Northern Virginia's 2030 Long Range Plan

December 7, 2005



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“The fact that widening Catoctin Circle in Leesburg is rated higher

than a Northern Potomac River Crossing, Western Corridor or Eastern Bypass

in the proposed Transaction 2030 Regional Plan

shows the absurdity of the rating system

and the political constraints placed on this exercise.”



Alliance statement

to Northern Virginia Transportation Authority

December 6, 2005



Federal law requires the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board to prepare a financially Constrained Long Range Plan limited to road and transit projects for which funding exists or is considered reasonably available.



Parochial politics are driving the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority towards preparing a Politically Constrained Long Range Plan.



In 1999, the Northern Virginia Transportation Coordinating Council (TCC) produced a Northern Virginia 2020 Transportation Plan, which was not financially constrained. The TCC’s successor, the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, is in the process of updating this plan through a process called TransAction 2030.



While TransAction 2030 literature talks about “providing a vision for a mobile future,” its study limits the region’s ability to achieve future mobility by downgrading the importance of long recognized solutions such as a Western Parkway and Eastern Bypass and excluding fundamental solutions such as a Northern Potomac River crossing and widening I-66 inside the Beltway.



Staff and consultants are prohibited from considering any improvement not in the 2020 Plan. No successful operation excludes consideration of effective programs from its long range planning – which explains why Northern Virginia has the nation’s third worst congestion.



Northern Virginia will never achieve acceptable mobility levels as long as elected officials prohibit transportation professionals from considering the best solutions.



Text of the Alliance statement appears below





Alliance Statement on TransAction 2030

To the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority

December 6, 2005



The Northern Virginia Transportation Alliance commends the Authority and staff for pursuing its responsibility of updating and developing a Northern Virginia long range transportation plan.



TransAction 2030 is a very complex and difficult undertaking to assess in 3 to 5 minutes. The Alliance offers the following observations.



First, to its credit the Authority has gone to considerable length and expense to involve and inform the public in this exercise, conducting a telephone survey, launching a public road show, providing a web site with background information and balloting opportunities.





Public Opinion Survey



Second, commissioning a survey to reach beyond public hearings which attract only the angry and anti’s is a good thing.



Survey pluses include:

· Straightforward questions that show general willingness to pay more for transportation and support for gas tax and state bonds.



Shortcomings include:

· Failure to provide information to make informed decisions on corridor improvements and how funds should be spent.

· Corridor project options vary in function. Absent information on effectiveness and cost, findings simply mirror public perception and should not to be confused with informed opinion or preferred solutions.

· Similarly, questions on spending choices need to be accompanied by information on the benefit of those choices and followed by questions as to whether respondents would use that mode. The fact the many people favor spending more on public transit does not mean they would use it. Similarly, ranking opinions/choices based on inadequate information does not provide meaningful results.





Corridor Qualitative Project-Based Evaluation



Third, in terms of evaluation criteria and results:

· Prioritize projects within corridor and region. Prioritization within mode within corridor falls far short of what’s needed. A fourth ranked road project may be ten times more valuable and cost effective than a top ranked public transit project or vice versa. Not prioritizing projects within corridors and in the region as a whole leaves us far short of where we need to be.

· Compare non-CLRP projects with CLRP projects to ensure the best investment decisions.

· Incorporate time-savings measures. Most travel decisions are based on time savings.

· Expand scoring range. Three-tiered range (zero, low, high) obscures major value differences. Medium/half circle scoring indicates minimal. Full circle equals significant/high. Difference between minimal and major is significant.

· Revise LOS ratings. LOS on public transit and bicycles are subjective and based on comfort levels and potential capacities as opposed to real world needs and demand.

· Award highway improvements multi-modal recognition for enhancing bus/carpools.

· Base person-throughput on proven demand, not capacity which may never be used.

· Assign “Urgency” based on most important corridor improvement, not most important within mode.

· Revise VMT reductions standards. Tennis professional John McEnroe’s assessment of assigning high VMT reductions to trails would be, “You can’t be serious!”



Major Projects Merit Major Focus



Fourth, place more focus on well documented major solutions such as the Western and Eastern Bypasses. VDOT studies show a Techway would be the region’s fourth most heavily used bridge. It should be included, as should widening I-66 inside the Beltway. Each of these projects commands more public support than those measured in the Authority’s survey. The fact that widening Catoctin Circle in Leesburg receives a higher ranking than major new corridors such as a Western and Eastern Bypass shows the absurdity of the rating system and the political constraints placed on this exercise.’





Multi-Modalism, Not a Substitute for the Best Solution



Fifth, multi-modalism is important where multiple modes are justified. However, the obsession with identifying all modal options is no substitute for identifying the best solutions.



Finally, the value of this $1 million exercise will depend more on what comes next than what has transpired. Serious plans and solutions require serious investment in determining the best investments. At this point in time, the value of this information to our state legislative delegation is difficult to discern.



All solutions need to be on the table. Limiting projects to those in the 2020 Plan shows no vision. This plan remains politically and factually constrained. The Authority’s goal must be the best mobility plan, not the most politically correct. The goal should not be to maximize multi-modalism but to prioritize improvements that maximize mobility to get most people, goods and services where they need to go in the most time-efficient and cost-effective manner.



Northern Virginia still lacks a well defined transportation plan with performance-based priorities. Capacity must not be confused with demand.



Promoting the notion that the Authority is responding to what the public wants when the Authority has failed to provide the public with the information it needs is counterproductive to achieving a plan that works.



Public participation and opinion are important to a successful regional transportation program/exercise. Informed public opinion and a transportation plan that incorporates and prioritizes the best transportation solutions are even more important.



While the project has compiled volumes of new information, it still falls far short of providing a road map leading to a transportation system that works.



You’ve made a start, but your journey has miles to go.







Contact Info

The Alliance Alert is a free online update on regional transportation issues and public involvement opportunities provided by the Northern Virginia Transportation Alliance. For more information on regional transportation issues and NVTA, please visit our website at http://www.nvta.org/.

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Northern Virginia Transportation Alliance
P.O. Box 6149
McLean, Virginia 22106-6149
tel 703-883-1830
fax 703-883-1850
http://www.nvta.org/