FAIRFAX COUNTY TRANSPORTATION ADVISORY COMMISSION
MEETING SUMMARY
Regular Meeting – September 4, 2007
7:15 PM - Room 8, Government Center
TAC Members in attendance: Chairman George Barker, Vice Chairman Janyce Hedetniemi, Secretary Roger Hoskin, Jenifer Joy Madden, Eric Thiel, Mack Rhoades, Harry Zimmerman, Brian Deery and Jeffrey Parnes.
Others in Attendance: Kathy Ichter, Mike Lake, Chris Wells and Bob Owolabi.
The meeting was called to order at 7:35 pm.
Meeting Minutes: Approved minutes of the July 17, 2007 Regular TAC meeting with the following corrections: (1) On the last line of page 1, changed “2008” to “2007”. (2) On the second line of page 2, corrected Tom’s misspelled last name to read “Biesiadny”.
Main Topics Discussed
Board Referrals:
There were no new referrals from the Board of Supervisors.
Main Topics
Highlights of FCDOT On-going Activities: Kathy Ichter, Director, Fairfax County Department of Transportation (FCDOT), made a presentation on “Major Happenings” at FCDOT, with primary focus on the following major activities: (1) Dulles Corridor Metrorail Extension; (2) State Transportation Funding (3) County Transportation Funding; and (4) Base Realignment and Closure.
On the Dulles Corridor project, she gave a brief overview of the evolution of the project and gave a detailed description of the both Phases of the project. Phase 1 (Extension to Wiehle Avenue) is 11.6 miles long, has 5 stations—all in Fairfax County (4 stations in Tysons Corner and 1 at Wiehle Avenue). Phase 2 is 11.5 miles long, has 6 stations—3 in Fairfax County, 1 at Dulles Airport and 2 in Loudoun County. Projected ridership under phase 1 is 63,000 daily person trips; under both phases 1 and 2, projected ridership is 95,000 daily person trips, with 10,000 parking spaces. The project is expected to improve mobility options in the Dulles Corridor by increasing person travel capacity by as much as 50 percent. The projected cost for phases 1 and 2 is $5.147 billion, and under the local funding agreement, Fairfax County will pay $849 million or 16.1% of final costs—expected to be raised from local tax district. The Airport Authority is expected to contribute 4.1%; Loudoun County’s share is 4.8%; thus the contributions of Fairfax County, Loudoun County, and the Airport Authority will add up to 25% of the total cost of the project. Regarding funding, there is disagreement over what “contingency” should be. Contingencies are currently under review—which puts the project in a ‘delay mode’. The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) has renegotiated the contract. As long as final agreement is reached by November 2007, late penalty fees would not be incurred. Question: “If all goes bad, does it (money collected) free up dollars for other things?” Response: It frees up tax dollars collected in Tysons Corner, but the money cannot be spent on anything else. It would not free up dollars for other projects in Fairfax County or the Commonwealth of Virginia.
On State Transportation Funding, the presentation focused on the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority (NVTA). Kathy gave a general overview of the evolution of the NVTA and its responsibilities. She stated that this year, the General Assembly, under House Bill (HB) 3202 granted the NVTA authority to toll, raise, and collect up to seven taxes and fees to support transportation in Northern Virginia. Although HB 3202 provides significant transportation revenues, the work to secure additional transportation funding is not complete. For instance, NVTA’s TransAction 2030 indicated that Northern Virginia needs an additional $700 million per year to invest in transportation projects and services, the amount was really only to keep us where we are—it is a long way from meeting our transportation needs. On July 12, 2007, the NVTA held a public hearing and afterwards adopted seven taxes and fees that may potentially result in as much as $550 million per year for Northern Virginia. On same night, the NVTA also approved a position that, until it is fully staffed, it would not accept unsolicited Public-Private Transportation Act (PPTA) proposals.
On County Transportation Funding, the presentation focused on the Fall 2007 Transportation Referendum, which is a $110 million Transportation Investment. This is comprised of Transit Improvements--$16 million, Spot Improvements--$7.75, Bus Stop Inventory, safety, and Access Improvements--$7.75 million, Countywide Pedestrian Enhancements--$15 million, Roadway Improvements--$55 million, and base Realignment and Closure (BRAC)--$8.85 million.
