New details emerge on Beltway HOT lanes project

The HOT lanes project on the beltway is expected to be completed and operational by the end of 2012 or early in 2013. The project involves widening the 14-mile stretch of the beltway between the I-395 interchange and Old Dominion Road, with the middle lanes reserved for high-occupancy toll-paying vehicles, installing an electronic toll collection system based on traffic conditions, and replacing bridges and overpasses to accommodate a wider beltway.

Michelle Holland, public affairs manager for Transurban, the company in charge of developing the toll system in a public-private venture with VDOT, and Jamie Breme of Travesky & Associates, a public relations firm representing VDOT, gave an update on the project at the monthly Annandale Chamber of Commerce luncheon May 13 at the Jukebox Diner.

Here are some highlights from their presentation:

– Censors will be built into the highway to monitor traffic and set the per-mile toll charge. The greater the traffic congestion, the higher the toll. When the HOT lanes become operational, the maximum toll will be $1 per mile, but there is no cap.

– As you enter the HOT lanes, an electronic sensor mounted on an overhead gantry will read a transponder mounted on your dashboard. Once you enter the HOT lanes, your toll will be locked in at the amount displayed on overhead signs when you enter.

– Cars with three or more occupants won’t be charged toll. The driver will flip a switch on the transponder to indicate whether the car is high-occupancy and thus exempt from the toll.

– If you’re planning to use the HOT lanes you will have to purchase a transponder. The transponders will be compatible with any highway already using the E-ZPass toll system. You will be able to use a transponder you already have, but existing devices don’t have a switch to indicate whether you are carpooling. As a result, you will be charged even if you have three occupants.

– Cameras will catch drivers who falsely indicate they are carpooling. Transurban will pay for additional state troopers dedicated to monitoring the HOT lanes.

– Motorcycles and emergency vehicles will have free access to the HOT lanes. Large trucks will be barred from the HOT lanes, but small trucks could use them.

– Overhead signs will display information on traffic conditions. The system is designed to keep traffic moving on the HOT lanes at 55 mp. (We’ll be interested to see whether traffic will slow down as drivers decide whether they want to enter the HOT lanes or not.)

– An education campaign will be launched not only for Northern Virginia drivers but to cover the entire East Coast. “We anticipate there might be some confusion,” Holland says. Transurban and VDOT are educating taxi drivers, rental car companies, and hotels about the HOT lanes.

– By the end of this month traffic will be switched to new Braddock Road and Little River Turnpike bridges over the beltway. The new Gallows Road bridge is already in use. This summer, the portion of the beltway between Braddock and Gallows will be widened.

– During the construction period, the Little River bridge will have two lanes heading toward Fairfax and three lanes heading into Annandale, and the Gallows Road bridge has one lane heading toward Annandale and two heading north. This is resulting in increased congestion during the afternoon/evening commuting period.

– A new portable solar-powered camera at Woodburn Road near the hospital entrance allows the public to view traffic conditions online and plan their trips accordingly. There are several VDOT traffic cameras in the Annandale area accessible online. Click here to see a map of VDOT traffic cameras.

– By the end of 2010, 75 percent of the new soundwalls will be completed. More than 70,000 linear feet of soundwall will be installed, creating a barrier between the beltway and residential areas. Commercial areas bordering the beltway will remain open, which reduce the monotony of continuous walls. The new walls, constructed of concrete and rubber, will be better at absorbing sound than the old walls, which are made of tin.

– Eastbound and westbound drivers on Gallows Road will be able to access the HOT lanes heading north toward Tysons Corner (but not south toward Alexandria). Drivers heading south on the beltway HOT lanes will be able to exit on Gallows Road heading in both directions.

– Eastbound and westbound drivers on Braddock Road will have access to the northbound HOT lanes. Southbound drivers on the HOT lanes will be able to exit at Braddock Road in both directions.

– There will be no access to or from the HOT lanes at the Little River Turnpike exit.