Archive: Transportation Politics
D.C. Transportation Director to Metro
Metro announced today that Emeka C. Moneme, the District's transportation director, will leave that post in Mayor Adrian Fenty's cabinet to return to the transit authority as chief administrative officer. As head of the District Department of Transportation, Moneme has overseen traffic and transit projects, including the shutdown and rehabilitation of the Douglass Bridge, the traffic and transit plan for the new Nationals Park, development of the pedestrian safety master plan and the proposed Anacostia streetcar line. He also serves as a District representative on Metro's board of directors, a post he'll be leaving to join Metro's management. [Post reporters David Nakamura and Lena Sun have more about this on D.C. Wire, the city staff's blog.] Moneme was Metro's chief of staff to the general manager from 2006 to 2007. That was while Dan Tangherlini was serving as interim general manager, after the resignation of Richard White. When Fenty recruited...
By | July 23, 2008; 02:10 PM ET | Comments (6)
Rooftop Groundbreaking for HOT Lanes
"We have done it," Virginia Transportation Secretary Pierce R. Homer said this morning, just before the ceremonial groundbreaking for the HOT lanes project along the Capital Beltway. He was referring to the successful development of a construction program, but quickly pointed out that there's an enormous amount of construction and disruption ahead over the next five years. Homer and other public and private leaders of the HOT (high occupancy or toll) lanes project were standing under a tent on the roof of a Tysons Corner Center garage, just after this morning's line of storms rolled through. The Capital Beltway, where the heavy lifting gets underway starting tonight, was just below to the east. Homer said the project would not have gotten this far without the leadership of U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters, who is an advocate for such public-private partnerships and for the variable tolling system that the HOT...
By | July 22, 2008; 01:19 PM ET | Comments (20)
Who Will Rule the Streets?
In 21st century Washington, transit users, walkers and bikers will have the right of way in transportation planning. A tilt away from drivers that began with the highway battles of the 1960s and 70s in the District will become more pronounced. It has to. Even if we turn out to be in the midst of a temporary spike in oil prices, the longterm trend is upward. (See Annys Shin story: "Some Unload Vehicles for Less Than They Owe.") The fate of the gas guzzler is sealed. More people will do what's in their financial interest and turn to buses and trains, and sidewalks. Many will decide to live closer to where they work and the real estate market will try to accommodate them. Post staff writer Eric M. Weiss wrote Sunday about some of the District's actions and proposals. Almost any step the District takes, such as the decision last...
By | July 7, 2008; 07:59 AM ET | Comments (18)
Why the Money Matters
Politicians and transportation advocates are pessimistic about whether the Virginia General Assembly's special session, starting today, will restore any of the spending for roads and transit that was promised in the legislature's 2007 session. At the moment, the most likely outcome would enshrine the several billion dollars in delays and cuts made to the state transportation plan last week. Click on the map of Northern Virginia to review them. State law, and prudence, require that maintenance of what's already there come before construction. In the next decade, most of Virginia's transportation spending will be devoted to maintenance. What happened to the 2007 plan? First, Virginians decided they didn't want to increase the penalties for reckless driving, and the 2008 General Assembly eliminated that source of revenue. But the big blow to the plan was Virginia Supreme Court ruling in February that overturned the financing plan that had empowered the Northern...
By | June 23, 2008; 08:35 AM ET | Comments (6)
Kaine Presents New Transportation Plan
Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, who has called the General Assembly into special session beginning Monday, today unveiled the transportation plan he will present to the legislature. Meanwhile, the Commonwealth Transportation Board met today in Richmond to gut the state's six-year plan for road, rail, biker and pedestrian improvements. The economy and a Virginia State Supreme Court decision earlier this year mean Virginia will have less money than it thought for these programs. [Here's a link to The Post story on the day's developments, including an interactive map showing delays and cuts.] Kaine has been touring the state holding town hall style meetings to discuss his ideas, but this afternoon's public announcement showed the plan as the legislators will see it. This is what he says it will do, and how it would be financed: Goals -- Cut the highway maintenance deficit. -- Increase local road construction funding and restore...
By | June 19, 2008; 03:52 PM ET | Comments (27)
Virginia Likely to Delay, Cut Projects
On Thursday, the Virginia panel that presides over transportation projects is likely to delay a lot of them, or drop them from the six-year schedule. This will hurt most travelers in the state, whether they drive, take transit, pedal or walk. The Commonwealth Transportation Board will meet in Richmond to vote on the draft six-year improvement program presented by the Virginia Department of Transportation. Here's a list of the delays and cuts likely in Northern Virginia. These are among the road projects on the list to be delayed: -- Widening of the Route 7 bypass in Leesburg. -- An interchange at the junction of Routes 1 and 123 in Prince William. -- An interchange at Route 28 and Wellington Road in to eliminate the at-grade rail crossing in Manassas. These are among the road projects that would be cut: -- Reconstruction of the Beltway/Interstate 66 interchange. -- Widening the Beltway...
By | June 17, 2008; 06:27 AM ET | Comments (15)
Kaine Talking Transportation Tonight
Gov. Timothy M. Kaine will return to Northern Virginia on Wednesday night for another town hall session on transportation. In the Woodbridge town hall last month, the governor found an audience eager for congestion relief, and eager not to pay for it. Many people pleaded for more roads and better transit, many insisted that neither a sales tax nor a gas tax increase -- in fact, no tax increase that they might wind up paying -- should be employed to achieve the goal. Kaine wants to do a 1 percent increase in Northern Virginia's sales tax, along with some other tax measures, to replace the money that would have been raised through the taxes the General Assembly authorized last year, but the Virginia Supreme Court struck down earlier this year. He said he didn't propose a gas tax increase because he's convinced many people see gas as one of life's...
By | June 11, 2008; 06:14 AM ET | Comments (11)
Northern Virginians Hear Kaine Plan
Looking out into the audience at the Prince William County government center last night, Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine said he thought he saw some of the same people who attended his town hall meeting on transportation shortly after he was elected. Back then, with four sessions of the General Assembly ahead of him, he was seeking ideas on how to bust some of the worst traffic congestion in the nation. After several rushes at that goal, he was back last night for what has become the political equivalent of a Hail Mary pass late in the game. Comments from the crowd of about 200 in Woodbridge illustrated his problem: Many people struggle with traffic congestion so bad it diminishes their enjoyment of what otherwise would be a pretty good life in Northern Virginia. And many people wouldn't pay to make it better. In explaining his plan to restore money...