On BRAC at Fort Belvoir, she stated that the final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) was released on July 6, 2007, followed by release of the Record of Decision on August 10, 2007. Fairfax County estimates that $1.6 billion in road and transit improvements will be necessary to serve the BRAC installations. The Army estimates that $458 million is needed. However, there are no funding commitments from the Army for transportation for any of the mitigation projects identified in the EIS. Currently, the only funding available (approximately $220-240 million) is from County, State and already committed Federal funding sources prior to BRAC. None of the mitigation projects identified in the environmental impact statement has been started and that could impact implementation schedules because transportation projects require a great deal of time to plan, design and construct.
2007 Bond Referendum: Mike Lake from FCDOT made a presentation on the $110 million transportation bond referendum which will be on the general election ballot in November 2007. He stated that Fairfax County voters will be asked to vote YES or NO on a transportation bond question in the November 6, 2007 general election. Of the $110 million, $71 million would be spent on improving roads across the county. This includes $8.5 million for improvements related to the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission’s recommendations at the U.S. Army’s Fort Belvoir and nearly $8 million for spot transportation projects. Another $23 million would be used to improve Connector bus and Metrorail facilities, as well as bus stops across the county. Finally, $15 million would fund pedestrian improvements that will enhance safety and connect missing pedestrian links across the county. The 2007 Bond Referendum Citizen Committee has been established and is charged with informing the public about this year's bond referendum. The TAC Vice Chair, Janyce Hedetniemi has been appointed to the Committee. She hopes to keep the TAC informed and may call upon TAC members to assist whenever there are information sessions planned in each TAC member’s district.
Pedestrian program Update: Chris Wells from FCDOT made a presentation on the status of major activities of the Fairfax County Pedestrian Program. His presentation focused on the following three major categories: ENGINEERING, EDUCATION, and ENFORCEMENT. He also provided a detailed list of proposed pedestrian improvements in the 2007 Transportation Bond Referendum.
On Engineering, he provided status reports on the following projects: (1) Pedestrian Task Force Ten-Year $60 million Funding Goal; (2) VDOT Six-Year Secondary “Top 40” Pedestrian Projects; (3) Pedestrian Project Construction; (4) Countdown Pedestrian Signals, (5) Crosswalk Lighting Guidelines; and (6) Sidewalks on Both Sides in New Subdivision.
On Education, he reported on the following two major activities: (1) Street Smart, and (2) Pedestrian Outreach Coordinator.
On Enforcement, he also gave status reports on: (1) Street Smart and (2) Yield to Pedestrian Fine Signs.
On the pedestrian improvements in the 2007 Transportation Bond Referendum, Mr. Wells provided a list of 46 projects, with each accompanied by an aerial map indicating the approximate location of the project.
Tysons Corner Area Plan Study: The TAC representatives on the Tysons Corner Study team gave a brief update on the work of the team and invited all TAC members to the public outreach session on implementation scheduled for September 18, 2007.
Other Business: The 2008 TAC Meeting Schedule was distributed and the TAC Chair brought everyone’s attention to the first meeting scheduled for January 8, 2008 because January 1, 2008 is New Year’s Day which is a Holiday observed by the Fairfax County Government.
Upcoming Agendas
Cost of Implementing Transportation Elements of the Comprehensive Plan (timeline for providing the information), Seniors-on-the-Go Program Updates, Bond Referendum Updates.
Announcements:
The Board Transportation Committee meeting is scheduled for October 1, 2007 (2:30 pm) at Conference Rooms 9 & 10 of the Government Center, 12000 Government center Parkway, Fairfax, VA 22035. Agenda items include: the Fairfax County Transit Development Plan, the capital Beltway South Side Mobility Study, I-95/I-395 HOV Lanes, Dulles Project Updates, Columbia Pike Transitway, and BRAC Project Updates. TAC members requested copies of the agenda when it is finalized.
Meeting Adjourned
The meeting was adjourned at 9:35 pm.
