The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is hosting a meeting next week to discuss plans to add the option of non-HOV vehicles to access the Seminary Road ramp to I-395, but with a toll.
The ramp would still provide free access to the express lanes for vehicles with three or more occupants but would open up access to vehicles with fewer than three occupants who pay a toll.
The meeting will be virtual and is scheduled for Monday, Dec. 6, from 6:30-8:30 p.m.
“This south-facing reversible ramp at I-395 and Seminary Road falls within the limits of and provides access to the 395 Express Lanes,” VDOT said on its website. “Currently, this ramp operates as an HOV-only ramp, providing access to the 395 Express Lanes at all times for carpools and buses. VDOT’s private operator of the 395 Express Lanes, Transurban, is proposing to convert this ramp from an HOV-only ramp to an express lanes ramp.”
The plan has been in the works for a while, with meetings in 2019 before the project was delayed by the pandemic. The city website said in November, VDOT informed the city that they were planning to move forward with the project once again.
“The south-facing ramp, opened in early 2016, was planned to remain restricted high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) and transit traffic traveling north in the morning and south in the evening, even after completion of the I-395 Express Lanes,” the city said.
Give feedback on plans to convert the 395 Express Lanes/Seminary Road High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV)-only ramp to a High Occupancy Toll (HOT) ramp in Alexandria! Attend a virtual public information meeting Mon 12/6 at 6:30PM. More info: https://t.co/f4EKm2exCL @VAExpressLanes
— VDOT Northern VA (@VaDOTNOVA) December 2, 2021
