Virginia

[cpzilliacus]

Heh. I remember in the years before the Fort McHenry Tunnel opening it sometimes took an hour to crawl along the Harbor Tunnel Thruway and through the tunnel if my parents forgot to take I-695 instead.

The best bail route in the period 1977 to 1985 to avoid the BHT when it was congested was to take I-695/Md. 695 south across the F. S. Key Bridge, even though the approach roads to the bridge were Super-2's.  Little traffic in either direction, and in the southbound (695 Inner Loop) movement you had (and have) your choice of Md. 295 (B-W Parkway) or I-95.

The "topside" of I-695 past Towson is usually much more congested (then and now).

[1995hoo]

Yup, we used to use Key Bridge. I clearly remember the time, most likely when I was 10, when I told my mom to go that way and she ignored me on the basis that it was a weekday morning and traffic wouldn't be bad. Uh-huh. Took an hour to go five miles on the Thruway, during which one of the power window motors in her 1979 Volvo wagon overheated. Last time my mom ever questioned my sense for what roads to use.

[DeaconG]

Heh. I remember in the years before the Fort McHenry Tunnel opening it sometimes took an hour to crawl along the Harbor Tunnel Thruway and through the tunnel if my parents forgot to take I-695 instead.

The best bail route in the period 1977 to 1985 to avoid the BHT when it was congested was to take I-695/Md. 695 south across the F. S. Key Bridge, even though the approach roads to the bridge were Super-2's.  Little traffic in either direction, and in the southbound (695 Inner Loop) movement you had (and have) your choice of Md. 295 (B-W Parkway) or I-95.

The "topside" of I-695 past Towson is usually much more congested (then and now).

I lived in Maryland during that time and I found myself taking the Key Bridge on my trips to Philly and back.  I knew that stretch north of the bridge would be four laned one day-and that ride by the Sparrows Point steelmaking facility was always alternatively impressive and sad.

[cpzilliacus]

WTOP Radio: New road alleviates major Va. commuting headache

FORT BELVOIR, Va. - A new road will alleviate a lot of commuting headaches in Fairfax County.

Jeff Todd Way opened on Monday to commuters looking to get from Route 1 to Telegraph Road without driving around the base.

Jeff McKay, Fairfax County supervisor, calls the road a game changer.

"Since Woodlawn Road was closed ... you're largely, from the commuting standpoint, been held hostage," McKay said.

Woodlawn Road was closed in 2001 for security reasons, and since then drivers were forced to add 10 miles to their commute. During rush hour, that meant leaving a lot earlier for work.

"It can be 45 minutes to go 10 miles during rush hour," McKay said of the area without the new Jeff Todd Way.

Once the Department of Defense and the county agreed on where to build a more secure road, Fairfax County stepped in with the money to make the road four lanes instead of two.

[1995hoo]

WTOP is several days late. That's the road I mentioned further up the thread that opened last Tuesday. Part of it (Route 1 to Pole Road) is Jeff Todd Way and the remainder is Mulligan Road.

[cpzilliacus]

If you drive the highways of the Commonwealth, or use other forms of transportation around Virginia, please take this survey!

VTrans2040 Vision Survey

[1995hoo]

Heh. My answer to the question about "evolving technologies" noted the current to-do about hackers getting pictures of nude actresses and said that I shudder at the thought of said hackers messing with the systems used by self-driving cars.

[cpzilliacus]

Heh. My answer to the question about "evolving technologies" noted the current to-do about hackers getting pictures of nude actresses and said that I shudder at the thought of said hackers messing with the systems used by self-driving cars.

Security and self-driving cars is an issue. 

Glad you took the survey. I don't think too many people in the Commonwealth of Virginia use skateboards or ferries to get around, yet those submodes seemed to have drawn the attention and affection of the person or persons that developed the survey.

[MillTheRoadgeek]

Just a couple of days ago on Google Earth, I noticed there was a temporary overpass on the ramp from I-495/I-95 Outer Loop onto US 1 North, which connected with the latter road at a signal. I do not remember it in real life, but from researching on Earth, I know it lasted from late 2005 to Spring 2007, before the loop ramp was entirely constructed.  Well, I pretty much know everything else, but I wonder how it was pulled off, especially since it might have been then torn down.

[cpzilliacus]

TimeDispatch.com: [Op-Ed] Reflections on an encounter with the camera police

It's a good bet that all drivers will encounter the camera police one day.

I'm here to report my first experience.

Not so good.

The use of cameras at dangerous intersections and on busy toll highways generates debate.

Is it smart law enforcement or an unchecked invasion of privacy?

