Fairfax County, Va. –– Virginia transportation officials Friday opened a fourth lane on Interstate 95 south in Fairfax County prior to the start of the afternoon rush hour.
The newly-constructed lane runs about five miles, between Fairfax County Parkway and U.S. 1 just before Woodbridge, and is part of the $123 million effort to widen the highway to ten lanes between the parkway and the Occoquan River.
“This will be a great addition to the I-95 corridor, and relieves a bottleneck south of Springfield,” said Virginia Department of Transportation spokesman Mike Salmon.
The opening of the new lane follows the opening of a new northbound lane, between Occoquan River and and Fairfax County Parkway opened last December.
Crews are still working on widening the Purple Heart Bridge that carries the highway over Occoquan River.
That work is scheduled to be completed in the spring, said Salmon.
When finished, that portion of the highway, including the High Occupancy Vehicle lanes, will be 10 lanes wide.
