tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-920272844208386052024-02-20T13:38:11.009-05:00No Toll IncreaseCitizens fighting to keep the Dulles Toll Road affordableUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-78333589782075751542014-07-14T12:47:00.002-04:002014-07-14T12:48:13.362-04:00No Toll Increase Supporters interviewed for Washington Post Article about Rising Tolls<img class="" data-hi-res-src="http://img.washingtonpost.com/rf/image_1484w/2010-2019/WashingtonPost/2014/07/08/Local/Images/SILVER0011404793930.jpg?uuid=AGNuAgZZEeSn757V2FEOgQ" data-low-res-src="http://img.washingtonpost.com/rf/image_400w/2010-2019/WashingtonPost/2014/07/08/Local/Images/SILVER0011404793930.jpg?uuid=AGNuAgZZEeSn757V2FEOgQ" src="http://img.washingtonpost.com/rf/image_1484w/2010-2019/WashingtonPost/2014/07/08/Local/Images/SILVER0011404793930.jpg?uuid=AGNuAgZZEeSn757V2FEOgQ" height="186" style="border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: FranklinITCProLight, HelveticaNeue, 'Helvetica Neue Light', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, 'Lucida Grande', sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;" width="320" /><br />
<span class="pb-caption" style="color: #6e6e6e; font-family: FranklinITCProLight, HelveticaNeue, 'Helvetica Neue Light', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, 'Lucida Grande', sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Tysons Corner is home to four of the five stations </span></span><br />
<span class="pb-caption" style="color: #6e6e6e; font-family: FranklinITCProLight, HelveticaNeue, 'Helvetica Neue Light', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, 'Lucida Grande', sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">built for the first phase of the Silver Line. </span></span><br />
<span class="pb-caption" style="color: #6e6e6e; font-family: FranklinITCProLight, HelveticaNeue, 'Helvetica Neue Light', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, 'Lucida Grande', sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">(Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post)</span></span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/pb/mary-pat-flaherty">Mary Pat Flaherty</a> of the Washington Post contacted <a href="http://votelarock.us/">Delegate Dave LaRock's office</a> last week, looking to interview folks from NoTollincrease for an article she was writing. There are some great quotes from NoTollincrease supporters and other good information in the article:<br />
<div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.8em; margin-bottom: 24px;">
<i><span style="color: white;">Dulles Toll Road users are <a href="http://apps.washingtonpost.com/g/documents/local/2014-silver-line-financial-plan/1115/" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(212, 212, 212); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; text-decoration: none; zoom: 1;">shouldering nearly half</a> of the costs of Metro’s soon-to-open Silver Line, a far bigger share than originally predicted.<br />Those drivers also face the biggest exposure for any additional cost overruns or delays on the rail line set to open July 26 — <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/bad-speakers-wrong-cable-add-to-silver-line-delays/2014/03/19/900a6406-af9d-11e3-a49e-76adc9210f19_story.html" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(212, 212, 212); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; text-decoration: none; zoom: 1;">seven months late</a> and <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/commuting/metro-line-to-dulles-could-run-150-million-over-budget-official-says/2011/10/19/gIQAjlF1xL_story.html" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(212, 212, 212); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; text-decoration: none; zoom: 1;">$150 million over budget</a>.<br />Commuters are vulnerable because tolls are the one share of the Silver Line project’s funding formula that is not capped at a fixed dollar amount or percentage of the final tab.<br />Since construction began five years ago, there have been five toll increases that spiked a common round trip from $2.50 to $7 or, viewed as a monthly tab for typical weekday commuters, from $50 to $140.<br />The impact of the line’s rising costs has been painfully apparent to drivers who use the road regularly.... </span></i></blockquote>
Quote from No Toll Increase Petition Signer John Fringer:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 18px; line-height: 32.400001525878906px;">The line “squeezes money out of us who are forced to use the toll road to pay for the cursed Metro,” said Fringer, 61, who pays $140 a month on round trips between Reston and his environmental engineering job in Rockville. His frustration is compounded, he says, by elected officials who “always get self-righteous about how the Silver Line is needed when you protest the tolls. It’s truly maddening.”</span> </span></i></blockquote>
Another comment from a No Toll Increase supporter:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.8em; margin-bottom: 24px;">
<i><span style="color: white;">But some commuters are skeptical.<br />“Tolls are a real cash cow,” said Erik Thompson, 41, who stopped using the toll road about 18 months ago when his tolls hit $70 a month for his commute between Waldorf, Md., and his job as a recruiting manager in Reston.<br /><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 18px; line-height: 1.8em;">“I can see the Silver Line from my office, but to use it, I’d have to go end-to-end on Metro and take about two hours. I’m not doing that,” Thompson said.</span> </span></i></blockquote>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/2014/07/12/efa84a6a-09e6-11e4-a0dd-f2b22a257353_story.html">You can read the full article here</a>.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
</div>
</div>
No Toll Increasehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14697407923320729069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-42008583013213692292013-12-20T16:38:00.000-05:002013-12-27T17:20:50.167-05:0027% Toll Increase January 1st - Pay Up or Fight Back?<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0cRezf34DDio05UabcBjxw-ZhSC-aXzQlnsfRCrRqjf9dwFK20CJklDEoFpzsFiR9slTgHlygvKLUCnRtvAhH86GVz5VE93OFzFbklFPb95gSGPm8e5oWEI4yxVOFguUqqRDnA96PWP0/s1600/free+ride+lanes-001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0cRezf34DDio05UabcBjxw-ZhSC-aXzQlnsfRCrRqjf9dwFK20CJklDEoFpzsFiR9slTgHlygvKLUCnRtvAhH86GVz5VE93OFzFbklFPb95gSGPm8e5oWEI4yxVOFguUqqRDnA96PWP0/s1600/free+ride+lanes-001.jpg" /></a></div>
<u><b>What you were
promised:</b></u><b><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
2005 seems like a long time ago. President George W. Bush
was sworn in for his second term, Pope John Paul II passed away, and Saddam
Hussein went on trial in Iraq. A lot happened that you may have forgotten, or
at least, that’s what the folks on the Commonwealth Transportation Board are
banking on. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Back in 2005, they released <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2BSw8ftUMm-bVNPU3EyNkJGZmc/edit?usp=sharing">this press release</a>. In it, they
announced a toll increase from 50 to 75 cents at the main toll plaza on the
Dulles Toll Road, and from 25 to 50 cents on the entrance and exit ramps.
