Transurban Earns Overwhelming Customer Support for DC-Area Express Lanes

When 80 to 92% of your customers are satisfied with your service, and nearly four in five agree that you deliver good results for the wider community, you know you’re doing something right.

And those are the customer satisfaction numbers that Transurban Group has been racking up for its managed lane projects along highways 495 and 95 in Northern Virginia.

The active IBTTA member opened the 495 Express Lanes to the public nearly five years ago, giving the Washington, DC area its first taste of tolled express service. Since then, the company has developed another 29 miles of express capacity along I-95, and broke ground this summer on a third project along I-395.

So far, Transurban’s history in the region shows that nothing succeeds like success.

“Today, nearly eight in 10 drivers in the DC region believe the 495 and 95 Express Lanes benefit the area,” states Transurban’s Summer 2017 Update. “Customer support of the Express Lanes remains strong, overall satisfaction increases the more a customer uses the Express Lanes, and most customers spend more money on one tank of gas than they do on Express Lanes tolls during an entire month.”

The company reports that:

·       Nearly eight in 10 area drivers believe the express lanes benefit the region, whether or not they actually use the lanes.

·       The lanes have earned approval ratings of 80% from monthly customers, 85% from weekly rush hour users, and an astronomical 92% from customers who earn toll-free HOV trips by carpooling.

·       On 495, the average toll is $5.77, and 82% of drivers spend less than $20 per month on tolls. On 95, the average charge is $8.46, and 74% of drivers fall below the $20 monthly threshold.

·       80% of express lane users say they appreciate the option when they need an alternative to traffic gridlock—when they just have to get there on time.

·       Large pluralities of drivers on both facilities use express lanes to get to appointments or commute to work.

“It is an exciting time at Transurban as we partner with the Commonwealth of Virginia to deliver the 395 Express Lanes,” wrote Pierce Coffee, the company’s Vice President, Public Affairs and Marketing – North America, in mid-August. “We look forward to working with our government, business, and community partners as we continue to provide choices for travellers on the 495 and 95 Express Lanes.”

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