By | May 14, 2008; 02:54 PM ET | Comments (9)
Plan Would Restore Transportation Authority
Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine today called for a special session of the General Assembly on June 23 to consider his plan to restore the revenue taken away by a court decision earlier this year. It also would restore the spending power of the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority. The authority's sources of revenue -- money that was going to be spent on road and transit projects across the region -- vanished with the court decision. Kaine says his fix would raise over $1 billion annually throughout Virginia by fiscal year 2012 without increasing the gas tax. You can read the details of Kaine's plan in this statement from the governor's office. Kaine's plan not only raises money statewide but also includes taxes specific to the most congested areas, Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads. The most prominent feature for Northern Virginians is a one percent increase in the sales tax, except...
By | May 12, 2008; 01:15 PM ET | Comments (13)
Despite Comeback, Rail Plan Still Faces Hurdles
The Dulles rail project, a central artery in Northern Virginia's transportation plans, came back from the dead today, but remains in intensive care. The Federal Transit Administration signaled that the program to build the Metrorail line through Tysons Corner can now advance, despite the FTA's lingering concerns with the management and financing of the project. "We have sent the required 10-day notification to Congress that we intend to move the project into the Final Design stage of FTA's New Starts Process," FTA Administrator James Simpson said in a statement. "FTA will commit $158.7 million to use toward completion of a financial plan, construction plans, detailed engineering specifications and cost estimates, and other technical requirements." Here's a list of what changed since January on the FTA's scorecard. Here's the list of "buts": The FTA says it won't commit any money for construction until a set of issues are resolved. The Metropolitan...
By | April 30, 2008; 04:00 PM ET | Comments (2)
MD Senate Passes Camera Bill
The bill to allow local governments throughout Maryland to use speed cameras passed the state Senate today by a vote of 26 to 21. The measure, which also allows the state to set up the cameras in road work zones, must also pass the House of Delegates. Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) backs the proposal. In the Senate, it's SB 269; and in the House, it's HB 364. Senators amended their bill twice. One amendment reduced the proposed fines from $75 to $40, which matches the amount of the fine in the Montgomery County pilot program, which began last May. The other amendment exempts volunteer rescue workers who are acting in the line of duty when they pass through a camera zone. The House also amended its bill to set the fine at $40....
By | March 18, 2008; 11:36 AM ET | Comments (6)
How Do You Want to Pay?
Two stories in today's Post focused on the future of our transportation system. The U.S. Department of Transportation has encouraged some efforts to take the system private -- or at least push it in that direction. Lyndsey Layton and Spencer S. Hsu explored the federal effort to encourage states and private companies to let the market dictate which segments of the transportation network will be improved. Eric M. Weiss describes several scenarios that are part of a regional review of road tolling options. These ideas and more are contained in the report to Congress by the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Commission, which proposed a new way of looking at our needs in the 21st century. There are two main theories behind the tolling concept: In one scenario, market forces, rather than government, dictate where roads will be built or improved. Private companies will build or manage roads --...
By | March 17, 2008; 10:37 AM ET | Comments (21)
Hybrids Stay in HOV Lanes
The Virginia Department of Transportation reminds us this morning that the law allowing hybrids to travel in the carpool lanes has been extended for one year until July 2009. Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) signed House Bill 1014 last week. The exemption had been scheduled to expire on July 1, but as in past years, the Virginia General Assembly voted for a one-year extension. (There's no such program in Maryland.) Letting hybrids with solo drivers into the carpool lanes may have been a good idea back in the days when hybrids were new and the government sought to encourage ownership of fuel-efficient vehicles. Today, it's just an entitlement that allows people to drive by themselves in lanes built for carpoolers. Hybrids that don't meet the HOV lane rules for occupancy can be used in the lanes on I-95/395 and I-66, but the rules are significantly different on those two highways....
By | March 17, 2008; 09:31 AM ET | Comments (5)
Va. Transportation Taxes Halted Today
Because of last week's decision by the Virginia Supreme Court, the state and the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority will stop collecting the transportation taxes and fees that took effect in January under the plan passed last year by the General Assembly. The authority is working on a plan for refunds on the taxes already collected, but doesn't have anything to announce on that yet. None of the money collected has been spent. In fact, the authority has a very small staff at this point and asks people to hold off on calling its office, because it can't answer individual questions over the phone and really doesn't have anything to add at the moment. Friday's court ruling said the legislature did not have the right under Virginia's constitution to grant taxing powers to the transportation authority. The ruling did not void the authority itself, which was created under separate state legislation...
By | March 4, 2008; 12:06 PM ET | Comments (4)
Another Blow To Northern Virginia
Northern Virginia, a cash cow for the Commonwealth and for the United States, can't catch a break from either the state or the federal government on improving its transportation system. Today, the state Supreme Court ruled that the financing system that was on track to provide $50 million a year for Metro, $25 million a year for the Virginia Railway Express and improvements to Routes 1, 7, 28 and 123 among other roads, must be scrapped. The Northern Virginia Transportation Authority's main hope for recovering the lost revenue is for the General Assembly to act before its session ends in Richmond. Anyone who recalls the struggle to win that taxing power last year will understand how difficult Phase 2 will be. Last month, it was the federal government weighing in on the plan to bring Metrorail service through Tysons and eventually on to Dulles. The Federal Transit Administration practically drove...
By | February 29, 2008; 03:17 PM ET | Comments (30)
Kaine: Ice Storm Response "Abysmal"
"VDOT has felt my wrath," Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine said on WTOP radio this morning in response to a question about the Primary Day ice storm. He said the Virginia Department of Transportation is conducting "an intensive evaluation" of that nightmare afternoon and evening when commuters were stuck as long as seven hours, most notably on the 50 bridges and ramps that make up the Springfield Interchange. The report will be "transparent and open to the public," Kaine said. "My VDOT did an abysmal job dealing with that weather on Primary Day, he told the radio audience on his monthly "Ask the Governor" show. The station played a recording of traffic reporter Bob Marbourg announcing, "This is a wakeup call to everybody out there in a salt truck. ... Across the region, we are hearing from callers that the bridge decks are freezing up." That was at about 3...
