WASHINGTON — Highway construction projects are always a “pain now, gain later” situation. Commuters put up with detours, lane closures and construction for years, waiting for a future payoff of smoother driving and safer walking.

The Virginia Department of Transportation plans to tell some Northern Virginia residents about just how much traffic pain they’ll be enduring over the next three years during a U.S. 1 widening project in Woodbridge, Virginia.

“There’s a lot of movement,” said VDOT spokeswoman Ellen Kamilakis.

“It really benefits us to get ahead at this point, and widen Rt. 1.”

That’s because road through Prince William County, which currently carries about 36,000 vehicles a day, will see that traffic more than double by 2036.

VDOT has scheduled a “pardon our dust” meeting Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at Freedom High School, 15201 Neabsco Mills Rd. in Woodbridge.

While the improvements will be many, the disruptions will also be plenty, Kamilakis said.

“We’re keenly aware of the delicate balance of summer traffic between I-95 and Rt. 1. We’re going to minimize any kind of impacts by having nighttime lane closures or off-peak lane closures,” Kamilakis said.