INSIDE:
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New sheriff takes over in Stafford
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Charges dropped for euthanasia of family pet
Be careful where you fly the drone
12 Collins’ move to Richmond proves right
JANUARY 8, 2016
VOLUME 27, NUMBER 43
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VIEWPOINTS, PAGE 4 | PUZZLES, PAGE 10 | CLASSIFIEDS, PAGES 14, 15
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INSIDENOVA.COM
Not just ‘Lexus Lanes’
of carpoolers have a positive impression
Customer satisfaction with 95 Express Lanes
MOST POPULAR CARS ON THE EXPRESS LANES
21% 15% 12% 6% 5% 4% 3% 3% 3% TOP REASONS FOR USING THE 95 EXPRESS LANES SUBMITTED
41% 33% 35% Travel for vacation
Commute to work
Commute from work and visit friends and family
One year in, a new poll shows 73 percent of drivers have a ‘positive impression’ of the 95 Express Lanes JILL PALERMO
Stafford County Sun
The Interstate 95 Express Lanes just marked their first anniversary and the data is in: The high-occupancy toll lanes shorten most rush-hour commutes, on average, by about 15 minutes. CUSTOMERS WHO TRAVEL That’s according to data compiled THE 95 EXPRESS LANES by Transurban, the private Australiabased company that operates the lanes, Average Age as well as a survey of 1,700 area drivers conducted last September. But among readers of InsideNova’s Facebook page, the jury is still out. Male Some, like reader Katie Cunningham, Parents agree the I-95 Express Lanes have been Female a big help. “Without them, my commute from Woodbridge to Rockville would be SOURCE: TRANSURBAN horrific,” Cunningham wrote. “With
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them, I can leave at a reasonable hour and be home at a reasonable time.” Others say tolls are too expensive — or fluctuate too unpredictably. Some also complain the lanes have made congestion worse in the “regular lanes” because they’re now more crowded with drivers unwilling to pay. “There are fewer people in the [HOT] during the post-6 p.m. hours, which has made the jams worse,” said reader Barry Drennan. And there are those like Dumfries resident Kevin Taylor, who say the lanes are sometimes pricey but generally worth the money. “As much as I use them, I really can’t stand how expensive they are,” Taylor wrote. “But I’d much rather get home earlier each day.” Sounds about right to Marty Nohe,
chair of the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, a regional transportation planning agency. Nohe said residents remain split on the Express Lanes. “The community is still divided, there’s no question,” Nohe said. “It’s not unsurprising that there’s still a lot of people who are still frustrated.” Love ’em or hate’em, the I-95 Express Lanes, which first opened to traffic in December 2014, are here to stay. Just days before the first anniversary, Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe announced the lanes would be extended two miles south — to relieve congestion near their LANES current terminus at PAGE 3 Garrisonville Road in
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