WASHINGTON — Maryland Governor Larry Hogan and Virginia Governor Ralph Northam shared a major transportation announcement at the 2019 Capital Region Transportation Forum on Tuesday morning.
The governors announced that they've reached a historic landmark agreement which will finally address the gridlock and congestion on the Capital Beltway for the national capital region.
Maryland and Virginia will work together to expand the American Legion Bridge to reduce traffic and present a better quality of life for their residents and the climate.
According to a study conducted by the state of Virginia, the American Legion Bridge was the busiest and most congested roadway. It is expected to see the most growth in traffic in the next 10 years.
Hogan said the governors have noticed that the congestion problem is getting worse. He said traffic in the national capital region is expected to increase by 74 percent by 2040.
"Governor Northam and I understand that the problem of the region can not truly be solved unless our states work together to address this interstate highway system as a whole," Hogan said.
So in an effort to resolve the problem, the two states have negotiated to advance a new beltway which will modernize the current beltway and connect the two states with a new American Legion Bridge.
"The result will be less traffic, more peace of mind, cleaner air, and a better quality of life for hundreds of thousands of area residents and commuters for decades to come," Hogan said.
Hogans said the new bridge will expand the transit capabilities, improve I-270, end congestion on the beltway, help economic growth, and environmental issues in the region to improve both sides of the Potomac.
Under the Capital Beltway accordance, Maryland owns 79% of the bridge, so the state will take the lead to build and expand the American Legion Bridge by continuing to improve I-495 from the Potomac River to the interchange with I-95 North.
The state will also be responsible for toll lanes traveling South.
Virginia owns 21% of the bridge so they will take the lead to complete a 90-mile lane network leading up to the bridge. The state will also create North toll lanes.
The new bridge structure is expected to have a total of 12 lanes. Of those lanes, four will be express tolling lanes with two on each side.
Top transportation officials believe the road project will have minimal impact on homes in the area surrounding the development; as they said about 34 homes may be impacted by the building, with no homes impacted in Maryland.
The states will use P3 program funding to finance the new development.
Uber also announced an initiative to help with congestion in the area. The company said in an effort to get more people to consider transit they have developed a new feature on their app that can view transit routes and monitor metro rail and buses across the DMV area.
The bridge groundbreaking is expected to start in 2022. The states are waiting for approval from the Board of Public Works.