A Penny for Your Thoughts

News of Greater Falls Church

The Board auditorium was nearing capacity as Transportation Summit 2005 got underway at the Fairfax County Government Center on Monday. Civic association leaders, transportation planners, county and state staff, and other interested parties heard from transportation experts and then divided into smaller groups for hour-long workshops that focused on more specific issues.

Mary Lynn Tischer, Governor Warner’s special assistant on transportation, outlined the prospects for federal funding for road and transit projects (prospects are not good) and explained the challenges between the House and Senate-passed versions of current transportation bills. Former Board of Supervisors’ Chairman Kate Hanley, now a member of the Commonwealth Transportation Board, navigated the group through the “alphabet soup” of transportation terminology – CLRP, VDRPT, SIP, HMOF, and others (Constrained Long Range Plan, Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation, State Implementation Plan, Highway Maintenance and Operations Fund). She also highlighted several important dates for transportation in the Commonwealth: 1932, the year the Byrd Road Act was adopted. Arlington and Henrico Counties opted out of the state highway system because they met the urban definition shared by cities and towns. Fairfax was still rural and fell under the state system for road building and maintenance. 1946 was the last time that the state’s gas tax structure was amended. Prior to 1981, counties were not allowed to use bonds for transportation projects. Fortunately, that authority has changed, but there has not been a comprehensive approach to transportation statewide since the Baliles administration’s initiative in 1986.

Alan Pisarski, nationally recognized author and expert on transportation issues and a Mason District resident, presented his findings on mobility in Fairfax County , which he also will include in his forthcoming book, “Commuting in America , Part 3.” Mr. Pisarski noted that our nation was built on mobility and American society must have the mobility it needs to meet its social and economic goals. In Fairfax County , 52 percent of the workforce commutes within the county for their jobs, but commuting is just 25 percent of local passenger travel. The other traffic is for non-work appointments, tourism, services such as power/phone/cable/ water/sewer, public vehicles, and freight. Mr. Pisarski suggested that one way to make transportation work better here is to wring out every bit of capacity we can from the existing system before looking at big capital expenditures. That last theme was picked up in several of the workshops that followed.

The workshop/discussion component filled nearly three hours as participants self-selected to sessions on transportation planning, quick fixes and spot improvements, pedestrian and bicycle facilities and telework, HOV and ridesharing, public transit and rail to Dulles, transit-oriented development, ongoing VDOT projects, funding, and public-private partnerships. Each group reported out on the challenges and possible solutions in the closing session.

You can view the entire Transportation Summit replayed on Channel 16 on Saturday, March 19, Monday, March 28, or Monday, April 11, at 8:00 p.m. each day. The program also will be added to the Video on Demand (VOD) internet feature so that you can watch the program at your convenience. To access the VOD, go to www.fairfaxcounty.gov, choose cable and follow the prompts.

Penny Gross is the Mason District Supervisor on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. She may be emailed here.