By | February 26, 2008; 10:54 AM ET | Comments (9)
Md. Considering More Speed Cameras
Police and state transportation officials packed a Maryland General Assembly committee hearing yesterday to endorse a bill that would allow jurisdictions across the state to use cameras to ticket speeders. The bill also would allow their use in road construction zones. Montgomery County introduced speed cameras last year. (Thomson) State senators on the Judicial Proceedings Committee asked the same questions that many readers asked when the speed camera program began last year in Montgomery County: Why is this necessary? Are the cameras effective? What if you're not the driver of the vehicle speeding? Is this a revenue-raiser? The measure (Senate Bill 269 and House Bill 364) has two parts: One would give local governments the right to create a speed camera system after holding a public hearing and enacting an ordinance. The other would allow their use in the roadway work zones. The bills are backed by the governor, and...
By | February 20, 2008; 08:44 AM ET | Comments (18)
Dulles Rail Not So Dead
Remember when the shaky finances behind the Wilson Bridge reconstruction seemed to have doomed that project? Similarly, the future of the Springfield Interchange reconstruction appeared to be in jeopardy several years ago because of surging costs. Now, it's the Metrorail-to-Dulles project called into question by opposition within the U.S. Department of Transportation. Since the feds practically demolished the project two weeks ago, I've received several letters like this from commuters. Hello, Dr. G: As a resident of Herndon, I don't have many choices for getting to Tysons or DC except to use the Dulles Toll Road. As you know, the folks running the Toll Road (Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority) increased my tolls a year or so ago to supposedly pay for the Metro line to Dulles Airport. So if the Dulles extension is dead, when do I get a refund for the extra tolls I've been paying? I'm asking somewhat...
By | February 6, 2008; 08:29 AM ET | Comments (52)
Gov. Kaine Sticks by Dulles Rail
Gov. Tim Kaine hasn't given up on the project, despite the hard hit it took last week from Federal Transit Administrator James Simpson and his boss, U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters. He talked about the next step on Dulles rail this morning on WTOP's Ask the Governor show: "Our game plan: Work with the secretary's office, answer the questions that the administrator has raised and make this critical project happen." Kaine and other officials behind the project took the FTA's response last week as you might take an unfair performance evaluation at work, when it sounds like the bosses were saving stuff up to unload on you all at once. The person on the receiving end is bound to be thinking about all the times the bosses could have said some of these things, and wonder why they're piling on now. Kaine noted on the radio, as other Virginia leaders...
By | January 29, 2008; 01:06 PM ET | Comments (14)
Plan B for Rail Transit?
In rebuffing the plan to build a Metrorail line through Tysons Corner and on to Dulles Airport, the Federal Transit Administration said it doubted whether the Washington airports authority could manage the project. Let's take that concern as valid for a moment. If the airports authority, which is managing the multi-billion dollar expansion of Dulles Airport, can't manage construction of a Metrorail line, who could? How about Metro? No. After Metro built out the five rail lines as planned, it got out of the rail construction business. It no longer has a department that could immediately turn its attention to the task of building a new rail line across the District or the suburbs. It certainly seemed like a logical decision last year. Metro was out to cut personnel costs before proposing a fare increase. Virginia was committed to building the only Metrorail extension for the foreseeable future. Why keep...
By | January 28, 2008; 08:25 AM ET | Comments (28)
Feds Slam Dulles Rail Project
Federal Transit Administrator James Simpson said this afternoon that his agency has serious questions about whether the Washington airports authority can build the rail line to Dulles and whether Metro can operate it. [See Amy Gardner's story in Friday's Post.] Rendering of proposed Tysons East station. (Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project photo) This morning, the FTA presented its concerns to Gov. Timothy Kaine, congressmen from Virginia, the airports authority and Metro. If they heard the same things Simpson just said in his press conference, they should be devastated about the future of this project, which has become a crucial part of the planning for the future of Northern Virginia. Simpson left no doubt during the press conference that the rail plan faces a string of uncertainties as far as the FTA is concerned, and that's important because the project needs $900 million in federal funds to construct the first phase, which...
By | January 24, 2008; 03:46 PM ET | Comments (103)
Dulles Rail Decision Near
Virginia officials know the Washington suburbs need the Metrorail line that would run through the rapidly developing centers of Tysons, Reston and Dulles. They're prepared to deal with any objection the U.S. Department of Transportation raises so that they can win the $900 million federal contribution that is crucial to construction of this very expensive project. Rendering of a planned Route 7 station in Tysons Corner. (Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project photo) But DOT just doesn't want to let this one go. In The Post, Amy Gardner writes about a meeting scheduled for today between Gov. Timothy M. Kaine and Congress members from Virginia and U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters. Last week, Peters laid out a lot of her philosophy on transportation policy in her dissent from the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Commission, which she chaired. The commission's report, endorsed by the nine congressionally appointed members but not...
By | January 24, 2008; 08:55 AM ET | Comments (24)
Dulles Rail Plan Vital to Suburbs
State and local officials in Virginia are ready to do whatever it takes to meet federal conditions and get a new Metrorail line built through Tysons and on to Dulles. But the U.S. Department of Transportation is taking a long time to review the rail plan, and as Amy Gardner says in today's Post, it may not go along. The rail line has noteworthy problems: Huge cost, dissatisfaction with the above-ground route through Tysons and uncertainties about how it will mesh with the rest of the Metro system. But abandoning the project would be a disaster for Northern Virginia and the Washington region. There's no second choice. Planning for the future of Tysons, the economic linchpin of Northern Virginia, is organized around the four new Metro stations the rail line would provide. Along the Toll Road on the way to Dulles Airport is Reston, another boomtown without a significant transit...
By | January 17, 2008; 08:34 AM ET | Comments (51)
National Transport Report Draws Praise, Criticism
There has been plenty of reaction to the national transportation plan presented Tuesday by a congressional commission. Commissioners called on Americans to set new goals and employ new methods in creating a 21st Century transportation system. These are excerpts from some of the governmental, transportation industry and environmental group responses to the commission's report. American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials President Pete Rahn "The National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission has put forth some bold and groundbreaking concepts to deliver on the promise of mobility for this and future generations." "Some of the recommendations in this report will be considered controversial, but clearly the ideas presented will help to stimulate the national debate we must have if we are to chart a course for a transportation network equal to the demands of the 21st Century." U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters, chairman of the commission and one...
