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Decision day
The debate over Metrorail to Washington Dulles International Airport has gone on too long. It is time to end it and fix the project. After years of promises, missed deadlines and agreements veiled in secrecy, the project still has not been approved by the Federal Transit Administration and might be rejected.
At stake is $900 million in federal money that would pay for part of the project. The FTA and its inspector general apparently have major concerns not about the need for this transit project, but about how the project will be implemented – the high price resulting from lack of competition and transparency and a questionable contract structure, among others.
Two apparently opposing groups have formed in this debate.
One, the Dulles rail boosters, primarily represented by the Dulles Corridor Rail Association, have worked tirelessly for years to advance the rail connection to Washington’s international airport and through Northern Virginia’s major employment centers – Tysons Corner, Reston, Herndon and parts of Loudoun County. They have focused on getting the line built quickly and have trusted Virginia and the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority to handle the details. Figuring Fairfax County approved the design, they have supported the only Dulles rail project they “have.”
The other, TysonsTunnel.org, representing thousands of citizens and a mix of environmental, civic, homeowner, and business groups in Tysons and the surrounding communities of Vienna, McLean, and Great Falls, believes that a competitive bid is needed to ensure the best value for the public’s investment. The controversial, elevated structure through bustling Tysons also has drawn negative attention and accusations of shortsightedness.
Citing the competitive bid that saved the Wilson Bridge when it got into trouble for being too expensive, tunnel supporters argue that new tunnel-boring technology, limited surface disruption during construction, and competition will deliver a tunnel under Tysons at a lower cost, better contract terms and a fixed price compared to the current plan.
Perhaps most importantly, the tunnel concept offers the opportunity for high-quality, long-term mixed-use development in Northern Virginia’s “downtown.” Accusations that Virginia’s Public Private Transportation Act was used to avoid adequate competition have supporters on both sides concerned.
Those groups must now be brought together for a common goal. By including the tunnel through Tysons and moving quickly to hold a competitive bid, the project will be improved and the community will unite behind it. Our political leaders, starting with Gov. Tim Kaine (D), must step forward to support this approach and insist that the agencies involved deliver.
Seeing these apparent foes come together to embrace a spirit of compromise and forward momentum would ensure success of this important rail project and provide the broad public support needed.
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