The final phase of the $660 million, 2.5-mile Capital Beltway expansion in Virginia is in the home stretch after nearly four years.
Crews plan to mark another milestone on June 27 when they are scheduled to shift the Outer Loop southbound lanes to begin completion on a key phase of the project.
“Workers have to get those lanes shifted so they can start to work on the express lanes, which are built in the middle section of the Beltway,” Michelle Holland with the Virginia Department of Transportation told WTOP about the Interstate 495 Express Lanes Northern Extension project.
This will allow workers to begin working and laying concrete in the middle section of the highway’s new southbound express lanes.
VDOT said the traffic shift in the southbound lanes will be completed in two phases. First, the southbound Beltway lanes from the George Washington Parkway to Georgetown Pike are scheduled to be shifted on June 27. In case of weather delays, June 28 and June 29 will serve as backup dates. Second, all southbound Beltway lanes from Georgetown Pike to Old Dominion Drive and Lewinsville Road will be shifted after the July 4 holiday weekend.
A similar shift on the northbound lanes took place in May.
The completed expansion will maintain the existing four lanes in either direction. But this project is adding two southbound and two northbound express lanes, in a partnership between VDOT and Transurban.
With highway workers on the roadway, VDOT is urging motorists to be vigilant, slow down, avoid distractions and drive with a sense of heightened caution as they navigate the new Beltway lanes, and as construction increases in the center of the roadway.
VDOT also cautions that as construction continues along that portion of the highway, motorists should expect traffic pattern adjustments, narrowed shoulders and additional lane closures during non-peak travel times.
In addition to the two new express lanes in either direction, I-495 will see other improvements including the construction of new ramps, new stormwater drainage and new toll infrastructure.
The project remains on track to finish later this year, extending the existing 14-mile 495 Express Lanes from near the Dulles Corridor Interchange to the George Washington Parkway in proximity of the American Legion Bridge, VDOT told WTOP. New ramps will provide express lanes access at Dulles Toll Road and GW Parkway.
“We’ve got about six more months of major construction on the Beltway to get the new express lanes completed and open by the end of the year,” Holland said. “The 495 Next project is really far along, in terms of construction.”
While the highway portion of the roadway is expected to be finished in less than six months, there will be more work, including the completion of a new bike and pedestrian trail and a new parking area for Scott’s Run Nature Preserve, which is scheduled to be finished mid-2026.
VDOT said it is keeping motorists up to date about the status of the construction project online.
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