By | January 16, 2008; 05:37 AM ET | Comments (16)
Toward a New Era in Transportation
A congressional commission today started what it hopes will be a national conversation about what we want out of our transportation system and how we'll pay for it. You can find the commission's full report here. These are some -- but definitely not all -- of the conclusions. -- As thousands of drivers and transit riders in the Washington region rediscover on a daily basis, whatever we're doing now isn't working. It's taking more and more time and it's more and more stressful to reach our destinations. -- We need to figure out what we're trying to do. The last time we had a national goal for getting around was when we planned, financed and built the interstate highway system that today accounts for about a quarter of four traffic. Today we have something that's more like a national revenue-sharing program between the federal government and the states and localities....
By | January 15, 2008; 02:08 PM ET | Comments (92)
Comment Time on Transportation Agenda
That newly powerful transportation authority -- the one that just started taxing many of you in Northern Virginia -- is holding a hearing Thursday night to let people comment on what you'll get for your money over the next few years. These are the initial highway, transit, bike and pedestrian projects to be financed by the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, whose empowerment was the most meaningful product of last year's tumultuous session of the General Assembly. There's a seven-page-long list of projects on the authority's Web site. The hearing is at George Mason High School Auditorium, 7124 Leesburg Pike, in Falls Church. It starts at 6 p.m. Thursday. People who want to speak have until 7 p.m. to sign up. Individuals will be able to speak for three minutes, while those representing organizations can speak for five minutes. The authority members also are going to vote to confirm John Mason,...
By | January 9, 2008; 05:22 AM ET | Comments (351)
Fare Wars at Metro
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, a regional government agency, is playing regional politics over the proposed fare and fee increases. Nothing wrong with that. The Metro board, which includes members from all jurisdictions that are part of the Metro compact, was set up to allow local interests to battle and finally compromise. Lena Sun writes in today's Post about a classic city versus suburbs clash: The District is pushing to keep the bus fares stable while increasing the parking fees at Metro lots and garages, most of which happen to be located in Maryland and Virginia. Metro General Manager John B. Catoe Jr. has proposed that bus fares go up by 25 cents and parking fees increase 50 cents next year. The District now says the bus fare should hold steady at $1.25 while parking should go up by $1.25 to help balance the transit budget. Suburbanites who will...
By | October 10, 2007; 10:03 AM ET | Comments (27)
New Meaning for HOT Lanes
The slugs who cram into cars each day so they can travel up and down I-95/395 in the HOV lanes have been wondering about -- well, more like aggressively questioning -- the idea that there's some way technology can preserve their commuting system once those lanes are converted to HOT lanes. HOT lanes are for high-occupancy or toll commuters. So instead of three types of users to regulate (carpoolers and cheaters), there will be three: carpoolers, cheaters and toll payers. Because the whole idea is to keep those lanes moving at speed, the regulating will have to be done electronically. Ken Daley, vice president of the company that is part of the public-private partnership planning the HOT lanes project on I-95/395 and on the Beltway, says he's sure it can be done. He describes how in a story in today's Post by Michael Laris. Cars will be scanned with infrared...
By | October 1, 2007; 07:26 AM ET | Comments (17)
Staying Here and Staying Mobile
The Post ran a very interesting series on growing older in Washington that is relevant to our discussions on transportation. On Sunday, Annie Gowen pointed out that in two decades, one of every four drivers will be a senior citizen. She talked with a Falls Church retiree named Rita Turner who decided she was too old to drive, gave up her car and now regrets it every day, because it's so difficult to get around the suburbs without an automobile. In today's paper, Fredrick Kunkle focused on life in the aging suburb of Fort Hunt in Fairfax County and a gas station that figured out it had to offer more full service pumps to help out people no longer comfortable using the self service. Whenever I talk with retirees and senior citizens, their questions are similar: They want to know how they can stay here and stay mobile. Some of...
By | September 17, 2007; 08:16 AM ET | Comments (12)
An Unstoppable Train to Dulles
The Metrorail extension to Dulles is flawed and expensive, and it's going to get built. That's a Gridlockian prediction based on the pattern set by the Wilson Bridge and the Springfield interchange. Each of those projects had its problems with design and finance, but those issues are distant memories now. If enough people in leadership positions see a transportation project as essential to the future of this region, they'll find a way to get it done. Rebid a contract, extend the construction schedule, chop the project into more phases with more revenue sources -- whatever it takes. That's what the Virginia government was up to on Thursday when Gov. Tim Kaine announced that the state planned to cut $300 million from the $2.8 billion cost of the rail extension. As Amy Gardner reported in today's Post, the cuts include: -- Eliminating $77 million in road improvements to Route 7 in...
By | September 14, 2007; 07:35 AM ET | Comments (24)
Anti-HOT Lane Petition Online
A commuter from Prince William County wrote in to advise us that opponents of the process Virginia is following to create express toll lanes along I-95/395 have a petition online. I'll discuss that in an upcoming Dr. Gridlock column, but I thought some of you might like to hear about it now and have an online link. Dear Dr. Gridlock: The citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia are tired of the secretive nature of the study regarding the conversion of the High Occupancy Vehicle lanes to Hight Occupancy or Toll lanes on I-95. The Virginia Department of Transportation and Fluor Daniels, the contractor, have had numerous "public" meetings at which they tell the citizens of Virginia how this system will work, but they refuse to hold an open forum to allow direct questions from the citizens of Northern Virginia and provide answers to those questions. It appears that the conversion...
By | August 20, 2007; 05:58 AM ET | Comments (367)
Revolt of the Slugs
Last night at Forest Park High School in Woodbridge, Dennis Morrison had to fend off a slug attack. There were about a hundred of them, and it was a near thing. For a while, he was surrounded. And he couldn't give them what they wanted. What had drawn them to the school was a common enough sort of government presentation about an upcoming transportation project: Virginia's plan to ease congestion along the Interstate 95/395 corridor south of Washington. The session was supposed to begin with an open house in which people entered a large room and wandered from display to display asking questions about particular aspects of the project. Then they would gather in an auditorium where state officials would provide an overview of the work. Click on picture for a biography of Dennis Morrison. (VDOT photo) And it did go like that -- for the first few minutes. Then...
