaining $15 will go towards the plate sponsor, the county says. The initial county proceeds from the plates will go towards the World Police and Fire Games, which the county is hosting in 2015. From 2016 on, proceeds will go to Visit Fairfax to raise money for advertising and tourism. Officials…
Thursday, January 24, 2013
More than 500 trucks will be out salting roads, officials say.
Northern Virginia woke up to a blanket of snow Thursday and began preparing for the Round 2 forecasted for Friday. Weather forecasters say to expect more snow to start falling between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. Friday. There is a 70 percent chance that Northern Virginia will get hit with snow, said Steve Goldstein, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. He said it won’t be a lot, but will fall throughout Friday's rush hour. “We’re looking at another inch or maybe an inch and a half,” Goldstein said. The region was coated with about an inch of snow Thursday morning. Virginia Department of Transportation salted main roads to help ease the morning commute. Joan Morris, a spokeswoman for VDOT, said crews will pre-treat main roads Thursday …
Sunday, November 25, 2012
Department says new technology will allow officials to track plows, redirect them to emergencies this winter.
When Northern Virginia gets snow this winter, the Virginia Department of Transportation says it's ready to meet it head-on, with a $55 million budget and new resources, including technology that allows for more efficient plowing and an increased road-salt supply. At a briefing about the department's winter preparedness plans Wednesday in Fairfax, Branco Vlacich, VDOT’s Northern Virginia maintenance engineer, said 4,000 trucks would be available to plow snow and keep roads clear this winter — 1,000 more trucks than VDOT had during the harsh winter of 2010. About 2,200 of the 4,000 trucks will be equipped with Automatic Vehicle Locator (AVL) technology, enabling officials to locate plow trucks are and deploy them to the nearest emergency …
Saturday, September 8, 2012
Virginia Department of Transportation releases new aerial photos of Metro construction through Tysons Corner
Nearly all commuters and residents passing through Tysons Corner have seen progress on Metro's Silver Line from the ground. Now, the Virginia Department of Transportation is offering a glimpse of construction from the top. The agency released aerial photos of the developing railway this week, which snakes from Falls Church through McLean, Tysons and Reston. It will eventually continue through Herndon and Dulles Airport. For a glimpse of VDOT's photo set, click through the gallery above. See also: Silver Line Phase 2 Bidding Begins Silver Line Guideway Complete, A Major Milestone for Rail to Dulles Loudoun Opts In On Metro More
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
State to fund $1.2 million project on 0.3 mile stretch between Walker, Patrick streets
Drivers who use Cottage Street on their commute will be redirected, as the Virginia Department of Transportation begins reconstruction work Wednesday. Contracted crews from Fort Myer Construction will begin work Wednesday on a 0.3 mile stretch of Cottage Street, between Walker and Patrick streets, for new sidewalk, curb and gutter, entrances, drainage, utilities, sign replacement, asphalt pavement and pavement markings, according to VDOT. Drivers should follow a detour via Cedar Lane, Park Street and Kingsley Road. Cottage Street will remain accessible to local drivers. VDOT is funding the $1.2 million project, which is scheduled for a July 2013 completion date. The Town of Vienna twice readjusted its original request in 1995, which asked …
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
All drivers can use lanes on I-66 inside the Beltway during morning, afternoon rush
The Virginia Department of Transportation will again lift high occupancy vehicle (HOV) requirements of two or more passengers for Tuesday's heaviest traffic hours. In the morning, commuters on eastbound Interstate 66 inside the Beltway may use the HOV lanes with no restrictions. In the afternoon, the requirements are lifted for westbound commuters. The HOV requirements will be in effect outside the Beltway and on I-95 and I-395.
Erica R. Hendry
11:32 pm on Saturday, September 8, 2012
Hi Amrish, the last update we ran said it will be completed in summer 2013, and start running in "late 2013." http://mclean.patch.com/articles/subway-construction-tops-70-percent-bridges-almost-done-all-stations-underway I'll see if I can get an update for you this week. Thanks for reading Erica more ›