VDOT’s I-95/395 HOT Lanes: “No Way to Make Multi-Billion Dollar Transportation Decisions”
Coalition for Smarter Growth, Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release:
February 4, 2011
Contact:
Stewart Schwartz, Coalition for Smarter Growth, 703-599-6437 (c)
Roger Diedrich, Sierra Club, 703-352-2410
VDOT’s I-95/395 HOT Lanes: “No Way to Make Multi-Billion Dollar Transportation Decisions”
Groups Urge Unity of Local Jurisdictions in Calling for a full Environmental Impact Statement and Consideration of Alternatives
“This is no way to make multi-billion dollar transportation decisions,” said Roger Diedrich, Transportation Chair for the Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club. “For the second time with the 95/395 corridor VDOT has made its decision before they’ve done the studies.”
The National Environmental Policy Act requires thorough consideration of a range of alternatives and environmental and community impacts. “VDOT appears to be making decisions for political, ideological, and let’s be honest, car-centric reasons, not out of objective evaluation of the best land use and transportation solutions,” said Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth.
“We urge Governor McDonnell’s administration and all local jurisdictions to support a full Environmental Impact Study that considers a full range of alternatives, tests the land use and transportation effects, and the community and environmental impacts,” said Diedrich.
“It is very possible that these newly configured HOT lanes will make the traffic problems at the Mark Center BRAC-133 and the new Tysons Corner worse, not better, by leading to more single-occupant vehicles and fewer carpools and buses, but we can’t know without the analysis,” said Schwartz. The 95/395 corridor has been one of the nation’s most successful bus and HOV corridors, but crowding the lanes with single-occupant HOT users could collapse the slug-line system and impact HOV and bus flow. But without the right studies how can we know? It’s worth noting that a study before the Springfield Interchange construction showed that changing from HOV-3 to HOV-2 would cause speeds to drop and HOV service to collapse – it could be that adding HOT vehicles would similarly cause HOV to collapse.
Specifically, the groups once again called for consideration of a range of issues alternatives that include:
- The impact of HOT lanes on HOV service, the slug-line system and bus service.
- The impact of HOT lanes as compared to other alternatives in terms of traffic exiting into urban centers including D.C., the Pentagon, the Mark Center and Tysons Corner.
- Alternatives that include expanded HOV and bus alternatives instead of HOT lanes and involve consideration of ending the allowance for single occupant hybrid cars in the HOV lanes, enhancements to the slugging system, and bus service expansion.
- Integrated land use and transit solutions that interconnect mixed-use, walkable urban centers at Potomac Mills, North Woodbridge, Springfield, Landmark/Van Dorn, Mark Center, Shirlington, Pentagon, Pentagon City, Crystal City and D.C.
- The impact of double layers of ramps on communities, the impact of traffic into local communities, and the relative cost of the expanding network of HOT lanes as compared to land use and transit solutions.
- Public ownership of HOT lanes rather than ceding control over toll rates and tolls revenues to a private company for 75 years.
- In addition, requirements that should be demanded if a HOT lane solution is ultimately selected include: 40% of the total investment cost to go toward transit service; no non-compete clause in terms of adding transit VRE and local road service; profit sharing of toll revenues for state taxpayers; no limit on HOV and bus use in the lanes; and full transparency and elected official approval of the terms of any PPTA agreement – correcting the many flaws with the 495 HOT lane agreement.
“VDOT seems intent on building a network of HOT lanes piece by piece without ever disclosing the full cost or of objectively looking at alternatives,” said Diedrich. “These range from the over $700 million Springfield Interchange, to the $2.4 billion Woodrow Wilson Bridge, and the $1.9 billion 495 HOT lanes and now the $1.3 billion 95/395 corridor. VDOT and MDOT also pushed for a regional study of tolled lanes which would cost $52 billion! It’s past time when we should be evaluating more sustainable long-term solutions that link land use, urban design and transit.”
The Coalition and the Sierra Club also took issue with Secretary Connaughton’s assertion that Arlington’s lawsuit was responsible for the delays. “Let’s be clear, the private credit markets refused to lend to this project, that’s what prompted the delay. Furthermore, by seeking a shortcut to avoid looking at alternatives and impacts, VDOT itself created more delays as the serious community impacts became apparent and had to be analyzed. It shows that we need a full study up front so we have the facts and can make better decisions,” concluded Schwartz.
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