Feds Voice Concern About Funding Dulles Rail

http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0108/490662.html

http://www.nbc4.com/news/15130276/detail.html?dl=mainclick

If this dies next week we can kiss the future growth of Loudoun goodbye for a long long time. Nobody is going to move here with the traffice nightmare and the soon to be higher taxes because of the proposed school busget.

This metro is the center piece to develop the transit oriented developments and the center piece to help traffic in our part of the county. You can thank the pro tunnel people for delaying this and killing the entire silver line metro. We are having the worst housing slump in twenty five years and the future does not look very bright and with the metro dead businesses will look for close in places to move to rather then fight the traffic nightmare out here.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/housing/2008-01-24-existing-home-sales_N.htm

 

Lee,

This is so frustrating. So, we get denied adequate public transportation because some government know-it-all does not like the project!?! To hide behind the cost issue is so idiotic. The cost for the whole rail extension to Dulles would be paid for in full in no time if we just put toward it a few days/weeks of what we are pouring into Iraq.

 

linux you have hit the nail on the head.

But if you don't play the government overspend game you lose out at the same token. The government is the problem in the way they manage these projects.

I will say if this is nixed we will not see metro out here in our lifetime.

Hellooooooo the airports manage projects far larger then this and do it fiscally responsibly. Personally I think this is a powerplay by an federal employee that has never ran anything as big as this as the airport board has. This is nothing more then a federal employee power play. And he is going to show all of us who is top dog.

 

Steve absolutely brilliant. A commuter rail would even be better. Make no mistake about it I am really scared if no kind of rail is not built out here I am very worried about the next twenty years of Loudoun. I really thought this was a sure thing. It messes up a lot of thinking out here if it does not happen. A lot of powerful political clout is going into this and it looks pretty grim right now.

Lee j

 

Wow...Gryphon extolling the virtues of spending billions of tax dollars...go figure.....

 

The point of my post is that billions of our tax dollars are being wasted with each passing day on dumber things. Take your pick, for example, from (1) air traffic controllers who are on the government dole but are whining for more money to be taken out of the wallets of hard-working Americans or (2) the endless occupation in the Middle East. Those are just two of many examples.

Better public transportation in our region is desperately needed, but some arrogant big government know-it-all wants to deny us a better quality of life. Go figure...

 

Gryphon I agree with you buddy. Linux I feel far more comfortable having the airport people build this silver line and guiding the this project to fruition even with the big dig contractor involved. Bechtel has is a class a construction company that has built some of the largest and most complex projects very successfully all over the world including Iraq under very trying conditions at best.

Perhaps it was more of the many non experienced government bureaucrats in charge of the big dig then it was a first class company with a proven track record such as Bechtel .

I feel the airport people that build billions and billions of projects every day including their own airport subway very cost effectively being in charge then those government clowns up in boston trying to build something far beyond their expertise.

Something is drastically wrong with this picture, could there be some jealousy friction between the FTA and the airport people. Maybe they FTA does not want to be shown how to build something on budget and on time for once by people that have the experience to do it. Who does the FTA want in charge more government bureaucrats in charge so they can screw this one up too. I always say less government people involved the better, just give us the money and we will show you how to build something of this size on budget and on time if all just leave us alone and let us do our job without interference.

Lee j

 

Just spoiling for a fight aren't you?

Cliff, I suggest you do not bite and give this asinine statement a response.

 

Although I do feel the crap Cliff has to go through he should be paid double both for his real job and the many other thankless jobs he does for the community. Gryphon I do think you went a bit far on that one.

Lee j

 

Let's be clear. I think Cliff should be well paid for many things, including his service to Broadlands residents as head of the HOA. I would gladly pay more in HOA dues to fund that. Is anyone with me?

However, if any government employee does not like his or her salary, I just want it known that they can look for private-sector employment, just like all of us who don't take a government check home every week. What really irks me is that some big government know-it-all is yanking the funding for a step toward adequate public transportation in our area that would (1) reduce congestion and (2) reduce pollution.

 

I'll go with option number 1! I'll take a well-funded state of the art air traffic system than a 5 billion dollar boondoggle that will do little to solve transportation problems, increase taxes and tolls, and greatly increase gridlock and traffic congestion in Ashburn.
Go get your quality of life with something else.

 

Gryphon-
To clarify, I NEVER SAID THAT. I simply pointed out what was happening to the ATC system and impacts it could have. I was pointing out a consequence to what happened. Many have taken your advice......experienced controllers are leaving and trainees are quitting.
I suggest you reread the thread.

