Governor Youngkin and State Officials break ground on 495 Next Project

	Officials break ground on the 495 NEXT express lanes project.

Gov. Glenn Youngkin joined state and local officials Monday morning to break ground on a two-and-a-half-mile extension of the express lanes on Interstate 495 between the Dulles Corridor and the George Washington Memorial Parkway in Fairfax County.

The latest extension, known as the 495 Express Lanes Northern Extension or 495 NEXT, is part of Virginia’s 90-plus mile express lanes network planned for Northern Virginia.

The 495 NEXT project will add two new dynamically tolled express lanes in each direction, including new connections at the Dulles Corridor and the George Washington Memorial Parkway interchanges.

The project is expected to cut travel times for express lanes users by up to 50 percent, including for HOV 3+ and transit riders who can travel the lanes toll-free. It will also improve safety in the corridor by reducing crashes by an estimated 20 percent and limiting cut-through traffic in residential communities, according to a news release from the governor's office.

The project is estimated to generate more than $880 million in economic benefits and 6,300 jobs.

In the coming months, the 495 NEXT team will continue to refine and finalize the project’s design details, while crews continue early exploratory field activities such as surveying and begin to mobilize for full construction activities, which could start as early as this summer.

The new extended lanes are scheduled to open in 2025.