FABB Blog

 

HOT Lanes project deal signed

According the Washington Post article Deals Clinched on HOT Lanes, “Virginia transportation officials announced late Thursday that they have finalized all the agreements needed to start construction in the spring on a $1.4 billion project to add HOT lanes on a 14-mile stretch of the Capital Beltway.” We have been working with Fairfax County to try to ensure that bicycle facilities, as outlined on the County Trails Plan, will be included in the project. VDOT and the County have been meeting to discuss proposed facilities and it sounds like many will be included.

We are still very concerned about the lack of information being provided to the public. We have not officially seen any plans for the HOT lanes bridges. From the VDOT press release issued yesterday, it will be VDOT's responsibility to rebuild the bridges over the Beltway. VDOT will:

Provide a $409 million financial grant to the project to support the construction of key elements including the final phase of the Springfield Interchange (Phase VIII), improvements to the I-66 interchange, participation in the regional congestion management plan and reconstruction of aging bridges on the Beltway.

It will be critical that bicyclists attend the public hearing this spring to speak out for bike facilities on the HOT lanes bridges. There won't be another chance in our lifetimes. VDOT is required to provide information to the public one month before the hearing. As soon as that information is available we will get the word out. To learn more about the project visit either the VDOT project page or the Fluor and Transurban project page, VirginiaHOTlanes.com posted by Bruce Wright at 9:47 AM permalink