 

Well Cliff you are very short sighted if you think this metro is a boondoggle. But that usually comes from people that don't plan to stay here.

Anyway if you think the feds are going to give us money to build this state of the art transportation system you are living in some dream land. Hell uyou can't even get waxpool fixed and we could lose some of the money for current road projects because the abuse fee has been repealed with no other funding source. That could delay pacific and the belmont interchange with 7 and even the widening of waxpool. Where will the money be made up from from for these immediate projects much less future ones. Cliff if you think the feds are going to give us 900 million of that money for other road projects dream again. That money will then go to another city that they feel is more deserving certainly not here in Northern virginia. So you got to take what you can when you can or it is lost forever. I would say the outlook for Loudoun is very grim without the metro coming out here, until 30 years from now. Moorefield has already been delaying many of there projects and might just delay them for eternity with their deep pockets. Comstock who is developing Loudoun Station may end up in Bankruptcy soon and are extremely close to it. I can just see it more low dollar tax paying flex buildings go up on the greenway instead of turning the area into a beatiful urban center. you want to see your property values really crater let the metro not br built and the land ends up all industrail. Would that not be wonderful, mark my words that could happen. So then we all be be stuck here forever unless you take an huge loss on your home. Can you imagine how sad the happy hours would be. Non of us could afford to go to clydes or any of the other then closed restaurants and clubs. We will be hosting the HH in the woods in the common areas with drinking with the teens. No more fancy drinks just ripple out of an bag shared by everyone in the woods. Yep that is what it will be like without the metro. What is going to solve some of the traffic problems more toll lanes????? I don't think so there is no more land to build anymore lanes on the dulles toll road. So without the metro what you see now is all you get to drive in possibly forever.

Lee j

 

Lee and others--

I hope, Lee, that we do get Metro to Dulles eventually. I would hate to see Loudoun County without a decent commuter train line.

In Gwinnett County, Georgia (which is the largest and best school district in Georgia) where we are from--MARTA (Atlanta's version of Metro) has been delayed more than 20 years. MARTA was and is still politically corrupt.

The outcry from the delegates and public in Gwinnett County more than 20 years ago--still to this day--did not want MARTA extended to Gwinnett because they were afraid of "undue influence" coming to the affluent and growing suburbs. Guess what?? It came anyway; and recently the delegates from Gwinnett came to see how Fairfax deals with commuter issues by using Metro. They are trying to do studies, etc. to get a "light rail" around Atlanta. We shall see.

When I worked at GA Pacific and had to commute to Atlanta downtown for meetings--it was a nightmare. I worked in the Gwinnett County area where our branch office was located; but still had to venture downtown for meetings, etc.

Gwinnett now has a large population of people who have moved to the area because of jobs and other reasons who have experienced a great transit system in other places where they resided. The "outsiders" cannot believe that Atlantans and Gwinnett residents spend so much money on roadways. Politically, that is the way the "wind has blown" for many years.

Unfortunately, the money is not there for MARTA's expansion. A group of investors was called the "Brain Train" and wanted Gov. Perdue to put money into extending a line on the CSX from Athens (UGA) down to Emory University. The CSX tracks would be used just like VRE is here in the Metro DC areas. CSX would contribute; but no one thought it was a "good and profitable" idea. Hence, it will probably be another 20 years before residents see some progress--Gwinnett is expanding their bus services now.

Web site for "Brain Train"--

www.georgiabraintrain.com (Georgia Brain Train's site/info for great reading.)

For that reason--maybe--with "fingers crossed"--we will see the Metro extended and financially fiscal. Have a good weekend--

Foodie

 

Well read this from our local and beautiful reporter Erica from the Washington Post on the potential harm to Loudoun if this metro is not built. Quite telling story from our local business leaders.

http://loudounextra.washingtonpost....an/25/metro-plans-possibly-derailed-what-now/

 

Of course, option 1 is personally better for you, right? So, is there any surprise that you would support it?

Also, can you provide facts to support your outlandish claims? Specifically, where is your evidence of the following:

Your claim that Dulles rail is a boondoggle,
Your claim that Dulles rail will do little to solve transportation problems,
Your claim that Dulles rail will increase taxes and tolls, and
Your claim that Dulles rail will GREATLY increase gridlock and traffic and congesion in Ashburn.

 

That's great news! With fewer workers to pay, our taxes should go down.

 

Thanks for sharing the link. This is good evidence of how not getting our fair share of tax dollars for Dulles rail simply hurts Broadlands and other Loudoun residents.