According to the CTB, “The quarter toll increase will complete Virginia’s share
to fund Phase 1….[and] will also help to fund part of Phase 2. The projected
cost is $3.5 billion.” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B64IfZTFiYIAQXA5ZEdxeTl5Y3c/edit?usp=sharing">resolution the CTB passed</a> said they might need to make "...a second toll rate adjustment in an amount similar to the adjustment made by the Board in this resolution at or near the time of the commencement of construction of Phase 2;..."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Phase 1 had an
estimated completion date of 2011, and Phase 2 of 2015.<br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u>What you got:</u><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.metwashairports.com/6743.htm">Fast forward to now</a>. Phase 1, with “estimated completion” of 2011 according to the 2005 press
release, is now “nearing completion.” The toll rates of 50 and 75 cents that
were supposed to carry us through Phase 1 are long gone – that’s now $1.75 and
$1.00, soon to be <a href="http://www.metwashairports.com/6743.htm">$2.50 and $1.00 on January 1</a>. The current 27% increase makes round-trip tolls $7.00, about $1,750/yr for a daily commuter.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What does all this mean? It means that MWAA is treating toll
road users as a reliable cash cow. As their overly-optimistic estimates of cost
and time fall further and further short of reality, they’re coming back to the
tap for more of your cash with increasing frequency and a bigger bucket with
each trip. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u>What you can do: </u><o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Toll road users need to take themselves seriously as a
political force. <b>If you can still afford
to drive the Dulles Toll Road (DTR) look over at the middle lanes and notice
that the people in the center lanes enjoy a free ride to Dulles Airport. <o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Seem unfair? It sure
is. <o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>There is an effort
underway to toll the center lanes and use the revenue to ease the toll-burden
of DTR users. If you’ll join the push for lower tolls we’ll demand that politicians
are put on notice that DTR users WILL </b><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">NOT STAND
FOR BEING RIPPED OFF.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="color: #c00000; font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Join the thousands who
have <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/p/sign-petition.html">signed the petition</a></span> <o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And you can
<a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/p/contact-your-elected-officials.html">let your representatives know</a> you support measures to: <b>END THE DULLES TOLL ROAD RIP-OFF<o:p></o:p></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 22.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><b>Recent news coverage of the upcoming toll increases (and what residents are doing about it):</b></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><b><br /></b></span>
<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dr-gridlock/wp/2013/12/18/dulles-toll-road-drivers-will-pay-more-starting-jan-1/">Dulles Toll Road drivers will pay more starting Jan. 1</a><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://reston.patch.com/groups/around-town/p/dulles-toll-road-main-rates-to-increase-starting-jan-1">Dulles Toll Road Main Plaza Rates to Increase Starting Jan. 1</a></span><br />
<a href="http://ashburn.patch.com/groups/transportation/p/backtrackers-vow-to-defy-dulles-access-usage-rules">“Backtrackers” Vow to Defy Dulles Access Road Usage Rules</a><br />
<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dr-gridlock/wp/2013/11/13/airport-wants-drivers-to-stop-dodging-the-dulles-toll-road/" target="_blank">Airport wants drivers to stop dodging the Dulles Toll Road</a></div>
<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dr-gridlock/wp/2013/12/17/officers-nab-116-backtrackers-at-dulles-airport/" target="_blank">Officers nab 116 ‘backtrackers’ at Dulles Airport</a>Dave LaRock for Delegatehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00393974066201679313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-32692201766193658962013-01-21T16:49:00.002-05:002013-06-16T07:32:34.304-04:00Virginia Purchase the Greenway!?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNpB31u9m0UlEBP9H_-YiIIr3Meofy7uwSFTEc5oZo1K-RyuqRZY3vZCJj_P8lcwQDfhwoN-fgHI5wg3vnmowDYUdsyFfzhGMzSDwv8KzFtzfE9GqgK9_LHPrIq0hR6wwJco3ppRBcrdM/s1600/DullesGreenwayLogoweb.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNpB31u9m0UlEBP9H_-YiIIr3Meofy7uwSFTEc5oZo1K-RyuqRZY3vZCJj_P8lcwQDfhwoN-fgHI5wg3vnmowDYUdsyFfzhGMzSDwv8KzFtzfE9GqgK9_LHPrIq0hR6wwJco3ppRBcrdM/s1600/DullesGreenwayLogoweb.gif" /></a><br />
Del. Joe May, Chairman of the House Transportation Committee, has introduced <a href="http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?131+sum+HB1979">HB1979, legislation that would purchase the Dulles Greenway</a> from its private owners, and place it under Virginia ownership. <br />
<br />
Government to the rescue . . . right ? Not so fast.<br />
<br />
Toll increases on the Greenway are currently limited by the authorizing legislation, but <b>if Virginia purchases the Greenway, that limit on toll increases no longer applies.</b> Now keep in mind that in 2006 <a href="http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?062+vot+HV4331+HB5068">Joe May cast his vote</a> to hand over the Dulles Toll Road (DTR) to MWAA and put in motion the debacle that has led to soaring DTR tolls.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
Route 7 will also see the lights at <a href="http://www.virginiadot.org/projects/northernvirginia/sycolin_road_overpass.asp">Sycolin Rd. (2013)</a>, <a href="http://syip.virginiadot.org/Pages/lineitemDetails.aspx?syp_scenario_id=193&line_item_id=1059460">Belmont Ridge Rd. (FY2015)</a>, <a href="http://syip.virginiadot.org/Pages/lineitemDetails.aspx?syp_scenario_id=193&line_item_id=1059294">Lexington Dr. (FY2016)</a> and <a href="http://loudoun.gov/DocumentCenter/View/81213">Ashburn Village Blvd. (</a><a href="http://loudoun.gov/DocumentCenter/View/81213">????)</a> eliminated soon, making that option from Leesburg to Rt. 28 even better. The Greenway's latest reported <a href="http://www.tollroadsnews.com/node/6359">"current net worth" was negative $490 million</a>, so tolls will need to continue to pay for any purchase, even increasing if more traffic shifts to the improved Rt. 7.<br />
<br />
2005, <a href="http://www.tollroadsnews.com/node/6354">the year Greenway traffic peaked</a>, was the year the CTB increased DTR tolls to fund the Rail Project. Greenway traffic has been in a free-fall since. With Dulles Toll Road tolls continuing to skyrocket to pay for the rail project, less people will use the Greenway. These two roads are linked, and we don't want our tolls paying for a train we likely won't use. DTR tolls will surpass the Greenway's peak tolls within five years, catching off-peak tolls even sooner. See the historic and future DTR tolls compared to the Greenway's congestion peak tolls here:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIAjmzAuwZ9_cSRO2gTIqO_bjaP7HAHH5-ANYliJGj-sdy5Q0tYSd2oIo7LhqUQo-k9Xlzd6w15L0NaTJU9RnT6eaHcM6gHpGElufZPvWRoAgV9Myl7JFLjwh4ZkHXE-oR7WkZr33N8lM/s1600/DTR+vs+Greenway.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="500" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIAjmzAuwZ9_cSRO2gTIqO_bjaP7HAHH5-ANYliJGj-sdy5Q0tYSd2oIo7LhqUQo-k9Xlzd6w15L0NaTJU9RnT6eaHcM6gHpGElufZPvWRoAgV9Myl7JFLjwh4ZkHXE-oR7WkZr33N8lM/s640/DTR+vs+Greenway.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Del. May’s other bill, <a href="http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?131+sum+HB1980">HB1980, wants to set up a "Dulles Greenway Authority"</a> to run the road. If you thought MWAA was bad, get this…. May’s bill says the Greenway tolls should be governed by people, most of whom do not live in Loudoun. In real-speak that means people from Alexandria, Arlington and Manassas will be in charge of local toll rates.<br />
