The final access points of the privately financed 10-mile extension of Virginia’s I-95 Express Lanes were set to open Dec. 7 to accommodate morning rush hour traffic Dec. 8.

"The additional access points opening tonight will have the project fully open according to the revised schedule," said Jacqueline Woodbridge, spokeswoman for Transurban North America on Dec. 7. Transurban North America developed and operates the express lanes for the Virginia Dept. of Transportation. 

The opening of the main roadway in August was completed four months ahead of the modified schedule established in mid-2022 for the $670-million public-private partnership project, according to Transurban. 

The schedule modification followed challenges with soil and supply chain issues. The project was originally scheduled for completion by October 2022, but "the discovery of highly plastic clay in the corridor soil required mitigation, delaying the project by about one year from initial projections," the spokeswoman says.

The completed Fredericksburg Extension is the “longest reversible facility in the nation, with additional access and capacity improvements for the corridor underway,” said Transurban in a statement. The dynamically tolled express lanes are located in the median between I-95’s north- and southbound mainline travel lanes. 

Amanda Baxter, Transurban senior vice president of Virginia market and operations, says, “With direct access for 28,000 workers to Marine Corps Base Quantico, quick routes to growing regional commercial and residential hubs and $1 billion in economic impact, the Fredericksburg Extension connects our communities to faster, more reliable travel along the Main Street of the East Coast.”

The I-95 express lanes have enabled more than 750,000 trips as of Nov. 1 since the 10-mile extension opened for end-to-end travel in August.