I-95 Bi-Directional Express Lanes/US1 brt lane repurpose (PWC)

Based on the current traffic counts, a four lane configuration is sufficient for Route 1 in Prince William County. These traffic counts include significant spillover traffic from I-95 due to the interstate congestion reliability being five times worse than any other place in the commonwealth. VDOT and PWC Transportation have been slowly expanding segments of Route 1 to six lanes to account for “future” growth. The real benefits of these improvements are intersection geometry, Ped/Bike infrastructure and traffic light system upgrades.

The unfortunate aspects of a massive six lane corridor is it induces more vehicle trips and enables higher vehicle speeds which makes the corridor hostile to active transportation and transit. This is not an equitable solution and reduces place making opportunities along the corridor.

If PWC are serious about making Route 1 a livable equitable corridor, Route 1 needs to be repurposed from six general purpose lanes to four general purpose lanes and two bus only or BAT [Business Access and Transit] lanes between the future North Woodbridge Town Center and the future Dumfries Town Center.

To reduce “future” peak period VMT on Route 1, additional improvements to I-95 are necessary. The best solution is to develop bi-directional HOT Express Lanes on I-95 between Joplin Rd and the area north of the Prince William Parkway. This along with planned improvements around the I-95/VA123 Interchange will reduce unwanted “through” traffic from the Route 1 corridor in PWC. This creates a configuration with 2 Express Lanes and 3 General Purpose Lanes in each direction along with various auxiliary lanes along the corridor. The managed express lanes allow for guaranteed travel time reliability 24 hours a day in both directions in PWC along I-95

The current PWC comprehensive plan for I-95 calls for an additional general purpose lane in each direction and an additional reversible express lane. This is not valid because the I-95 express lane contract includes a significant penalty if additional general purpose lanes are added to the corridor. Also of note, the same penalty is in place for expansion of Route 1 over the Occoquan beyond the existing four general purpose lanes already in place.

VDOT has proposed a managed hard shoulder lane to improve traffic flow along the corridor in the opposite direction of the express lane's flow. In general, this concept is confusing for people to understand and will lead to more accidents and more spillover traffic on to Route 1 (I-66 had a similar configuration with a high accident count that is being removed by the bi-directional express lane project in that area.) This managed hard shoulder lane concept may be more feasible in Stafford County with the access points further apart and lower overall traffic volumes.

The cost of the adding two additional express lanes to complete the bi-directional configuration is ~$300M. The cost of repurposing Route 1 to a Through Boulevard with 4 General Purpose Lanes and 2 Bus Lanes between Annapolis Way-Cardinal Drive and Route 234-Main St. is ~$50M. Staying within the existing six lane footprint significantly reduces construction costs. The cost of upgrading Route 1 to a Through Boulevard with 4 General Purpose Lanes and 2 Bus Lanes between Cardinal Drive and Route 234 is ~$150M. This package of improvements could be funded by the additional I-95 toll revenue.

The cost of upgrading Route 1 to Through Boulevard with 6 General Purpose Lanes and 2 Bus Lanes between Annapolis Way and Main St. will be over $1 Billion. The planned Fairfax BRT/Widening project is currently projected at $1.145 Billion.