<br />
There you have it, our own new little MWAA! Another board made up of political cronies, from distant jurisdictions, not accountable to voters, with the ability to raise tolls on the Greenway as high as they want!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9ParhnDsH-CV4_2qrXzKo8XJSLbIJw_Wcddl-1IKzbPalrreXkccw8az3NAfkUdTsqnMgaTKn2zrZqVUYvvQqnphXp1J23hTvq6-leDyIY4e13pEwb5B1TN1S9MwWD50RUiLzZPMoUpk/s1600/Greenway+spending.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9ParhnDsH-CV4_2qrXzKo8XJSLbIJw_Wcddl-1IKzbPalrreXkccw8az3NAfkUdTsqnMgaTKn2zrZqVUYvvQqnphXp1J23hTvq6-leDyIY4e13pEwb5B1TN1S9MwWD50RUiLzZPMoUpk/s320/Greenway+spending.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Remember, the Dulles Greenway is located completely in Loudoun County and apparently word is out that Loudoun is awash in money so here comes another scheme to turn Loudoun drivers into cash cows for some pet project! Another impact on Loudoun County: the Greenway paid <b>$2.2 million in property taxes in 2011, which disappear</b> if the State takes ownership.<br />
<br />
May's bill is a disaster waiting to happen. If the Commonwealth takes the Greenway over, they can raise the tolls as much as they want. May is desperate for more Transportation funding, and this is one way to get it. Almost a guarantee that tolls will go up if this goes through. He himself admits that a takeover will NOT necessarily result in lower tolls on the Greenway.<br />
<br />
Del. May is offering this effort as a distraction from the increasing tolls on the Dulles Toll Road. He won't touch that issue since he doesn't want to disrupt the "delicate financial balance" of the Dulles Rail project. The Washington Examiner calls it a <a href="http://washingtonexaminer.com/examiner-local-editorial-virginias-toll-road-shell-game/article/2519182#.UP63bG_AcuA" target="_blank">"Toll Road Shell Game"</a>.<br />
<br />
Please <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/p/contact-your-elected-officials.html">contact your state legislators</a> and urge them to vote NO on HB1979 and HB1980.Daniel Davieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16840955162637079340noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-62041976591295977712013-01-14T20:32:00.002-05:002013-01-14T21:54:46.189-05:00Gov. McDonnell’s Transportation Plan Doubles Down on Flawed Dulles Model<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmEhe1dJaYwGPy23J-FRST0tcWvLqCFXO3IKadnny-Yu1AebxDd2bQylVjz6OSsQ1CstHpw6BR0VDlSATJbsTja448SesxOq0PIshaNmIGEYNuDuttzG5CDGZePPA5d085ULxXDuvl8Vw/s1600/McDonnellTransp.+(2)+(300x300).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmEhe1dJaYwGPy23J-FRST0tcWvLqCFXO3IKadnny-Yu1AebxDd2bQylVjz6OSsQ1CstHpw6BR0VDlSATJbsTja448SesxOq0PIshaNmIGEYNuDuttzG5CDGZePPA5d085ULxXDuvl8Vw/s200/McDonnellTransp.+(2)+(300x300).jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<div style="display: inline !important;">
<b><b><b>Hamilton, VA—January 10, 2013</b></b></b><br />
<b><b><b><br /></b></b></b></div>
<b><b>
</b></b></div>
<b>
</b>
Gov. McDonnell’s transportation funding plan raises several concerns for Virginia citizens. In his plan, the Governor proposes abolishing the current gas tax and substituting a 16% sales tax increase to generate revenue for transportation funding. Released last week, the plan makes it clear he intends to approach transportation funding in the Commonwealth by employing flawed methods as used on the Dulles Metro extension. NoTollincrease.org urges the Governor to reconsider his plan, and asks the General Assembly to reject any similar plan put before them.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
Both the toll-based Silver Line funding and sales tax-based transportation funding which the Governor proposes would make people statewide pay for the Silver Line, regardless of whether they use it or not. The Governor also proposes funding the MWAA-controlled rail project which intends to fund 75% of Phase 2 costs with enormous toll increases, also paid by non-users. Compounding this inequity, Silver Line users will pay $0 toward the massive cost of construction.<br />
<br />
Likewise, the Governor’s proposed $15 increase in annual vehicle registration fees would penalize people who own cars in distant parts of Virginia by forcing them to subsidize the Silver Line. Such a funding mechanism expands the plight of the DTR users to include everyone in the Commonwealth who owns a car.<br />
<br />
In these especially challenging economic times, cost cutting is the best way to free up and prioritize funding for transportation. We urge the Governor to propose across the board budget cuts including dropping the $300 million grant to MWAA he earmarked in his plan.<br />
<br />
NoTollincrease.org also urges the Governor to retake control of the Dulles Toll Road and the Silver Line construction which would enable Virginia to reduce financing costs of the project by several billion dollars. Under MWAA’s mismanagement, the costs of the Silver Line have soared, delays are the norm, and Silver Line construction is financed at double the interest rates available to the Commonwealth of Virginia.<br />
<br />
NoTollincrease.org reminds Governor McDonnell that his plan will allow tolls to increase and that taxing commerce will reduce commerce. The proposed plan violates free-market principles, is highly inefficient, and will bring unintended consequences. Virginia will not benefit if these mistakes are taken statewide because bad policy expanded is bad policy still.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
###</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Contact: No Toll Increase</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="mailto:info@notollincrease.org">info@notollincrease.org</a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="mailto:info@notollincrease.org">703-297-7444</a> or <a href="tel:540-751-8082">540-751-8082</a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
383 words</div>
Daniel Davieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16840955162637079340noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-31301207597253196692012-12-17T16:30:00.002-05:002013-01-14T01:41:24.704-05:00Our Stories- How DTR Tolls Hurt Our Families<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNv08Rds_xjImcoqMEVFfbS5lPkwFEu9rOcEQmBgBB6W_FsbBANT_HcFwhcGmPjKc7Ee3M41yKpeDWf-rsi7As2NjvMk2F4CwKbHpDZbrbKPgK74cIWHyjkxhvjuwN1DRbwur98cufYwQ/s1600/bills.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNv08Rds_xjImcoqMEVFfbS5lPkwFEu9rOcEQmBgBB6W_FsbBANT_HcFwhcGmPjKc7Ee3M41yKpeDWf-rsi7As2NjvMk2F4CwKbHpDZbrbKPgK74cIWHyjkxhvjuwN1DRbwur98cufYwQ/s200/bills.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
We can talk about the environment, traffic, injustice, etc. but where it really hits home is when we explain how increased tolls on the Dulles Toll Road hurt our families. We are all local residents just trying to protect our families and our way of life. Here are some of our stories:<br />
<br />
<b><u><span style="color: orange;">From Erik:</span></u></b><br />
<i>Hello, my name is Erik and I am a Maryland resident. I commute to Reston daily. For the past 12 months I’ve being taking alternate routes to avoid the rising cost of the Toll Road. Please feel free to share my story with everyone. </i><br />
<a name='more'></a><i>I’ve been commuting to Reston for over two years now and watched the tolls do nothing but steadily climb. What are we getting for these increases in cost, absolutely nothing. The road quality is poor and traffic is not getting any better. So this year I decided to find ways around the Toll Road. Now, due to MWAA, I’m riding thru your neighborhoods and by your schools. Increasing your residential traffic and bringing extra wear and tear on your side and city streets. If I were ever going to take the unreliable Metro system to work then I may not have much of an issue paying the toll, but since I will never use it to come from Southern MD I don’t feel obliged to pay for it. Mileage wise, my commute has gotten slightly longer, but traffic on the back roads is lighter. A few speed bumps and one lane roads will not deter me like the unfair increases have. Besides, I’d rather use my money on the Hot Lanes. At least they provide the benefit of traffic avoidance and it’s up to me to decide if I want to pay for them or not.<br /><br />Well that’s it, that’s my story. I’m a single dad, middle class, taxpaying American just trying to be treated fairly. I know since I’m not a VA resident my vote doesn’t matter to your government but maybe hearing about people like me can help in this power struggle.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<b><u><span style="color: orange;">From a mom in Ashburn:</span></u></b><br />
