Fluor Transurban Team Celebrates Early Opening of New I-495 Express Lanes in Northern Virginia

IRVING, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Fluor Corporation FLR announced today that Capital Beltway Express LLC, a concession formed by Fluor and Transurban, has reached substantial completion for the new I-495 Express Lanes in Northern Virginia. Designed and built to relieve traffic congestion around the greater Washington, D.C. area, the four new high occupancy toll (HOT) lanes project was financed through an innovative public-private partnership between Fluor, Transurban and the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT).

The early opening was celebrated today with a ribbon cutting ceremony that was attended by numerous federal, state and local elected and appointed officials including Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell and Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez along with Fluor and Transurban representatives and members of the project team.

"The opening of the 495 Express Lanes means opportunity for Virginia," said Governor Bob McDonnell. "The project not only helped create jobs during construction, but will continue to make Northern Virginia a more attractive place to work and live. The Express Lanes will open the region for business by providing better access to key employer centers and delivering the infrastructure needed to grow businesses and create additional jobs."

"Fluor's innovative design-build solutions allowed the project to finish ahead of schedule, under budget and save several hundred homes that would have been impacted by the original plan," said Steve Dobbs, senior group president for Fluor's Industrial & Infrastructure Business Group. "We are especially gratified to be able to positively impact the local economy by opening the project early and supporting local businesses during one of their busiest shopping times of the year."

“Fluor is pleased to reach this important milestone and see the Express Lanes open a month ahead of schedule for local motorists,” said Herb Morgan, senior vice president of Fluor's Infrastructure business. “Working with our colleagues at VDOT has been a pleasure and we look forward to building on those relationships as we commence the adjoining I-95 project.”

“The public-private partnership method, used to bring the I-495 project to fruition, is an excellent example of how industry can successfully partner with government agencies to deliver needed improvements to state and local infrastructure,” said Morgan.

The 495 Express Lanes project spans 14 miles of the Capital Beltway in northern Virginia just outside of the nation's capital. Completing the new lanes required the replacement of more than 57 bridges and upgrades to 12 key interchanges.

The project began in 2007 when Fluor-Transurban signed a Comprehensive Development Agreement with VDOT to design, construct, finance, and operate the new Express Lanes system. After a series of public meetings and environmental studies, the project was approved, funded, and construction began in the summer of 2008.

“We are proud of the hard work and dedication from our project team to make this project a success,” said Mitch Lester, Fluor's I-495 project director. “The Capital Beltway is the second-highest traveled roadway in the nation, and the new Express Lanes will relieve a great deal of the current traffic congestion. We are appreciative of all the stakeholders in the region – local elected officials, businesses owners and the travelling public – who were patient and worked with us during this five-year project.”

While completing the new Express Lanes, the Fluor-Lane design-build team reached a safety milestone in September 2012 by completing 5 million safe work hours without a lost time incident. The construction team achieved this success while working on an active highway on which more than 200,000 vehicles travel in and around the work zone each day.

For more information on the I-495 Express Lanes project and details on how to use the new lanes, please visit www.495expresslanes.com.

About Fluor Corporation

Fluor Corporation FLR designs, builds and maintains many of the world's most challenging and complex projects. Founded in 1912, the company was started by John Simon Fluor Sr. with a modest investment of $100. Since those humble beginnings, the company has grown into one of the largest engineering & construction companies in the world. Fluor is celebrating its 100^th anniversary during 2012.

Today, through its global network of offices on six continents, the company provides comprehensive capabilities and world-class expertise in engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning, operations, maintenance and project management. Headquartered in Irving, Texas, Fluor is a FORTUNE 200 company and had revenue of $23.4 billion in 2011. For more information, visit www.fluor100.com and www.fluor.com.