'Intelligent transportation system' coming to Loudoun County

LOUDOUN COUNTY, Va. (FOX 5 DC) - A road known for having some of the worst traffic in Northern Virginia could soon see some relief. It’s because of what’s called an intelligent transportation system — that’s now on its way to Route 50 in Loudoun County.

As previously reported by WTOP, the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors recently approved $1.05 million for the system, which had been used previously on Interstate 66. It will roughly stretch from Stone Ridge to the Fairfax County line and is comprised of displays, sensors, and cameras that will be actively monitored by the Virginia Department of Transportation.

So in addition to displaying how long it’ll take drivers to get to certain landmarks, it will also allow VDOT to see an accident immediately and deploy help, or if there’s a big backup at an intersection, they could adjust a traffic light’s timing in real time.

“This isn’t intended to solve all of the problems on Route 50,” explained Dulles District Supervisor Matt Letourneau. “We know the problems are a lot greater than that, but for a relatively minimal cost we can get another set of eyes on this, we can get VDOT actively managing the corridor, we can get better information, and that’s a good thing.”

Letourneau added that other, bigger plans aimed at addressing congestion on Route 50 are in the works but may take considerably more time to implement.