Interstate 95 is closed northbound and southbound for a nearly 50-mile stretch in Northern Virginia as crews continue work to remove stopped trucks, treat for icing and plow snow.
Hundreds, maybe low thousands, of motorists have been stranded, in some cases since early Monday afternoon, as that stretch of I-95 has become an oversized parking lot.
The winter storm that hit Virginia on Monday dropped 12+ inches in the Fredericksburg area at the epicenter of the traffic snarl.
U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine tweeted Tuesday morning that he had started his normal two-hour drive to Washington at 1 p.m. Monday. As of 8:27 a.m. Tuesday, “I’m still not near the Capitol,” Kaine tweeted.
“My office is in touch with @VaDOT to see how we can help other Virginians in this situation. Please stay safe everyone,” Kaine tweeted.
Gov. Ralph Northam tweeted that his team worked overnight to respond to the situation.
“State and local emergency personnel are continuing to clear downed trees, assist disabled vehicles, and re-route drivers,” Northam tweeted. “An emergency message is going to all stranded drivers connecting them to support, and the state is working with localities to open warming shelters as needed. While sunlight is expected to help @VaDOT clear the road, all Virginians should continue to avoid 1-95.”
Plans are underway to guide vehicles currently stopped on interstate to nearby interchanges, where they can access alternate routes.
As soon as additional travel lanes open, VDOT will communicate updates through 511Virginia, news releases, on social media, and on VDOT’s website.
Additional resources from across Virginia have been deployed to support debris removal, road treatment and clearance efforts on I-95 and state-maintained roads in the Fredericksburg area, with more trucks arriving this morning.
“We know many travelers have been stuck on Interstate 95 in our region for extraordinary periods of time over the past 24 hours, in some cases since Monday morning. This is unprecedented, and we continue to steadily move stopped trucks to make progress toward restoring lanes. In addition to clearing the trucks, we are treating for snow and several inches of ice that has accumulated around them to ensure that when the lanes reopen, motorists can safely proceed to their destination,” said Marcie Parker, P.E. VDOT Fredericksburg District engineer.
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