By | July 26, 2007; 07:35 AM ET | Comments (14)
Northern Virginia Gets Some Authority
After a long public hearing that explored nearly every political division that has allowed traffic congestion to maintain a stranglehold on the Washington suburbs, the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority voted rather quickly to begin prying the region loose. In about a half hour, the 14 voting members of the panel approved seven new taxes and fees that the authority will raise more than $300 million annually for road, transit and other transportation improvements. The closest vote was the first, to create a grantor's tax of 40 cents per $100 on the sale price of a property, payable by the seller of the property. The vote was 11-3, but that wasn't the only crucial number. Contained within that ratio was the vote of 7-2 among the authority members who represent the Northern Virginia jurisdictions whose residents will pay the tax. Equally important was the figure 86.4. That was the percentage of...
By | July 13, 2007; 08:00 AM ET | Comments (8)
Big Decision Tonight in Virginia
This could go down as a big day in the history of efforts to ease traffic congestion in the Virginia suburbs of Washington. Starting at 6 p.m., the newly empowered Northern Virginia Transportation Authority will meet to hear public comments on its plans to impose new taxes and fees and spend the money it raises on improvements to the road and rail network. For those who sit in traffic or on crowded rail cars every work day, this has been a long time coming. Serious political activity at the state level started about eight years and two governors ago. Then in 2002, the transportation authority was formed to spend the money that would have been raised for transportation through a sales tax increase -- if the voters of Northern Virginia had approved it. After the defeat of the transportation tax referendum, the transportation authority languished in relative obscurity until Gov....
By | July 12, 2007; 05:17 AM ET | Comments (18)
More Forums Set on Virginia Transportation
The Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, which on Sunday will be empowered to use regional taxes for congestion relief, has released an updated list of public forums leading up to its big meeting on July 12. Northern Virginians can use these forums to learn more about the powers of the authority, the projects on its initial to-do list and the ways it plans to raise the money. They can also tell members of the authority's board what they think of those plans. This is the schedule. Thursday: Town hall meeting at 7 p.m. in Verizon Auditorium, George Mason University, Prince William Campus, 10900 University Blvd., Manassas. Speaker sign-up to begin at 6:30 p.m. July 9: Fairfax County Board Chairman Gerry Connolly will brief the board at 10 a.m. in the Fairfax County Government Center, 12000 Government Center Parkway, Fairfax. July 12: The transportation authority holds a public hearing to consider enacting...
By | June 27, 2007; 07:53 AM ET | Comments (23)
Virginians Debate Transportation Authority
A couple of dozen people in Leesburg last night offered their opinions on a new taxing and spending program that eventually could affect the travels of hundreds of thousands in Northern Virginia. Despite the relatively small number of speakers, considering the potential impact of the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, they outlined some of the basic hopes and tensions that have surrounded the startup of a plan to improve road and rail travel across the suburbs. There will be two more such forums in Falls Church and Manassas next week, leading to a very important meeting of the transportation authority in Falls Church on July 12. The authority will hold a public hearing on the seven new taxes and fees that could be used to finance transportation spending, discuss an initial list of investments and consider financing those investments through authority-issued bonds. Here's a summary of what people talked about last...
By | June 22, 2007; 06:49 AM ET | Email a Comment
Transportation Authority Moving Quickly
Northern Virginians will have a set of chances, beginning tonight, to learn about a new form of regional government and to say what they want it to do with their money. These are the town hall sessions to discuss the workings of the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, which is empowered to impose taxes on local jurisdictions to provide them with road and transit improvements. There's nothing quite like it in Maryland or the District. The regional authority was set up by the Virginia General Assembly and Gov. Mark Warner in 2002 and would have spent money raised by the proposed transportation tax, but the tax was defeated in a referendum that November. But this spring, Gov. Timothy Kaine and the legislature created a new financing plan for transportation improvements and empowered the authority to raise and spend money. Since then the panel has been rushing to carry out its mandate....
By | June 21, 2007; 08:17 AM ET | Comments (9)
Fairfax Votes For Tysons Rail
The Fairfax County Board voted 8 to 2 this afternoon to help finance construction of a new Metrorail line through Tysons Corner, a crucial step in the county's effort to focus its development on transit stations and move away from its dependence on automobiles. Commuters in Tysons, where 100,000 people work, could see signs of the project as early as September, when workers are scheduled to begin relocating utilities to clear the way for rail line construction along Routes 123 and 7. But several other steps still must occur: The Metro board must agree this month to take control of the rail line when the construction out to Wiehle Avenue is done in 2013, and the Federal Transit Administration must agree to finance $900 million of the $2.647 billion project after a review likely to be done by the end of August. The Fairfax Board today agree to contribute $400...
By | June 18, 2007; 02:22 PM ET | Comments (35)
Tough Decision on Tysons Rail
This was one weird meeting at the Fairfax Government Center: For about an hour on Monday afternoon, the County Board of Supervisors tried to pry information about the Dulles rail project out of the county's own staff members, some of whom could not answer fully because they were sworn to secrecy about details of the pending contract. Too many secrets. They have plagued the public-private partnership deal to build the rail line. Public responsibility for building it has passed from the state of Virginia to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority. When the trains start running, it will become the responsibility of the Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority to operate them. Fairfax County, which will have all the stations in the first phase of the project, will be contributing $400 million through a local funding agreement, so the Board of Supervisors must sign off on that at its June 18 meeting. If...
By | June 5, 2007; 08:16 AM ET | Comments (22)
Fairfax Board Will Vote on Rail Line
The Fairfax County Board this afternoon decided not to delay a June 18 vote that will determine the fate of the Tysons rail project, despite concerns that it has not yet seen the contract for what will be one of the most expensive public works projects in U.S. history and one of the most important transportation programs for the future of Northern Virginia. County government staffers, upon whom the board relies for much of its information about the project, had to sign confidentiality agreements limiting their discussions with the board members. A representative of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, which is in charge of the rail project that ultimately is supposed to reach Dulles Airport at a cost now estimated at $5 billion, said the the contract cannot be made public until it is complete. He said he hoped to have copies for the board members by Friday. Many board...