Can we trust the monitors to be right or should we accept nothing less than 100 percent accuracy?

Is it a temptation for juiced-up revenue for agencies and government, or is it a new lower-cost way to use technology to ensure everyone pays what's owed?

Here's my take:

While it helps police catch brash violators, not all occurrences are clear-cut. Allowances are required.

My case involves the E-ZPass system and the Downtown Expressway in the city of Richmond.

The day's personal snail mail last month included one of those official-looking envelopes that can only spell headaches.

The white envelope presented a "Toll Violation Notice"  from the "Violation Processing Center"  in Clifton Forge, dated Aug. 6.

[hbelkins]

They're processing Virginia E-ZPass violations in Clifton Forge? Which is closer to the WV Turnpike than any of Virginia's toll facilities?

[1995hoo]

They're processing Virginia E-ZPass violations in Clifton Forge? Which is closer to the WV Turnpike than any of Virginia's toll facilities?

The main Virginia E-ZPass (and, previously, Smart Tag) customer service center has been located in Clifton Forge for at least the past 14 years. Don't know why.

[froggie]

Probably a case of a local state delegate having some "clout" when the site was selected...

[1995hoo]

Probably a case of a local state delegate having some "clout" when the site was selected...

Good point. Creigh Deeds represents the Clifton Forge area in the state Senate and previously represented that area in the House of Delegates prior to his election to the Senate in 2001 (a special election to replace Sen. Emily Couric, who died). I'd say he's a rather high-profile Virginia politician now, but I have no idea how well-known he was back in that time period.

[cpzilliacus]

Probably a case of a local state delegate having some "clout" when the site was selected...

The Governor at the time (I think it was Mark Warner, who required VDOT to join the E-ZPass Group) wanted the service center in a part of the Commonwealth that could use a few new steady jobs.

[froggie]

If it was done in 2000 (as hoo suggests), would've been Jim Gilmore.

[1995hoo]

If it was done in 2000 (as hoo suggests), would've been Jim Gilmore.

I don't know whether it was 2000 or before when they located the service center there, but when I got my Smart Tag sometime that year, it came from an address in Clifton Forge, so I presume it was located there not later than 2000.

[cpzilliacus]

If it was done in 2000 (as hoo suggests), would've been Jim Gilmore.

I don't know whether it was 2000 or before when they located the service center there, but when I got my Smart Tag sometime that year, it came from an address in Clifton Forge, so I presume it was located there not later than 2000.

When I had SmarTags, I got them directly from the neighborhood Customer Service Center, which has been at a few different places along the Va. 267 Corridor over the years.

[Roadsguy]

At the eastern end of the Suffolk Bypass (US 58/460), there's a stub and ROW for a loop ramp, all pointing south. Where would this have gone? Would it have looped back around and connected to the US 13 section? A full beltway seems overkill for Suffolk.

[froggie]

Yes, a full Suffolk bypass loop was proposed back in the 1970s.  The southeast quadrant was permanently killed about 10 years ago...around the same time the southwest leg (US 13 south of US 58) opened.  The "turnaround" loop to U-turn back to the east (built and intended for trucks coming out of the landfill entrance) was built in part on what would have been the ramp from the southeast bypass quadrant to eastbound 13/58/460.

[1995hoo]

Something I had never seen in Virginia until Wednesday. This is on eastbound Franconia Road (Secondary 644) at Villa Street (I was on the westbound side at the time). I have not yet passed through there in the other direction to see whether they've posted a "Don't Block the Box" sign. I should get around to it this weekend.

I wonder if VDOT might start using the box in conjunction with "Don't Block the Box" signs. I've seen a few such signs around Virginia, but I've never seen an actual box painted on the road on any Virginia highway.

I don't think it'll help much at this location unless there's enforcement. People block the box there in part because during the morning rush hour, the traffic trying to turn left (north) onto Van Dorn Street often backs up the left lane most of the way to Beulah Street about half a mile to the west. So people try to sneak down the middle lane and then cut over at the last second; if the box isn't blocked, they see that as an invitation to cut in.

[hbelkins]

Pretty sure there's at least one in Virginia Beach.

[Mapmikey]

Pacific Ave (US 60) at both 21st and 22nd have these, back to at least 2007 (GMSV).  The 2003 historic aerials shot looks inconclusive to me.

Mapmikey

[1995hoo]

Pretty sure there's at least one in Virginia Beach.

I'll take your word for it. Haven't been there since March 1991.

[froggie]

Pretty sure the Virginia Beach examples date back to at least 2005...I recall them before I left Norfolk the first time.