Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Virginia officials doubt Fairfax County will get money for transportation projects in 2013 legislative session.
As officials sat down Tuesday to discuss priorities for the legislature’s fast-approaching 2013 session, the county’s widely publicized road funding woes—a $3 billion need for road projects and improvements over the next decade—took center stage. The county faces a $300 million per year funding shortfall for the next 10 years. But nobody is quite sure where the money will come from. And at Tuesday's joint meeting of county supervisors and representatives from the Virginia State Senate and General Assembly, tidings were grim. “I honestly don’t expect a transportation bill to pass this session,” Del. Vivian Watts (D-39th) said. The Commonwealth’s Secondary Road Program, from which the county used to get $29 million annually, is dry. The …
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
With third straight year of zero funding for program, cyclists say some transportation improvements are threatened; county to look toward Arlington for model
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors formally adopted a $6.7 billion budget Tuesday morning, a spending plan which put aside more money for human services, schools and employee pay but, for the third consecutive year, not bicycle programs. Although the county funds a full-time bicycle coordinator in its transportation department, the bicycle program has gone without funding since fiscal year 2011, according to Fairfax County staff reports provided to supervisors this year. The county's formal bike program was launched in 2006 as the Comprehensive Bicycle Initiative. Early projects included developing the county's first bike route map, retrofitting connector buses, and adding bike racks to county park and ride lots. The program received…
Monday, February 27, 2012
Things could get a little bumpy.
Although this winter hasn't been nearly as hard on area roadways as winters past, many residents are dodging potholes on secondary roads in their neighborhoods. Clearly, Northern Virginia's secondary roadways need ongoing maintenance, but Virginia Department of Transportation maintenance funds have run dry. Local lawmakers are frustrated over the problem, and some are wrestling with the ramifications of taking the responsibility from the state. "Some secondary roads in [Fairfax] County haven't gotten attention in 15 years, and we have a huge system of roadways," said Mount Vernon District Supervisor Gerry Hyland (D). "When are those people in Richmond going to adequately fund transportation funding in Northern Virginia before it's …
Bob Bruhns
12:39 pm on Saturday, December 15, 2012
It might help if someone would look at the double price of the Dulles Rail - Silver Line project. We are throwing money away on that project to the tune of $2.5 billion to $3 Billion of overcharge, and then we are paying finance costs on the money we have to borrow to PAY for that overcharge. Nobody seems to care because the game is really about grabbing that money, not stopping the robbery. The … more ›