By | June 4, 2007; 03:24 PM ET | Comments (11)
District Floats Toll Ideas
Motorists already know that Maryland and Virginia are planning to impose congestion pricing on new highway lanes. Those programs on the intercounty connector, Capital Beltway and Interstate 95 have been welcomed by some commuters, who look forward to using a less congested lane, even if they have to pay a variable toll to keep traffic moving. And they've been opposed by others, like the I-95 sluggers, who think such plans will increase congestion and diminish safety. But all the plans so far use the toll money to finance the new lanes we couldn't afford to build with tax money. Congestion pricing is a traffic-control technique added onto the highway financing plan. What if tolling for traffic control became a standalone concept? Transportation experts across a broad spectrum are getting pretty fond of that idea, but it's a threshold that political leaders have been very reluctant to cross. These experts are...
By | May 3, 2007; 07:40 AM ET | Comments (55)
Regional Board Punts on Va. Road Projects
The region's Transportation Planning Board did not feel comfortable enough with plans for the new I-95/395 carpool/toll lanes or the widening of I-66 sections westbound inside the Beltway to advance those highway projects today. On an extremely close vote, the panel finally decided to wait another month to clarify some issues concerning the safety of the projects, their impact on the environment and the protections afforded carpoolers. The 13-12 vote, on a show of hands, was so close that one member called for a weighted vote on the postponement. That complex process, involving the various jurisdictions that make up the regional panel and the populations of the jurisdictions yielded this result: 7.81 for postponement and 7.19 against. Bottom line was the same as the show of hands. The board members will review the answers that the Virginia Department of Transportation supplied to their questions about the projects, go over the...
By | April 18, 2007; 03:57 PM ET | Comments (13)
Road, Rail Projects in Pipeline
Some of the big projects and studies proposed by Maryland and Virginia are up for approval on Wednesday before the region's Transportation Planning Board. Approval for inclusion in the regional air quality conformity analysis doesn't guarantee they'll get built, but it's a necessary step in the process and a reminder for the rest of us of what's planned. Given the time lines for some of these projects, we may look forward to traveling on them in our retirement years. Take, for example, the Route 301 Waldorf Bypass, with an estimated completion date of 2030. What the board will be asked to approve on Wednesday is a study of alternatives for upgrading and widening the highway through Waldorf or building a controlled access bypass around it, or both. The cost estimate for the project, if it gets built, is listed at $2.78 billion, or about $300 million more than the intercounty...
By | April 17, 2007; 07:59 AM ET | Comments (28)
Where Will Va. Transportation Money Go?
Now that the Virginia state government has decided where the transportation money will come from, let's talk about where it will go. On Wednesday, the General Assembly approved Gov. Timothy M. Kaine's amendments to House Bill 3202, the one sponsored by House Speaker William J. Howell (R-Stafford). That bill will empower the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, chaired by Chris Zimmerman of the Arlington County Board, to spend money on roads, rails, buses, bikeways and paths. Click for larger image of 2030 highway plan. Red indicates hour or more of stop/go traffic per day; yellow indicates occasional stop/go traffic. The transporation authority has 16 members: the mayors or chairmen of the nine Northern Virginia cities and counties that are members of the authority; two members of the House of Delegates appointed by the House speaker; one senator; and two Northern Virginia citizens appointed by the governor. The authority embraces Arlington, Fairfax,...
By | April 5, 2007; 07:55 AM ET | Comments (3)
Kaine Proposes Changes to Transportation Bill
Virginia Gov. Timothy Kaine (D) today threw the transportation plan back at the General Assembly with major changes, but he said the Republican House speaker will back them as a compromise. Kaine said in a statement: "I am offering substantial amendments to the transportation legislation that will address three critical issues: ensuring that the regional plans in our two largest metropolitan areas are workable and acceptable to local elected officials; ensuring that rural areas get a fair share of transportation dollars; and ensuring that core services are protected and that the debt contained in the package is supported in a fiscally responsible manner. House Bill 3202, sponsored by Speaker William J. Howell (R-Stafford) and passed by the General Assembly, can be seen here. These are some highlights from Kaine about how he wants to amend it when the legislature reconvenes on April 4: -- Statewide Funding. Authorize $3 billion in...
By | March 26, 2007; 02:27 PM ET | Comments (1)
Citizen Impact on Transportation Issues
In the past 24 hours, I've visited two groups of your fellow citizens who were working to make sure the Deciders in our transportation agencies hear what you think. It's a tricky business in which handfuls of people invest vast amounts of their time while the rewards remain unclear. Last night, the Metro Riders Advisory Council held a session exploring how it could work with the new transit budget proposal to advance the interests of people who ride the trains and buses. Sounds like a pretty good idea, right? Three people showed up to offer their ideas to the council. If they're going to have real clout with the Metro Board of Directors during the budget discussions over the next couple of months, the riders' council members need to hear your ideas. This is a weird little period in which Metro has put its proposals to increase fares and cut...
By | March 1, 2007; 02:23 PM ET | Comments (1)
Meetings on Traffic and Transit Concerns
There are two meetings coming up today and tomorrow I thought many of you would like to know about, because they concern issues we've talked about here: Today, it's the Whitehurst Freeway and whether it should be torn down. Tomorrow, it's Metro's budget for the year that starts on July 1. This afternoon at 3 o'clock, D.C. Councilmember Jim Graham, chairman of the Council's Committee on Public Works and the Environment, will convene a public oversight roundtable on "The Future of the Whitehurst Freeway." (That's encouraging. I hope the Whitehurst has a future.) The session will be held in Room 412 at the Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. If you're not already signed up to testify, written statements still can be made part of the official record. Copies of such statements should be submitted to LaDorsa Willis, Committee on Public Works and the Environment, Room 116, 1350 Pennsylvania Ave....
By | February 27, 2007; 06:20 AM ET | Comments (3)
Imperfect Solutions Better Than None
Post staff writer Alec MacGillis offers a very good summary of the issues involved in building the rail line through Tysons to Dulles. Big projects like this rarely turn out to be just about getting people from one place to another. The rail line clearly is also about organizing people: organizing where they live and work and how they shop. Meanwhile, in Richmond, the General Assembly is still trying to get organized, as staff writer Mike Shear tells us in today's Post. It's unclear what, if any, transportation plan will emerge by the time the annual legislative session ends this month, but there's still a chance. That debate also is not just about getting people from one place to another. The bill we write the most about is House Bill 3202, the one sponsored by Speaker Bill Howell. Look at the italic parts. That's the new stuff. See how much...