<i>"I live outside the 1 mile proposed special tax rate area but within the 2 mile radius. Let me put it into prospective for you:I am a working mom. My spouse also works. We both commute which means tolls. We pay a lot in tolls for two cars each way 5 days a week. One of the proposed way to pay for metro will be to increase those tolls. So I am already going to be paying a lot for my two car family. We don't have the luxury of commuting together. Add to that a proposed increase in my property tax. Yes it's great that my home is worth more, but I still have to pay for that in taxes. Add on top of that a special tax for living within a two mile radius. I am now having to budget way more money then ever between the tolls, property tax, and now a special tax. My family simply cannot afford that. When I moved out to Ashburn we had to budget very carefully what we would pay in tolls (which have since on the Greenway gotten out of control and will only get worse).<br /><br />You are basically going to price out of our home.In speaking with my neighbors it is very clear to me many of them do not understand how metro is being paid for which leads to false results of who is really "pro metro". Many are pro metro - but once you explain the cost you get - NO!!! So believe me when I say MOST of your voting public do not want metro at this cost. Please vote No. Many, many, many families live in your district. Many of them are two parent working families and you are going to put a HUGE financial burden on them. These are not the people that will be using the metro most of all. </i><br />
<div>
<i><br />Please review the facts and costs. Please understand your district and the people and their situations that make up that district."</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<b><span style="color: orange;"><u>From Josh:</u></span></b><br />
<i>The decision to increase the Dulles Toll Road's (DTR) tolls to subsidize the construction of Metro's Silver Line is going to have an tremendous negative impact on me financially, and likely many others that rely on the DTR for daily transportation. At current rates, the DTR already costs me over $1000 per year which is barely manageable. These increases would result in a total cost of nearly $2000 per year if I were to use the DTR exclusively, which I will no longer be able to afford to do. Thus, I'll be forced to find alternate routes for my commute, through residential neighborhoods and joining others forced to do the same. <br /><br />My office, at which I've worked for over 15 years, is located in Reston, right off the DTR. My home is nowhere near a metro station, so I will not be able to use the Silver Line and will see no benefit from its construction. There are a number of back roads I can use to commute to work, as an alternate to the DTR, but they all route through residential neighborhoods and add at least 15 minutes to my commute each way (likely to increase as more drivers are forced off the DTR onto residential streets due to these toll increases). <br /><br />What is most disturbing to me is that the toll increases were approved despite overwhelming public comment against the increases. It is blatantly unfair for our lawmakers to assign the burden of individual fundraising for the Silver Line solely to those that rely on the DTR, many of whom will not ever use the metro extension. Beginning January 1, 2013, I will be forced to start taking alternate routes to work.</i><br /><br />Please email your story to info@notollincrease.org or leave it as a comment to this post.</div>
No Toll Increasehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14697407923320729069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-83076546559826287702012-12-05T12:50:00.003-05:002013-12-27T17:21:38.664-05:00Solution: Tolling the Airport Access Road<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0cRezf34DDio05UabcBjxw-ZhSC-aXzQlnsfRCrRqjf9dwFK20CJklDEoFpzsFiR9slTgHlygvKLUCnRtvAhH86GVz5VE93OFzFbklFPb95gSGPm8e5oWEI4yxVOFguUqqRDnA96PWP0/s1600/free+ride+lanes-001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0cRezf34DDio05UabcBjxw-ZhSC-aXzQlnsfRCrRqjf9dwFK20CJklDEoFpzsFiR9slTgHlygvKLUCnRtvAhH86GVz5VE93OFzFbklFPb95gSGPm8e5oWEI4yxVOFguUqqRDnA96PWP0/s200/free+ride+lanes-001.jpg" height="141" width="200" /></a></div>
UPDATE 12-12-2012: The MWAA Board approved an amendment to their lease agreement, which would allow non-aviation commercial development on their property. Gov. Bob McDonnell should refuse to sign this amendment until MWAA allows tolls on the Airport Access Road.<br />
---------<br />
It is not fair to take money from one person and give them absolutely nothing in return. That is exactly how many view the idea of extracting tolls from Dulles Toll Road users to fund the Silver Line extension.<br />
<br />
Planners claim the rail extension will help the Dulles Airport grow. In a more perfect world, people who use the Silver Line and the Dulles Airport would be the ones paying to build the rail line. Instead, through a mixed up set of decisions, the current plan has train riders and airport customers paying very little. That needs to change.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
Benefits:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Tolling out-of town airport users provides relief for local commuters </li>
<li>A well-planned expansion of the Access Road lanes would expand east-west capacity for cars and buses</li>
<li>This extremely low-cost alteration could guarantee congestion-free travel from Rt. 28 to Tyson’s and the Beltway </li>
<li>The unfair scheme of shifting tolls from the Dulles Toll Road could be phased out and eventually eliminated</li>
</ul>
<br />
Challenges:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>MWAA may want to protect its customers by giving away a free ride </li>
<li>Congressional action to force and or approve this action may be necessary</li>
</ul>
<br />
Tolling Dulles Airport customers traveling on the Access Road inside of Route 267 is a fair and equitable way to fund the Silver Line. Fairfax Senator Janet Howell agrees, saying on her website, “The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority should approve tolling the Dulles Access Road. As a matter of simple equity, this is essential.” Congressman Frank Wolf also agrees.<br />
<br />
The Dulles Access Road, which is presently serving ONLY the airport, carries 44,000 cars per day on four lanes. The Dulles Toll Rd. carries 127,000 cars per day on eight lanes, one of which, in each direction, is HOV 2+ during peak hours. (<a href="http://www.virginiadot.org/info/2010_traffic_data.asp" target="_blank">VDOT 2010 traffic data</a>).<br />
<br />
MWAA believes extending the rail to Dulles Airport, and the property they intend to develop commercially, is a good investment. So why ask local commuters to pay for it while Dulles Airport customers and employees pay no tolls? This is unfair, and it can and must be changed.<br />
<br />
MWAA’s leaders have admitted that the current toll-funding scheme will not work. Why? People refuse to submit to this highway robbery, instead opting to use alternative roadways like the un-tolled Rt. 7 and Rt. 50. Before long, the DTR-toll-heavy funding scheme unravels. At that point the cards will fall, the Silver Line money pit will be underway and the underfunded mess will be dropped in the laps of an even broader group of people who realize no benefit from the Dulles Airport or the Silver Line.<br />
<br />
Recently, the I-495 Express Lanes (HOT Lanes) opened. They provide an excellent example for improving transportation capacity and generating revenue. The HOT Lanes are a win-win, providing a faster option while pulling traffic off the existing un-tolled lanes.<br />
