The Virginia Department of Transportation has commenced a yearlong study of ways to alleviate traffic congestion on Interstate 66. The study will “identify and explore a range of transportation improvements” along the highway west of the Capital Beltway to Route 15 in Prince William County. The possibilities include extending Metrorail, charging tolls and managing lanes to move in one direction during the morning commute, and the opposite direction in the evening.
The task is an enormous challenge, at best, and futile, at worst. Afternoon backups often begin before the Beltway and continue for miles as I-66 cuts westward through the suburbs of Vienna, Fairfax, Centreville and beyond.
Past efforts don’t leave much room for optimism. Options to alleviate congestion were considered as far back as 1999 but ran into strident opposition from residents whose communities would suffer from the necessary construction.
“At the time they were talking about two lanes that could be used reversibly, but even with that they were talking about taking more than 100 homes … and it would’ve done significant damage to some playing fields,” said Fairfax County Supervisor Linda Smyth, D-Providence.
Smyth, whose district is split by I-66, said the most feasible improvements would be those that don’t significantly increase the width of the highway.
“We need to extend Metro out 66 — that’s obvious,” she said. “But when you start thinking of the work that would need to be done for that to happen, I can’t imagine the price tag.”
The price tag has proven to be a dead end for past improvement studies, said Jeffrey Parnes, chairman of Fairfax County’s transportation advisory committee. Parnes attended public hearings last week held by VDOT to gather residents’ input on improving conditions on I-66.
“Will citizens be interested if they don’t think there’s any money for this?” he said.
VDOT expects a draft of the study to be completed by May, with final considerations to be set by the following December.
