It’s almost time to celebrate a new year and a new decade! Here are a few fun facts to keep you company while you watch the live feed from Times Square:

• The first New Year’s ball drop in Times Square was in 1907.
• The sphere is made up of over 32,000 lights and millions of color patterns on its LED display.
• Pork and black-eyed peas are considered lucky foods to eat on New Year’s Eve because some believe they symbolize wealth and good fortune.
• The traditional song “Auld Lang Syne” derives from Scotland and translates to “times gone by.”
• In Italy, people wear red underwear on New Year’s Day for good luck!
• About 2,000 pounds of confetti is dropped on the crowd in Times Square at midnight each year.
• Every New Year’s Eve, AAA offers free rides to help keep the roads safe.
• Antarctica hosts a music festival called Icestock each New Year.

​Happy Holidays and Happy New Year from us all!

The Virginia Commonwealth Transportation Board decided to approve the I-81 Corridor Improvement Plan with a $2 billion package of projects for the corridor last year. According to a Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) press release in October, the project decision was based on data showing cost, benefits, and preparation for construction.

In addition to the amendments, an I-81 advisory committee has been established to provide advice and recommendations to the Commonwealth Transportation Board regarding the corridor improvements.

The program allocates funds and schedules for projects along the route, which runs through Virginia for 325 miles. As it currently stands, I-81 has at least forty-five crashes per year that take over four hours to clear, according to VDOT data. The Corridor Improvement Program hopes to change that by creating truck climbing lanes, widening the highway, and extending acceleration and deceleration lanes.

“The Commuter Choice Program illustrates the Commonwealth’s commitment to creating safe, reliable travel choices across Virginia’s transportation system,” Secretary of Transportation Shannon Valentine said. “Multimodal investments along this corridor support the Commonwealth’s economic competitiveness and create a more seamless network for people to access jobs, education, health care and opportunity.”

​VDOT projects that these improvements will lower the number of crashes and reduce hours of delay on the highway significantly.