<br />
The Dulles Access Road should be reworked to include HOT Lanes by expanding the existing 4 lanes to six lanes, three lanes in each direction. MWAA claims this can be done. The Access Road could be opened to non-airport traffic, including commuters who can afford to pay voluntary tolls to use HOT Lanes. By adding all-electronic tolling facilities and a few eastbound access points, traffic capacity would expand sufficiently to allow buses, carpools, and drivers willing to pay extra a congestion-free road between Loudoun and Tyson’s Corner and the beltway. Again, this is a winning alternative that would allow DTR tolls to be lowered, or even eliminated, as was promised when the Commonwealth promoted the idea to build the DTR.No Toll Increasehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14697407923320729069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-79614853669177681682012-10-18T15:19:00.002-04:002012-10-19T16:55:51.790-04:00Fatally Flawed Toll Scheme is Falling Apart<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX_DfBP8orzQVBCLG3WVjt4Pc2jdSueL7GNvAZAIpwbw0t5CdTu3JcF1lpd1N70TRJ1whvgap_MQFpRsp5Zbtd0Ji27km0GV0KyxC39oXTJRqpk_RIpWcnBZhYVbtI_b3zHiobaV8MWEY/s1600/toll+fail-001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX_DfBP8orzQVBCLG3WVjt4Pc2jdSueL7GNvAZAIpwbw0t5CdTu3JcF1lpd1N70TRJ1whvgap_MQFpRsp5Zbtd0Ji27km0GV0KyxC39oXTJRqpk_RIpWcnBZhYVbtI_b3zHiobaV8MWEY/s1600/toll+fail-001.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Surprise! Surprise! The ill-conceived Dulles Rail
funding scheme that was hastily thrown together is falling apart</span><span style="line-height: 115%;">!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;">Citizens are furious at the audacity of elected
officials standing mute, ignoring the injustice of shackling hard-working
commuters with the tab for this mega share of Dulles Rail, which most know, is a
developers perk. Piling more oppressive tolls on the backs of Dulles Toll Road
users after they were told the road would become a free road is the kind of
blatant deception that ought to mark any aspiring politician as a <b>Traitor for Life. </b>With a <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/p/contact-your-elected-officials.html" target="_blank">few notable exceptions</a>, politicians have ignored warnings from credible experts and pumped
up this dog-of-a-project with phony promises.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Now, as bidding for Phase 2 of the project has been narrowed to five competitors, it seems that experts’ concerns and commuters disgust are finally starting to sink in with those calling the shots.</span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6pSjO19PF1pbxwem-HVYWaUNOn9SExUfTw5m9YqL-Kw43lf654BmsmxIUH_N5HYs04VaEo6Wj1OU1TwhX4XbExjxua21JTF9MGC3o8_h87dh_DjWZ6Ju0x73wEnvRKqW5ZEd1Wt6oL0w/s1600/Robert+Clarke+Brown-001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6pSjO19PF1pbxwem-HVYWaUNOn9SExUfTw5m9YqL-Kw43lf654BmsmxIUH_N5HYs04VaEo6Wj1OU1TwhX4XbExjxua21JTF9MGC3o8_h87dh_DjWZ6Ju0x73wEnvRKqW5ZEd1Wt6oL0w/s1600/Robert+Clarke+Brown-001.jpg" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Robert Clarke Brown</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Recently-retired MWAA board member and Finance Committee Chairman Robert Brown wrote an October 2 letter to U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood. <a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/108969785/Robert-Brown-Letter-To-Transportation-Secretary-Ray-LaHood">On MWAA letterhead</a>, Brown admitted that the financing plan for Dulles Rail and its heavy reliance on toll revenue borrowing is "fundamentally flawed plan of finance." and the project "is doomed to failure if all remaining project costs are funded with additional debt." He went on to say</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">“The politics of diversion and distraction, which has worked so well for the past year, will no longer be able to hide from Virginians these stark facts…. If nothing changes in the Silver Line’s plan of finance, northern Virginians will soon be paying double-digit tolls on the Dulles Toll road. That is not speculation. It is a fact shown by multiple independent traffic forecasts and financial modeling....” (Letter pages 7-8)</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Current MWAA Board member and Finance Committee Chairman Frank Conner <a href="http://washingtonexaminer.com/airport-board-advances-plan-to-increase-dulles-tolls/article/2511042#.UIAemsXAcYt">doubled down on the funding failure</a> yesterday, saying that the toll increases threaten future development in the Dulles Corridor.</span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBYCsyryyexerDoR0BuqLLdm-ZUMBwg7untpCKrnHfPhBzDPxz_BpStLdOtVJVpx8sQ1dMaDTLDaM1WjJXomf-rKadQJ8EwklQDeZj43MwBgJsSHNT1jd97xBfC8z5T4Ct9fp1VzakeuE/s1600/Rusty+Conner-001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBYCsyryyexerDoR0BuqLLdm-ZUMBwg7untpCKrnHfPhBzDPxz_BpStLdOtVJVpx8sQ1dMaDTLDaM1WjJXomf-rKadQJ8EwklQDeZj43MwBgJsSHNT1jd97xBfC8z5T4Ct9fp1VzakeuE/s1600/Rusty+Conner-001.jpg" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Frank "Rusty" Conner</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">"We are very worried that tolls will be too high and will have the consequences that people are concerned about," Conner said. "We like to say this is rail to Dulles, but this is also rail to develop the Dulles corridor, and the last thing we want to do is impose a toll rate structure that undermines what we're trying to do."</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Conner also <a href="http://washingtonexaminer.com/airports-board-denies-silver-line-funding-plan-flawed/article/2511048#.UIAt78XAcYs">said a bond investor called</a> him Tuesday, worried about Brown's letter. If investors refuse to purchase MWAA’s toll revenue bonds, the entire plan collapses. Connor said that Brown’s concerns are "…pretty damning allegations and pretty surprising given the author of the letter was intimately involved in developing the financing plan,"</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">We’ve been saying that the toll increases cannot work and must be defeated, and it looks like at least the current and former MWAA Finance Committee Chairmen agree with us. <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/p/contact-your-elected-officials.html">Tell your elected officials</a> wake up and stop these toll increases before they take effect in 74 days!</span>No Toll Increasehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14697407923320729069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-22139456648466632572012-10-02T15:52:00.000-04:002012-12-18T11:14:08.825-05:00Lawsuit: MWAA Toll Increases are Unconstitutional!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeeIwozg54a4Wt7fCPKhmea9x5KU9Pb9X-lTR0uZnUk_57FP3dABqiZ6EV2DuE-WWYZ5ucPWi7HqBkY9S3DtL4jcxbcFdnVC625Sae7jYTMRsUFDtOSJurcWSFZOzA5GnQ9lT1PUuNscM/s1600/USCourtOfAppeals-FederalCircuit-Seal.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeeIwozg54a4Wt7fCPKhmea9x5KU9Pb9X-lTR0uZnUk_57FP3dABqiZ6EV2DuE-WWYZ5ucPWi7HqBkY9S3DtL4jcxbcFdnVC625Sae7jYTMRsUFDtOSJurcWSFZOzA5GnQ9lT1PUuNscM/s200/USCourtOfAppeals-FederalCircuit-Seal.png" width="200" /></a></div>
UPDATE October 12, 2012: The Federal Circuit issued a <a href="http://www.cafc.uscourts.gov/images/stories/opinions-orders/11-1501%20order.pdf" target="_blank">decision to transfer the case</a> to the United States Court of Appeals for 4th Circuit. This means we won't actually get a decision in the case for a while. The Federal Circuit decided that MWAA was not a "federal instrumentality", and thus sent the case to the 4th Circuit.<br />
<br />
While we would have preferred for the Federal Circuit to prohibit MWAA from collecting DTR tolls and diverting them to the rail project, there is still a possibility of the 4th Circuit doing so. Meanwhile, we should continue to ask Gov. McDonnell and our legislators to take our road back and have MWAA fund Dulles Rail by tolling their Airport Access Road.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
