Eric Weiss with the Washington Post previews the coming shift in funding from mega-projects like the Woodrow Wilson Bridge and the Interstate 95/495 mixing bowl to spot road improvements designed to ameliorate local congestion.
Under The Comprehensive Transportation Funding and Reform Act of 2007, Northern Virginia stands to gain $400 million a year in new revenue. Instead of funding the mega-projects still on the books, such as the Rail to Dulles heavy rail project and HOT lanes on Northern Virginia interstates, which have other sources of funding, the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority is expected to spend its money on smaller projects. Writes Weiss:
Transportation analysts say the biggest impact can be made on projects such as the widening of the Fairfax County Parkway from Route 123 to the Dulles Toll Road and raising the parkway to go over Monument Drive and Fair Lakes Parkway, two of the most traffic-choked intersections in the region. Other possible fixes include lengthening the left-turn lane at routes 123 and 50/29 in Fairfax City, upgrading the intersection of Braddock Road and Route 29 and re-timing traffic lights throughout the region.
“We haven’t, for the last decade, had a reasonable secondary-road program for Northern Virginia, and this money is a huge plus in addressing a problem that has many, many sides,” said Pierce R. Homer, Virginia’s transportation secretary.
I opposed the tax increases on the grounds that much of the money will be wasted without fundamental change to land use and governance systems. But things could be worse. From a strategic perspective, the shift in priorities makes sense. Smaller projects often offer a higher Return on Investment, as measured by congestion mitigated per dollar spent, than the high-profile projects. They’re less likely to encounter delays and cost overruns, too.
Also, it’s encouraging to see that NoVa planners are looking to improve the efficiency of the existing road network — as opposed, say, to building new roads into the countryside and extending the pattern of scattered, disconnected, low-density development deeper into the countryside. Please note that “re-timing traffic lights throughout the region,” an alternative to laying more asphalt, is under consideration.
It’s not much, but you have to take comfort where you can.
