Good to Know: The State of Traffic in Virginia

If only I had found this before I was moving to Texas!  511 Virginia is a website run by the VA Department of Transportation that incorporates all of the highway traffic cameras in Virginia with a map, so you can check out the drive before you go!  You can view the entire state or zoom in to specific locations, and when you click on the little camera symbols, it kindly informs you whether you are looking at North or Southbound lanes. 

It also has a road conditions feature that highlights traffic accidents, weather-related delays, work zones, and bridges...although I'm not certain that being a bridge justifies being considered a "road condition".  That may be road-type discrimination.  And the commuter section includes information for public transit, driving alone or driving with others, different bridges and toll roads, teleworking (although we don't need a transportation website for that), and slugging.  Looking for a scenic road, or wondering how on earth to best drive your truck through?  They have links for those as well.

In the trip planning section, you submit your starting and ending points along with your travel dates, and they not only give you directions based on "shortest time" or "shortest distance" (your choice), but they also list all road closures and other travel impediments for you!  Why, they even note when roads change names.  How ladylike, Virginia.

Follow 511 Virginia on Twitter based on your location, so you can only receive feeds on the 95-corridor, 64-corridor, or on specific geographic areas like Hampton Roads.  Well, now at least I have this to look forward to upon my return.

Click here to choose which parts of Virginia you'd like to follow on Twitter!