By | February 12, 2007; 09:04 AM ET | Email a Comment
It's Only Mostly Dead
The "compromise" transportation plan worked out among some Republican leaders in Virginia was a compromise among those leaders, not a negotiated settlement with the General Assembly members who believe the commonwealth shouldn't set one public priority against the anothers. Now that the Senate Finance Committee has rejected that plan, it's time to work out a true compromise. The political mechanism for it exists in Richmond. The House of Delegates and Senate can do their dealing in a conference committee before the end of the legislative session. Big problem: The session has only three weeks to go. Northern Virginia's advocates for transportation improvements, many of whom were in Richmond on Thursday to lobby for the cause, should not give up now. Some people are pinning their hopes on the November elections to fashion a General Assembly more favorable to big investment in transportation. But that prospect is chancy at best. Just...
By | February 2, 2007; 08:17 AM ET | Comments (10)
Maryland vs. Virginia
A poster on this blog made an interesting observation over the weekend that I'd like to discuss with you. Here's what "Baltimore" said to us: "I find it very interesting that the posts regarding transportation in Virginia tend to get a much bigger response than the posts regarding transportation in Maryland (other than the ICC, of course). I'm curious: is that because Virginia has worse traffic, or because this issue is something that is being so actively debated politically? Has Maryland done a better job in managing traffic than Virginia? Or are Maryland's other main traffic issues (the 270 corridor, Southern Maryland) just not receiving the political attention?" Or maybe Virginians have more interest in blogs about transportation issues. But as I read letters to Dr. Gridlock, engage in online discussions and speak to community groups, I do sense more passion at the moment among Virginians than among Marylanders over...
By | January 22, 2007; 06:05 AM ET | Comments (38)
Breakthrough in Virginia
For the first time in two decades, Virginia is on the verge of making a strong commitment to improving its transportation system. The state's next big hurdle will be to spend the money wisely. Maybe that's thinking too far ahead. After all, what happened on Thursday did not create a new transportation plan for the state. It didn't guarantee more rail cars for Metro or traffic relief on Interstate 66. But it was easily the most significant day in many years for the drivers and transit riders who are vexed by the problems of getting around the Washington suburbs. As of Jan. 18, 2007, the leaders of Virginia's two main political parties agree that the transportation system is very important and very broken, and that it requires a big fix. Now, it becomes a question of working out the details. That can be done, as long as outriders on either...
By | January 19, 2007; 07:20 AM ET | Comments (18)
What's Ahead For Projects
Look at the Maryland Department of Transportation Web site today and you'll see the brand new line up of state leaders across the top and a new welcome message from John Porcari, Gov. Martin O'Malley's choice to lead the transportation department. What else is different? Porcari told me that he saw no reason to stop the intercounty connector, the suburban Washington highway that former governor Bob Ehrlich put on the fast track. But Porcari also is likely to show a greater interest in improving transit than was evident during the previous administration. He's hoping to make some relatively quick improvements in MARC train and commuter bus services, for example. His predecessor, Bob Flanagan, was enthralled with the possibility of creating bus rapid transit systems. He had the department looking at them for the proposed Purple Line and Corridor Cities Transitway. Last week, Porcari accompanied O'Malley to a town hall meeting...
By | January 18, 2007; 07:41 AM ET | Comments (6)
Maryland's Transportation Plans
John Porcari, who returns to the job of Maryland transportation secretary on Wednesday, isn't looking for wiggle room on the state's commitment to build the intercounty connector highway. "It will be under construction" during the upcoming term of Gov.-elect Martin O'Malley, Porcari told me. When I noted that he wasn't leaving himself an escape hatch, despite the continuing controversy over the connector and an environmental lawsuit, he said: "No, I'm really not. Anything could happen, but I do think it's been studied enough, it's been scrutinized enough and it has been debated enough that all the significant issues have been vetted one way or another." Porcari already has served a term as transportation secretary, under the previous Democratic governor, Parris Glendening. During those years, he helped launch two of the region's biggest and, so far, most successful projects: the Wilson Bridge reconstruction and the redevelopment of BWI-Marshall Airport. But Porcari...
By | January 16, 2007; 08:10 AM ET | Comments (1)
Meet the New Boss
Same as the old boss. Martin O'Malley, who will become Maryland governor next week, introduced his designated transportation secretary at a jammed town hall meeting in Montgomery County last night. John D. Porcari has served most recently as vice president for administrative affairs at the University of Maryland in College Park. But before that, he spent four years as Maryland's transportation secretary under Gov. Parris N. Glendening. Porcari helped get the big reconstruction projects started at BWI-Marshall Airport and the Wilson Bridge. He also helped improve Maryland's Department of Motor Vehicles services. When O'Malley introduced Porcari last night in the auditorium at Einstein High School, many people stood to applaud, in what generally proved to be a love-fest for the governor-elect and the new Montgomery County executive, Ike Leggett. When Leggett invited the public to approach two microphones, scores of people took up the offer. The first transportation topic that...
By | January 10, 2007; 08:13 AM ET | Comments (11)
Kaine Sets Transportation Goals
Last year, when Gov. Tim Kaine offered the biggest transportation program for Virginia in two decades, he bounced off a brick wall of opposition from Republicans in the House of Delegates. This morning, he told a receptive audience of Northern Virginia's business and civic leaders in Herndon that he's going to take another run at the wall: "I like hard stuff." This time, though, the run probably will take him through the state's elections in November, when his fellow Democrats will run in part on a platform of transportation improvements in their effort to take control of the House and Senate. Still, Kaine said he was hopeful of success in the General Assembly session that starts in the middle of this month. He says he wants three things: to improve the performance of the state's transportation department, raise more money for maintenance and new projects and allow government to link...
By | January 4, 2007; 01:35 PM ET | Comments (10)
What's Your New Year's Outlook?
New mayor in the District, new governor in Maryland: What's your New Year's wish list for these guys? And while we're at it, let's throw some requests for the members of the Virginia General Assembly, who will be telling you between now and election day in November how much they've done to improve your travels. I'd like them all to kick in more money for Metro transit operations, while urging the Metro board members to limit the fare increases and service reductions to whatever is truly essential. (They can do more than urge the board members in most cases.) In Maryland, I'll be curious to see how Gov.-elect Martin O'Malley performs the necessary balancing acts between roads and transit and between regions of the state. Is the intercounty connector really a done deal? Will he find the money to advance all three of the upcoming transit projects for Baltimore and...