UPDATE October 2, 2012: Oral arguments in <i>Corr v. MWAA </i>took place today at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit<i>.</i> You can download and <a href="http://oralarguments.cafc.uscourts.gov/default.aspx?fl=2011-1501.mp3" target="_blank">listen to the oral arguments here</a>. It is impossible to say how the judges will decide the case, but MWAA's attorneys did not seem to convince the judges that they are not a federal government entity. There is no telling when the judges will issue their decision, but we will keep you up-to-date with the latest in the case.<br />
<br />
The case argues two main points:<br />
<ul>
<li>Tolls in excess of what's required to operate and maintain the road are a tax.</li>
<li>The Virginia Constitution does not allow the legislature to delegate taxing authority to a non-elected, unaccountable body like MWAA.</li>
</ul>
MWAA might think they are above the law and don't have to answer to the United States or Virginia Constitutions, but that is being challenged in the courts. In less than one month, at 10:00am October 2, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit will hear oral arguments in <i>Carr v. MWAA</i>, challenging MWAA's ability to pay for Dulles Rail by stealing from commuters.<br />
<ul>
</ul>
The Appellants (toll road users) filed their <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIAWVQ1bGprQnR6LTQ" target="_blank">Opening Brief</a> in March. The Appellees <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIATDlRQVU0aUg2ajg" target="_blank">(MWAA) filed their Brief</a> in April, but totally ignored all of the Appellants' arguments. The <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIAUWVkb1Z5blBkV0U" target="_blank">Reply Brief</a> from the toll road users, filed in May, pointed this out.<br />
<br />
What does that mean? There is a solid legal argument, based on recent precedent, that MWAA collection of tolls from the Dulles Toll Road to pay for Metrorail is unconstitutional, and MWAA has no answer to the argument. This means that the court could forbid the toll increases planned for January, and force MWAA to pay back tolls illegally collected.<br />
<br />
As we have said elsewhere, this toll increase is not final yet!<br />
<br />
Here is some of the very limited media coverage of the lawsuit:<br />
<a href="http://www.tollroadsnews.com/node/5269">Metro Wash Airports control of Dulles TR challenged in big law suit - toll/tax distinction at issue</a> April 2011<br />
<div>
<a href="http://fairfaxnews.com/2011/04/taxation-without-representation-suit-challenges-toll-road-taxes/">‘Taxation Without Representation’ Suit Challenges Toll Road Taxes</a> April 2011</div>
<a href="http://wamu.org/news/morning_edition/12/09/12/lawsuit_argues_mwaa_cant_tax_dulles_toll_road_commuters">Lawsuit Argues MWAA Can't Tax Dulles Toll Road Commuters</a> September 2012No Toll Increasehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14697407923320729069noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-83534936542838604762012-09-10T16:06:00.000-04:002012-10-04T10:34:26.878-04:00VDOT: Retake the Dulles Toll Road<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrUsFeGHK1zuUOZBVg5Zu06z0QrLAoPS9Qlu1KmEgXxOpcTs3Xmk_MiwONvEvg-z-qEtFMQLKTwUHjfQzLFBdxgD2E4NAEXUWrM6p6ycXtWR7fPYL2f6kgcSDub_ToiokLiDebmM_GNyg/s1600/VDOT.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrUsFeGHK1zuUOZBVg5Zu06z0QrLAoPS9Qlu1KmEgXxOpcTs3Xmk_MiwONvEvg-z-qEtFMQLKTwUHjfQzLFBdxgD2E4NAEXUWrM6p6ycXtWR7fPYL2f6kgcSDub_ToiokLiDebmM_GNyg/s200/VDOT.png" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
UPDATE 9-9-2012: Senator Black has written a<a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIAeGo1dmpWVjlhMUE" target="_blank"> letter urging Gov. McDonnell to retake the Dulles Toll Road</a>. We need you to do two things: </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
1. Ask <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/p/contact-elected-officials.html" target="_blank">your legislators</a> to support this effort</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
2. Contact Gov. Bob McDonnell <a href="http://www.governor.virginia.gov/AboutTheGovernor/contactGovernor.cfm" target="_blank">through his official website</a> or at </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
(804) 786-2211 to encourage him to take action NOW to save our toll road from MWAA!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Wouldn't it be crazy if your community was threatened by an
approaching storm, but local authorities did little to help citizens avoid the
pending danger? That is about where Northern Virginia stands with the perfect
storm of Dulles Toll Road tolls, traffic and taxes that is bearing down on us.
There is a lot of talking among politicians, but meaningful action is
scarce.</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
Some elected leaders are speaking out against the
"ethically challenged" Airports Authority (MWAA) board, and for good
reason. But, this talk is not enough when they can do so much more. Here's how. MWAA operates the DTR under a <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIASmcxVUpqOXhXQzg">Virginia Department of Transportation permit</a> that
specifies MWAA must make "best efforts" to complete the Dulles Rail
project on time and efficiently. <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIAMTV2dEUzUktia0U">MWAA just applied to VDOT</a> for a three year
extension of the completion date for Dulles Rail, citing a series of reasons
MWAA feels justify a three year delay. This dysfunctional body has made best
efforts to protect it's own interests, but that is not what the Operating
Permit was referring to.<br />
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
MWAA has proven beyond any doubt that they cannot be trusted
with control of either the Dulles Toll Road or the Dulles Rail project. VDOT
should deny extension of the permit and resume control of the Dulles Toll Road.
Virginia Transportation Secretary <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/silver-line-needs-more-help-from-mcdonnell/2012/04/14/gIQAGBU4HT_story.html">Sean Connaughton on April 14, 2012</a>, said the
State was so unhappy with MWAA that it would rather finish building the Silver
Line itself.</div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>“We are actively evaluating whether we can take the project
over. These guys (MWAA) are a disaster,” Connaughton said. “We’re at the point,
quite honestly, where we think we could potentially do it better, cheaper,
faster.”</i></blockquote>
<div class="MsoNormal">
"Cheaper" is an understatement. The state of
Virginia wanted out of the obligation to fund 25% of Dulles Rail (about $875
million) so it gave the Dulles Toll Road and Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project
to MWAA. The problem is that MWAA has been an un-elected, unaccountable body
from day one, and they have zero incentive to operate efficiently. Now, instead
of DTR users getting clipped for $875 million, MWAA intends to demand about
$3.5 billion from DTR users.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Based on the present funding plan for Phase 2, about $2
billion in Dulles Toll Road revenue bonds are needed to complete the capital
cost construction funding. <a href="http://dls.virginia.gov/GROUPS/transaccount/meetings/071612/VDOT.pdf">MWAA's interest rate for Phase 1of the project has averaged 6.07%</a>.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This is double the interest rate the Commonwealth of
Virginia’s rate for transportation projects financed during the last year. $2
billion of Phase 2 debt under MWAA, at an interest rate of 6% would be an
additional $120 million per year in higher tolls. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Don't miss the significance of this. Our elected leaders
don't want the political liability that comes with toll increases so they are
hiding behind MWAA. The cost to commuters is a toll rate that pays that
premium. In simple terms, a $4.50 toll could be $3.75 (1) if Virginia would
step in. With VDOT in charge, that rate could be even lower by eliminating toll
money wasted by the MWAA crony-factor.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Burdening Toll Road users with unnecessary costs is
