The Virginia Department of Transportation is studying the idea of extending Express Lanes on I-495 from the I-95/I-395 interchange to across the Woodrow Wilson Bridge into Maryland.

If the 11-mile project passes muster and gets constructed, it would complete Express Lanes around the entire 25-mile Virginia side of the Beltway. Express Lanes are already on nearly 12 miles of the Beltway and VDOT will soon begin construction on a 3-mile extension from Tyson’s to the Maryland line with construction set to be done in 2025.

The map below shows current Express Lanes (black), to-be-constructed/completed Express Lanes (red), and the segment being studied (purple) in Virginia.

The lanes, also known as High Occupancy Toll Lanes, aim to give drivers an option: sit in congestion, ride free in the Express Lanes with three or more people in the vehicle, or pay a variable toll if you want to use the Express Lanes while one or two people in the vehicle. The variable tolls are priced to keep traffic flowing at least at 60 mph.

“The express lanes are expected to provide additional travel choices, and to provide a key component of the overall transportation network in the region,” Virginia Secretary of Transportation Shannon Valentine said in a statement. “This segment of the Capital Beltway will provide an opportunity to expand a regional system that already provides key components of the transit system, connecting activity centers with dedicated access points to transit hubs.”

The study will look into a no-build option, a one-lane Express Lane, and the more common two-lane Express Lane configuration. All options will leave room for a rail or other transit option in each direction on the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, which was revamped in 2008.

The $6.8 million study for the last portion of the Beltway will be done over two years with the help of the Federal Highway Administration and other federal, state, and local agencies in Virginia and Maryland.

Virginia has invested heavily in the Express Lanes with nearly 90 miles to be completed in the state by the end of next year. The state is constructing the ten-mile Fredericksburg extension on I-95 from the current end of the lanes near Aquia Harbour to just north of Fredericksburg. That is set to be completed by the end of next year. VDOT will also soon kick off construction on a three-mile Express Lane extension from Tysons to across the American Legion Bridge.

The state of Maryland has also been studying the idea of High Occupancy Tolls lanes on the entire Beltway and most of I-270. Those plans have since been scaled back to only include the Beltway from the American Legion Bridge to just past the I-270 interchange and up the I-270 interchange to Gaithersburg.