Southside Express Lanes (South Side project)
Virginia VDOT wants to add two new high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes in each direction along an 11-mile stretch of I-495 between I-395 in Fairfax County and Maryland Route 210 in Prince George’s County, crossing the Woodrow Wilson Bridge – Greater greater Washington, Spending money to go nowhere: Southside Express Lanes should be a Metro extension, David Edmondson (Contributor) August 20, 2025
I am against the "Southside Project,"
I live in Accokeek, Maryland. My home is 17 miles south on Indian Head Highway (210). I have lived in Accokeek, Maryland, since 2003. I am now retired.
Before I retired, I worked in Fairfax Virginia, and commuted from Accokeek to Fairfax five days a week. I have spent a lot of time on Indian Head Highway and the beltway trying to get to work. I have come to know the traffic patterns well.
“You don’t have to be a weatherman to know which way the wind is blowing.” I don’t have to be a traffic expert to know that if you accelerate traffic out of Virginia through six lanes feeding into four lanes on the Maryland side, it will create massive traffic bottlenecks there.
Indian Head Highway (210) carries over 80,000 cars every day. Many of those cars are on the road during rush hour and use 210 to and 495 to reach their destinations. During rush hour, there are traffic bottlenecks at the intersection of Indian Head Highway and 495, as well as many automobile accidents.
If you build the Southside project, you will create a massive traffic jam at the intersection of Indian Head Highway and 495. The only way out of this part of South County is 210. Every year, developers construct large numbers of homes, and more people are using 210 to get to work.
If you build the Southside project, you will create a massive traffic bottleneck on the Maryland side of 495 and create a traffic problem that will force Maryland to spend enormous sums of money to solve. Maryland would rather spend money on rapid rail across the bridge. The South Side project will use space on the bridge reserved for rapid rail, making rapid rail across the bridge impossible in the future.
Comments
Our community's health and future are on the line. On October 15th, the Transportation Planning Board will vote on the "Southside Project," a massive beltway expansion that would increase air pollution and traffic in our neighborhoods.
I shared in my testimony, this isn't just about traffic, it's personal. I was diagnosed with environmentally triggered asthma at the age of 37, a condition worsened by vehicle pollution. This expansion would fill our air with more harmful pollutants like PM2.5 and ozone, which are known to aggravate respiratory conditions and pose a risk to all of us.
But our voices can make a difference. The board needs to hear how this project will impact real people.
Will you join me in writing a letter?
Share your own story, whether it's concerns about your family's health, the dangerous traffic on roads like MD-210, or the need for better transit options instead of more lanes. A personal message from you can have a real impact.
Send your testimony to the Transportation Planning Board before October 15th.
Together, we can urge them to vote NO and demand a healthier, more sustainable future for our community.
How can I share my concrens? You have three options.
Send a personal letter to the Transporation Planning Board at TPBcomment@mwcog.org with the subject line, "Item 1 Public Comment Opportunity".
Call and leave a phone message at (202) 962-3312.
Sign the online action form with pre-made form letter, at https://addup.sierraclub.org/campaigns/tell-your-local-elected-officials--oppose-the-i-495-and-i-270-toll-lane-expansion-project?promoid=70131000001LjgmAAC&utm_medium=recruit&utm_source=email&utm_campaign=addup
In Solidarity,
NJ
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Nicole Jackson
Principal, Monarch PSG
Co-Chair, Prince George's County Climate Action Resident Advisory Group
Chair, City of District Heights Sustainability Advisory Committee
Sustainable Energy Workforce Development Advisory Board, Prince George's Community College
Climate Ambassador, ecoAmerica Path to Positive & Blessed Tomorrow
2023/2024 Senior Climate Justice Fellow
T.H.E. E.J. Lab (The Health, Economic, and Environmental Justice Lab)
Institute for Applied Environmental Health
University of Maryland, School of Public Health
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