FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — It's a big day for commuters in Virginia. The I-95 Express Lanes extension is now open to drivers.
Gov. Glenn Youngkin and Commonwealth transportation officials cut the ribbon on a years-long transportation project on Wednesday. The governor called it "one of the most challenging stretches of highway in the nation."
The extension allows drivers to quickly travel from Fredericksburg to Northern Virginia. It picks up where the existing lanes end in Stafford at Route 610, and extends all the way to Route 17 in Fredericksburg.
"We want to do the best we can to open up that travel and really unlock gridlock in one of the fastest growing places on 95," said Mike McGurk, spokesperson for Transurban.
The goal of the new "95 Express Lanes" is to reduce congestion on a corridor that is known as one of the worst bottlenecks in the DMV region.
“This extension provides 10 miles of new interstate capacity to consistently move people and goods between the Richmond and Northern Virginia regions and delivers new ridesharing opportunities for people living and working in the Fredericksburg region,” said VDOT Commissioner Stephen Brich.
From groundbreaking to completion, the extension is expected to deliver economic development benefits to the Fredericksburg and Stafford communities by creating more than 9,100 jobs, generating $1.1 billion in economic activity, and investing over $75 million in procurement from DBE and SWaM-designated businesses.
“Our robust economy is getting another boost today as the 95 Express Lanes provide faster, more reliable transportation along one of the Commonwealth’s busiest stretches of highway,” Youngkin said in a statement.
The extended Express Lanes is a project about a year behind schedule, but will connect with the Rappahannock River Crossing projects currently under construction in the Fredericksburg area. The Crossing projects are on budget, according to VDOT and expected to be completed on time in 2024.