Steve Burns
WMAL.com
VIRGINIA BEACH – (WMAL) The Commonwealth Transportation Board unanimously voted to approve plans adding High Occupancy Toll lanes to Interstate 66 from Haymarket to the Beltway, giving thumbs up to the original plan that includes three free lanes and two HOT lanes in each direction.
“We’re not done, but it is time for us to give the team the approval to move forward with the project in terms of the way it’s planned,” State Secretary of Transportation Aubrey Lane said. “We have a lot more to do.”
Detractors made the trek to Virginia Beach to voice their opposition, including Greg Scott with the 66 Alliance. “A wide range of Northern Virginia elected officials…have heard the loud objections of commuters, and are weighing in against the V-DOT 66 plan,” he said. He mentioned his group’s overall support of the goal of decreasing congestion on the highway, but remained opposed to increasing the HOV threshold from two to three people per car (those cars would be able to ride the toll lanes for free), as well as eliminating the exemption for clean-energy cars.
Scott asked for the vote to be postponed to next month’s meeting, which takes place in Northern Virginia. “We are a week away from elections at this point. It is not surprising that elected representatives could not be here today to voice their opinions. I think you would hear a lot from them at your December meeting if you delay it until then.”
Lane responded, saying the Board cannot make every vote inside the affected jurisdiction. “That is not the role of this board,” he said.
“It’s a very long and complicated process, with many more approvals still to come,” said Robert Thomson, better known as the Washington Post’s Dr. Gridlock. “One of the key things on a parallel track is deciding how to finance the outside-the-Beltway portion. Will it be a Public-Private partnership as the other HOT Lanes projects were, or will Virginia take on responsibility for financing and operating the system?”
The outside-the-Beltway project is separate from the inside-the-Beltway plan, which has been subject to even more scrutiny. That plan calls for adding variable tolls to existing lanes without widening the road. The Board has yet to vote on that portion.
The Board also voted to postpone an action item that would have resulted in sending a letter to Maryland officials, urging action on alleviating congestion on the American Legion Bridge. They plan to take it up again at their next meeting in December.
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