Hearing set for proposed I-66 widening project
By Taryn Luntz
Examiner Staff Writer 10/5/08
The $75 million project, which has been in the works since 2004, would extend a third lane between on-ramps and off-ramps at three westbound sections of the highway.
The new 1- and 2-mile lanes would be exit-only, but would improve safety by providing drivers with more time to merge into and out of through lanes, officials said.
VDOT will hold a public hearing on the preliminary design at Washington and Lee High School in Arlington on Oct. 27.
The project has faced criticism from Arlington and Fairfax county residents who say it will attract more cars to the already congested highway and will create new bottlenecks as drivers dodge out of the extra lanes just before the forced exit.
Congestion could be better alleviated by enforcing HOV restrictions and using the project’s money instead for public transit initiatives, such as building a bus-only lane on the highway’s shoulder, said Alan Muchnick, president of the Arlington Coalition for Sensible Transportation.
“If you enforce the HOV requirements, I-66 is uncongested,” Muchnick said. “We’d like to see management. Management would do it.”
At public meetings, critics have also expressed concern about higher noise levels and a potential infringement on the Martha Custis bicycle trail that runs near the highway.
VDOT project manager Bud Siegel said the latest design proposal takes into account the public’s comments, but that it is still being revised and won’t be available for viewing until shortly before the Oct. 27 public meeting.
“We’re making sure that everything passes the common-sense test,” he said.
The Custis trail will not be impacted by the project, Siegel said.
4 Comments
Reader Comments:
POSTED Oct 6, 2008
Examiner reader: "It's Washington-Lee High School, not "Washington and Lee," but perhaps that's a quibble. More importantly, the story fails to mention that plans to widen I-66 have broad community support in Fairfax County, and the public appears to be split in Arlington."POSTED Oct 7, 2008
Anne: "Indeed, Washington - Lee. Residents of Fairfax seem to like the proposal. If I were still an Arlington resident, I know I'd be shaking my pitchfork in opposition. As a resident of Fairfax, I'm not sure what I think. I am concerned that the proposal may have an adverse effect upon Arlington neighborhoods and upon the Custis trail which runs along I-66 (I ride my bike more than I drive - a habit that I picked up in Arlington)."POSTED Oct 8, 2008
Ted Jones: "Funny, no mention of extremely heavy congestion on the city roads. I-66 needs to be opened up AND metro needs major reform since all it ever does is raise taxes and bilks the customer."POSTED Nov 13, 2008
jwc50: "This is way over due. Multiple I-66 Bottleneck points from the Potomac River all the way to past Haymarket have been long standing issues that never have been completely addressed."