The National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB) is seeking public comment on major transportation projects proposed for inclusion into Visualize 2050, the National Capital Region Transportation Plan.

All major transportation projects must be in the TPB plan to receive federal funding and approvals, from the planned I-495 interchange improvements near the proposed new FBI headquarters in Greenbelt, Maryland, to the expansion of bus lanes along Georgia Avenue in the District of Columbia and the US Route 1 Bus Rapid Transit project in Fairfax County, Virginia. Visualize 2050 updates the region’s currently adopted Visualize plan, which runs through 2045 and includes $223B in funding for maintaining and operating the existing infrastructure in the region and additional projects and programs.

Projects included in this 30-day public comment period for the plan update have been determined to be regionally significant due to their capacity impact on the region’s roadway and transit networks, such as roadway widenings, extensions, lane reductions, new high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) or express toll lanes, and transit capacity expansion.

While the full Visualize 2050 plan will include many other important projects that support the region’s transportation network—such as minor roadway, transit, and bicycle and pedestrian projects—federal regulations require projects determined to have a regionally significant effect on transportation network capacity be evaluated for fiscal feasibility and compliance with federal air quality standards.

For the first time, the TPB is taking a “zero-based budgeting” approach for this plan update. Excluding those already significantly underway, projects that had been previously approved in the plan were required to be resubmitted by their respective jurisdictions for inclusion in the updated plan. This “clean slate approach” allowed for jurisdictions to reevaluate the merits of each of their respective proposed projects and ensure alignment with regional priorities, including the regional goal of a 50 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions below 2005 levels by 2030.

Following conclusion of the public comment period, the TPB will conduct an Air Quality Conformity Analysis to show that forecast vehicle-related emissions under the plan will not exceed approved regional limits.

Comment form and map of regionally-significant projects proposed for Visualize 2050.

The update to the plan includes several key changes to projects included as part of the region’s currently adopted plan. For example, Maryland’s most significant project proposed for inclusion into Visualize 2050 is the American Legion Bridge and I-270 Corridor Program (formerly known as OP Lanes Phase I), which includes I-270 Innovative Congestion Management. The project, no longer planned to be financed as a public-private partnership, has been revised for Visualize 2050 to realign project priorities, such as shifting focus towards the replacement of the 60-year-old American Legion Bridge, as well as a planned study on multi-modal improvements and opportunities along I-270 north.  

Virginia has added several major projects for Visualize 2050, including the I-95 New Bi-Directional Operation Express Toll Lanes with Widening project, which would support bi-directional operation of the lanes from Opitz Blvd. to Turkeycock Run. In the District of Columbia, 17 projects not previously included in the plan have been added for Visualize 2050, with many of these focused on vehicle lane capacity reductions for bike and bus lanes.

The public comment period runs from March 1 through March 30, 2024. Adoption of the full Visualize 2050 plan is anticipated for June 2025. Visit visualize2050.org to learn more about the plan, review its key documents, and access the MetroQuest public comment form, which includes interactive maps showing the major highway and transit projects in the plan.

MORE: Visualize 2050 (Access the public comment form)