495 NEXT Project Endorsed By Fairfax Supervisors In 8-2 Vote

MCLEAN, VA — On Tuesday, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted 8-2 to approve a letter endorsing the 495 Northern Extension (NEXT) project. Dranesville District Supervisor John Foust and Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn voted against the endorsement.

The 495 NEXT project will extend the 495 Express Lanes by about three miles from the I-495 and Dulles Toll Road interchange to the area of the American Legion Bridge. This is the last section of the Beltway in Virginia to receive Express Lanes. The project will also add general purpose auxiliary lanes between Route 267 and Route 193, improve the I-495 interchanges between Route 123 and the George Washington Memorial Parkway, reconstruct the I-495 overpasses at Old Dominion Drive and Live Oak Drive, and prepare for the American Legion Bridge expansion in Maryland. The project's goals are to reduce congestion, improve safety, provide another travel choice, and boost travel reliability.

Maryland is proposing its own project for Express Lanes on the Beltway and I-270, but The Washington Post reported that a comprehensive agreement hasn't been finalized for its Express Lanes. Virginia and Maryland previously reached an agreement to rebuild the American Legion Bridge.

The current timeline calls for 495 NEXT construction to start in 2022 and the Express Lanes to open in 2025. Maryland anticipates its Express Lane system could be operating in 2027.

Foust, the supervisor representing the McLean area, told the board he's personally lived with the congestion caused by American Legion bridge backups and supports widening or replacing the American Legion Bridge. But he doesn't believe 495 Next should be pursued until Maryland's project happens.

"I honestly believe that until Maryland replaces the bridge and widens its side of the Beltway, 495 Next provides those who can afford to pay the tolls a way to cut in line and arrive a few minutes sooner at the congestion at the bridge while adversely impacting everyone else," Foust told the board. "Without the Maryland project, 495 Next worsens traffic in the general purpose lanes."

Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay noted the endorsement letter was adjusted to emphasize the importance of Maryland completing its project. He believes the supervisors' endorsement cannot be conditional on the Maryland project, something local officials cannot control.

"Frankly delaying starting this project in Virginia of course just stretches the overall timeline of this project combined with the American Legion Bridge," said McKay.

Lee District Supervisor Rodney Lusk said Virginia and Maryland have similar interests in the projects, since people from Maryland come to work in Virginia via the American Legion Bridge, and vice versa.

"In Tysons and Reston and Herndon, we have employers that are recruiting people from Maryland, so Bethesda, and Chevy Chase and other parts of Maryland, to come to their locations, and they can't have those staff making a decision not to come to work because traffic is so bad," said Lusk. "We really recognize that this impacts retention and impacts the companies' ability to grow and expand."

The Board of Supervisors' endorsement letter will be sent to the Commonwealth Transportation Board as it will consider in May to designate the I-495 Northern Extension as Express Lanes, establish the high-occupancy requirement as HOV-3, and authorize the commissioner of highways to establish the conditions for use and negotiate with Capital Beltway Express LLS to finalize amendments for the I-495 Express Lanes agreement. According to The Post, the state is also awaiting a Federal Highway Administration decision on an environmental analysis for 495 NEXT.

Secretary of Transportation Shannon Valentine has also committed to $5.2 million for new buses for a Tysons-Montgomery County bus route and $2.2 million per year to operate the route. Adjustments to the Lewinsville Road Bridge over I-495 and a crosswalk with warning signals were also part of the secretary's commitment.