By | January 3, 2007; 08:04 AM ET | Comments (10)
Metro Moves to Control Costs
Metro, facing new public scrutiny because of its proposals to raise fares and cut services, announced on Monday that it is imposing a hiring freeze on staffers who don't deal directly with operations and public safety. Much of Metro's $116 million budget gap for the fiscal year that begins in July stems from planned raises and pension fund contributions. Many riders who have had bad experiences with station managers or customer service representatives are likely to be thinking of that as they consider how much they'd like to part with as much as $2.10 per ride. During my Live Online discussion Monday, many reader comments focused on the fare increase and service cutback proposals. Judging by the comments on the chat and the "Dear Dr. Gridlock" letters I'm receiving, these are among the hot topics in the early stages of the Metro debate: -- Should Metro move us more toward...
By | December 19, 2006; 08:05 AM ET | Comments (20)
What About the Roads and Rails?
Okay, so now we see local governments in Virginia and Maryland acting to slow the growth of their counties in response to traffic congestion brought on by development. We've seen that pendulum swing before. But the developers do their thing for a living, and they pay attention all the time. Voters get mad every once in a while, then walk away from the table before the underlying problems are solved. So the governments may hit the brakes on development for a while, but you'll still be hitting the brakes on your way to work for years to come. That is, unless people now put pressure on their governments to act on all the fine transportation improvement plans that are resting comfortably on the shelves. Development moratoriums are passive things, compared to the long, hard work involved in creating a better transportation system to support liveable communities. And it's fine to...
By | December 6, 2006; 08:07 AM ET | Comments (23)
What the Elections May Bring
Most political commentary has been focused on blue-red fortunes and control of Congress, but my attention zone is a bit narrower: What will the results mean for our transportation system? (Being a firm believer that all politics is local.) In Maryland, will a Democratic governor place a greater focus on the two transit projects in our region and on support of the Metro system? Chances are the Martin O'Malley administration will pick light rail over bus rapid transit for the Corridor Cities Transitway and the Bicounty Transitway. (In fact, we may go back to calling that Bethesda-New Carrollton route the Purple Line.) An O'Malley administration will have to decide not only on the routes but on the funding for those projects. How much will political geography count for? Will the former Baltimore mayor favor the city's Red Line and other projects that benefit that portion of his base? Will he...
By | November 10, 2006; 06:35 AM ET | Comments (30)
Bumper Politics
The election may be over, but I wanted to share with you a letter that is timeless in terms of the point it makes about common courtesy. This was a followup to a letter I ran in my column on Oct. 29: Dear Dr. Gridlock: We tried to keep a favorite on our car: "Friends don't let friends vote Republican." Living in very liberal Arlington, but on a completely Republican block, except for us, we thought it was a great bumper sticker with a sense of humor. The first time we had it, the kids were little and we were stopped at a red light when a man in the car in front of us, Mercedes with the top down, got out of his car and in a heavily-laced alcoholic breath, proceeded to send nothing but expletive deleteds into our open windows. Kids were in shock, but I gracefully replied:...
By | November 8, 2006; 06:30 AM ET | Comments (9)
Turning on the Hydrant
Eric Weiss writes in today's Post about an encouraging trend: Local governments are stepping in where the states are failing. They're financing and building transportation improvements. These are investments that Virginia and Maryland should be making, but when the house is burning, you can't stand around arguing about who's going to hook up to the hydrant. Inaction at the state level -- particularly in Virginia -- is leaving the governments in the Washington suburbs with little choice. Either they arrange for the necessary transportation improvements themselves, or they won't happen. If they don't happen, current and future residents won't enjoy the benefits of the mobile society that some of us are old enough to remember. Two rapidly growing outer suburbs have bond money on their ballots today: In Prince William County, there's a $300 million bond to improve Routes 1 and 28 and some other roads. In Loudoun County, there's...
By | November 7, 2006; 08:13 AM ET | Comments (3)
Who's To Blame?
Interesting story in today's Post from a poll of Virginia voters: The poll finds support among Northern Virginians for tax increases to improve the road and rail network. Also, people are angry with the state government for failing throughout 2006 to advance any measure that would improve traveling conditions. Specifically, the poll found that 55 percent of the likely voters in Northern Virginia blamed the General Assembly for the ineffective special session last month, while 11 percent blamed Gov. Timothy M. Kaine. If they'd called me for the poll, I'd have spread the blame out a bit more. I'd up the share of heat that the governor should take on this. While this is Kaine's first year in office, Virginia gives any governor only four years to make a difference on any issue, because of the one-term limit. Kaine told Northern Virginia voters he really cared about their troubles getting...
By | October 19, 2006; 09:19 AM ET | Comments (23)
Impasse in Virginia
I suppose it was too much to expect that the Virginia General Assembly could accomplish something for the state's travelers in a few days that it couldn't achieve in six months this year. Today's Post story by Amy Gardner and Tim Craig describes a pattern of failure for which Virginians should hold state leaders accountable. The latest is that the legislators failed to reach agreement on any substantial plan to improve Virginia's transportation system and went home. Hope they traveled off-peak. Letter writers to the Dr. Gridlock column who want to talk about transportation issues in Northern Virginia often fall into one of two categories: They look to their fellow motorists or passengers to solve problems, or they look to government to solve problems. They can both be right. Getting around this region would be a lot more sane if people would show more commonsense and courtesy. But all the...
By | September 29, 2006; 09:28 AM ET | Comments (9)
Va. Transportation Politics Heating Up
The primaries in DC and Maryland are wrapping up -- slowly -- but the transportation politicing in Virginia is about to enter a new phase: A special session of the Virginia General Assembly is scheduled to begin on Sept. 27 to consider proposals to improve travel conditions in the state. The Northern Virginia Transportation Authority plans to hold a press conference Friday morning at the Dunn Loring Metro station in which some of the region's leaders will push for new investments in transportation services. I'm very much a supporter of upgrading the road and rail network. How could I not be after hearing the frustrations of so many VRE riders and road warriors this summer. But the choice of Dunn Loring Station for the press conference reminded me of how difficult it is to win support for new transportation programs. Back in 2002, I attended a press conference at the...
By | September 13, 2006; 02:07 PM ET | Email a Comment