unacceptable, especially at a time when the area faces cuts to the DOD budget,
general economic stagnation, and area residents who will pay an average of <a href="http://www.heritage.org/multimedia/infographic/2012/taxmageddon/virginia">$6,433in higher federal income taxes next year</a>.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
MWAA's management is a disaster and that should be fixed,
but politicians must also put commuters and taxpayers ahead of special
interests, including themselves, by addressing the root problem of having an
unaccountable body having tolling authority over the Dulles Toll Road.</div>
No Toll Increasehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14697407923320729069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-84402657097035101292012-09-08T16:07:00.000-04:002012-09-19T14:02:04.216-04:00You Can Stop the Toll Increases<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHy1PMdT8cIL4j0x2gc_vHDGTsf1YZSKzHH4JxUAKvt7FpaiLAbLnhmnma3kPw3VSW-mZi8tLDF-sXgqLTnLClXatrwJYvw4qa7YZLbncSwYeAzawD402dFwYgPuICGP1FyRdmRWjyKEQ/s1600/Lady+with+hands+in+air.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHy1PMdT8cIL4j0x2gc_vHDGTsf1YZSKzHH4JxUAKvt7FpaiLAbLnhmnma3kPw3VSW-mZi8tLDF-sXgqLTnLClXatrwJYvw4qa7YZLbncSwYeAzawD402dFwYgPuICGP1FyRdmRWjyKEQ/s200/Lady+with+hands+in+air.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u>Something has gone wrong with your Dulles Toll Road…and it must be fixed! </u></b><br />
<br />
If you think something has gone wrong with your Dulles Toll Road, you’re right. The good news is, there is a much better way if some tough choices are made.<br />
<br />
First, MWAA, the folks you hear about in the news wasting public dollars on travel and extravagant meals are the ones who are in control of the Toll Road. That is at the root of the problem and needs to change. MWAA answers to no one and judging by their actions, they could not care less about how their decisions affect you and me. MWAA is the middle man we cannot afford.</div>
<a name='more'></a><u>This is all you need to know about MWAA. </u><br />
<ol>
<li>They were put in charge of the Dulles Toll Road to buffer some <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/p/contact-elected-officials.html" target="_blank">elected officials</a> from voters who will be outraged by <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/2012/08/when-are-tolls-going-up.html" target="_blank">skyrocketing tolls</a> and the <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/2012/08/why-are-higher-tolls-bad.html" target="_blank">traffic nightmare</a> that comes with them. </li>
<li>Based on expert opinions, MWAA is such a mismanaged operation, dysfunctional, unaccountable, corrupt, you name it, that about <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIAWFlvVlRxaThfaDg" target="_blank">one half of the $6 billion price tag</a> of the Silverline rail project is wasted by them. </li>
</ol>
<u><b>Getting your road back </b></u><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbU5ULMR-JsC31kq5XoILlrxCjZz9he7aGs_AwOls9ZZiFnnbCO76QU_cq3rnG0fqWwm49BWl-mTsR10Ycsezu6Uy1DUP_-gxIf7TJ1RwNAHe8yi9EXhB6N6zOXPMdZGDvw5x0AxWsQ5w/s1600/Troll.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbU5ULMR-JsC31kq5XoILlrxCjZz9he7aGs_AwOls9ZZiFnnbCO76QU_cq3rnG0fqWwm49BWl-mTsR10Ycsezu6Uy1DUP_-gxIf7TJ1RwNAHe8yi9EXhB6N6zOXPMdZGDvw5x0AxWsQ5w/s200/Troll.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
Trolls don’t control bridges <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/2012/08/mwaa-there-is-better-way.html" target="_blank">why should MWAA control our road</a>? Important roads were never meant to be controlled by a <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obama-to-name-two-lawyers-to-mwaa-board/2012/09/13/167dea4a-fe0f-11e1-b153-218509a954e1_story.html" target="_blank">rouge bunch of out-of-towners</a> especially when their selfish decisions threaten the regional economy and your health and safety. The key to restoring order is simple. Are you listening? Ready? <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/p/contact-elected-officials.html" target="_blank">Tell your state elected official</a> it is time for action not rhetoric. These officials can <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIAeGo1dmpWVjlhMUE" target="_blank">pressure the Governor</a> who needs to instruct VDOT to revoke <a href="http://washingtonexaminer.com/virginia-should-take-back-the-dulles-toll-road/article/2505637" target="_blank">MWAA’s Dulles Toll Road operating permit</a>. That will open the door for Virginia to put an end to this toll-madness. <br />
<br />
<b><u>Will Virginia do better? You betcha! </u></b><br />
A huge portion of the proposed toll increases are paying for the Silverline. MWAA finances that by floating bonds at double the rate Virginia would pay. MWAA also has demonstrated it can waste money on more than wining and dining. Experts who have studied MWAA’s construction <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIAWFlvVlRxaThfaDg" target="_blank">costs say they are double</a> what they should be when compared to other similar projects. Remember, that is your money, and they are laughing all the way to the bank. Why? They have a pretty good idea <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B2BSw8ftUMm-SEtEcVJRWVpMZm8" target="_blank">tolls will not be able to pay for this</a>. When that happens, they will dump it right back onto Virginia to put the pieces back together. The cost to commuters for <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIAWFlvVlRxaThfaDg" target="_blank">MWAA’s 100% markup</a>? $Billions! The value added? Nothing, zilch, nada! It is a complete waste of your money and it borders on criminal for elected officials to sit on their hands watching this happen. <br />
<br />
<b><u>MWAA FAIL </u></b><br />
<br />
The list is too long to elaborate but click here if you are curious about some of the biggest defects in this MWAA scheme. These must be corrected. <br />
<ul>
<li>Grossly <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/2012/08/why-are-higher-tolls-bad.html" target="_blank">defective Environmental Impact Study</a> </li>
<li><a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/2012/09/mwaa-toll-increases-are-unconstitutional.html" target="_blank">MWAA is levying tax without authority</a> </li>
<li>Claims of cost-cutting by MWAA <a href="http://fairfaxnews.com/2012/09/first-train-to-dulles-to-be-two-years-late/" target="_blank">when delays</a> and <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIAWFlvVlRxaThfaDg" target="_blank">inflated costs</a> are reality </li>
</ul>
<b><u>You must join the team </u></b><br />
<br />
The <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/2012/08/mwaa-there-is-better-way.html" target="_blank">push to retake the DTR</a> is underway. Public opinion must be heard to drown out a certain effort to control this crony scheme. The first step is for you to sound off to your elected officials urging them to support VDOT retaking control of the Dulles Toll Road (DTR). The push to retake the DTR is underway, but public opinion must be heard to keep this alive. Virginia State Sen. Richard Black <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIAeGo1dmpWVjlhMUE" target="_blank">authored a letter </a>asking Gov. McDonnell to retake the DTR. Don’t let your elected officials turn a blind eye to this. They need to support this initiative. See <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/2012/08/sample-letters-to-elected-officials.html" target="_blank">sample letters to elected officials here</a>. Forward them to local editors also. <br />
<br />
<b><u>Action plan to restore order… 6 easy steps! </u></b><br />
Have you ever watched a western and wondered why all the townspeople did nothing when a few bad guys put an entire town into chaos? There is strength in numbers. <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/p/sign-petition.html" target="_blank">Sign the NoTollincrease.org petition today</a>. This helps demonstrate a unanimous no vote on higher tolls. Pressuring our state elected officials on these issues is the key to success. <br />
<br />
Hundreds of people are signing the petition. Keep this going by sharing it with your contacts. You can help us spread the word in several ways: <br />
<ol>
<li>Put a <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/p/get-bumper-sticker.html" target="_blank">No Toll Increase sticker</a> on your car so hundreds of people will see it each day </li>
<li><a href="https://secure.piryx.com/donate/f5a2RRLX/NoTollIncrease-org/" target="_blank">Donate so we can advertise</a> our petition </li>
<li>Host the Toll Pig at your home or business. Do you have a high-traffic parking place for our rolling billboard? Please let us know! </li>
<li><a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/p/contact-elected-officials.html" target="_blank">Email and call your elected officials</a> asking them to take our road back from MWAA </li>
<li><a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIASnRUZFhyTFhMWHM" target="_blank">Print a copy of the petition</a> and help collect signatures </li>
<li>Write a <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/p/write-letter-to-editor.html" target="_blank">Letter to the Editor</a> of your local paper</li>
</ol>
<br />
<br />
<div>
<ol>
</ol>
</div>
No Toll Increasehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14697407923320729069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-47040105097767858472012-08-30T14:12:00.000-04:002012-08-30T17:13:23.383-04:00Donate $100 NOW to save $1,000/year in tolls <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgelyAEuQIzpY4CJVxWgDaiQsUIU4U_HEI7Ems4IbtS7C5in0UHFyzfRPEhxA88ET60pxHqYNqFK4Lm6c3P_BlIa6Opoj4_wN8sVqjiJnnNOXv2NpcNQ65VVj-yWK1VgoJmTVG92IknV04/s1600/ExactChangecrop-001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgelyAEuQIzpY4CJVxWgDaiQsUIU4U_HEI7Ems4IbtS7C5in0UHFyzfRPEhxA88ET60pxHqYNqFK4Lm6c3P_BlIa6Opoj4_wN8sVqjiJnnNOXv2NpcNQ65VVj-yWK1VgoJmTVG92IknV04/s1600/ExactChangecrop-001.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://secure.piryx.com/donate/f5a2RRLX/NoTollIncrease-org/" target="_blank">Fighting higher tolls costs money</a>! We are fighting for you. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Our first goal is to <b>STOP
THE TOLL INCREASES</b> because it is wrong to impose this cost on Dulles Toll
Road users, making this a road for just the wealthy.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When you <a href="https://secure.piryx.com/donate/f5a2RRLX/NoTollIncrease-org/" target="_blank">donate $100 NOW</a> this could save $1,000+ a year in
tolls for many years.<br />
<br />
Donate $10 or more, and we'll get you a <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/p/get-bumper-sticker.html" target="_blank">NoTollIncrease bumper sticker</a>!</div>
<a name='more'></a><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj41HLyLxWotBgfbc4hwnWxeZ8DDVzRCjfdZvktYVhlklY57gyu7Lg3739a-0bjmEYZ98Mp-gQDzZRo_ODo2zRpMLy_DcFkM6OoHpyOeWKvx9uauEEejPavlqlCiRPS1wmEkSfnWamwkFA/s1600/NTI+Bumper+sticker-002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj41HLyLxWotBgfbc4hwnWxeZ8DDVzRCjfdZvktYVhlklY57gyu7Lg3739a-0bjmEYZ98Mp-gQDzZRo_ODo2zRpMLy_DcFkM6OoHpyOeWKvx9uauEEejPavlqlCiRPS1wmEkSfnWamwkFA/s1600/NTI+Bumper+sticker-002.JPG" /></a></div>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Your <a href="https://secure.piryx.com/donate/f5a2RRLX/NoTollIncrease-org/" target="_blank">financial support</a> will help us reach a broader audience
and to grow into a powerful voice that Northern Virginia legislators will not
ignore. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
No Toll Increase.org is exploring legal challenges which
object to defects in the Environmental Impact Studies which deliberately ignore
many of the areas most affected by the toll avoidance.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
You can <a href="https://secure.piryx.com/donate/f5a2RRLX/NoTollIncrease-org/" target="_blank">give securely online here</a><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Together We Can Stop Toll Increases<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
NO TOLL INCREASE.org is pulling supporters together to demand
that Virginia retake control of the Dulles Toll Road and find solutions that
avoid forcing traffic off the Dulles Toll Road (DTR) onto local roads. Northern
Virginia is being strangled by traffic congestion that must be fixed. Virginia
gave away our road to be the cash cow for other projects. The Airports
Authority, who manages the DTR, is wasting so much money that tolls are
scheduled to double soon, starting January 1, 2013 and then go even higher.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This will force up to 50,000 more cars per day onto
already-congested local roads, causing pollution,
accidents and making traffic worse in our communities. Who can afford another
$1,125 in tolls per year? Do you want to spend more time idling in traffic,
wasting $4.00/gal. gas? <a href="https://secure.piryx.com/donate/f5a2RRLX/NoTollIncrease-org/" target="_blank">Donate two weeks' tolls to prevent Tollmageddon</a>!<o:p></o:p></div>
No Toll Increasehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14697407923320729069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-2301433270504127642012-08-14T15:44:00.001-04:002012-11-13T11:02:57.784-05:00Stop Tollmageddon<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgolZ1YDKxzNavNcoXwz1ZAmz7WCF4cvT2lhAKyXwrWQxP03anvzcsYGFDusuMsHzb0u79ePKBAdvr-6aNoC7tnRP_XKpXgYv-M2y6z2FfPwyIUHLBPe0KfO-l9vZy7PcdATesntxc3bgs/s1600/Sec_Connaughton-001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgolZ1YDKxzNavNcoXwz1ZAmz7WCF4cvT2lhAKyXwrWQxP03anvzcsYGFDusuMsHzb0u79ePKBAdvr-6aNoC7tnRP_XKpXgYv-M2y6z2FfPwyIUHLBPe0KfO-l9vZy7PcdATesntxc3bgs/s1600/Sec_Connaughton-001.jpg" /></a></div>
<b><u>Solution 1. Retake the Dulles Toll Road</u></b><br />
Virginia Secretary of Transportation Sean Connaughton <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/silver-line-needs-more-help-from-mcdonnell/2012/04/14/gIQAGBU4HT_story.html">on April 14, 2012</a>, said the Commonwealth was so unhappy with MWAA that it would rather finish building the Silver Line itself.<br />
<div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>“We are actively evaluating whether we can take the project over. These guys (MWAA) are a disaster,” Connaughton said. “We’re at the point, quite honestly, where we think we could potentially do it better, cheaper, faster.”</i><br />
<a name='more'></a></blockquote>
<br />
The Virginia Department of Transportation controls the Operating Permit for the DTR and could revoke that permit based on a variety of performance related issues. It's time to put the interests of the DTR users first and get this done before it's too late. Keeping traffic and tolls under control benefits people, the economy and the environment.<br />
<br />
If Virginia takes control of the DTR, the savings would be close to $2 billion s over the 30 year life of the bonds used to pay for Dulles Rail. That is $2 billion that will will not come out of the pockets of DTR users. That savings alone should be reason enough to take action on this. Delegate Randy Minchew has indicated that if Virginia assumed control of the project, billions could be saved by borrowing at reduced interest rates. <br />
The VDOT operating permit sets a standard of "best effort". The people now managing the DTR are not accountable to either the Federal or state government and have not put forth their best effort. Here is a<a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIASE8zSlp1MExLVFk"> link to the pertinent pages</a>.<br />
<br />
<b><u>Solution 2. Fix Toll Avoidance Traffic Gridlock<br /> </u></b>The Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) and the recently updated Environmental Assessment done for Phase 2 of Dulles Rail are defective because they completely<a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIAQTFUakJFdk5OTTA"> ignored the traffic impact</a> on Route 7, and the overwhelming effect that the toll avoidance will have on local roads. Toll avoidance occurs when drivers stop using a tolled road and revert to un-tolled local roads.<br />
<br />
This is simply unacceptable and must be corrected so that real solutions are developed for the benefit of those who live work and play in the areas affected by Rt.7 traffic. That includes any road that can and will be used as a shortcut to avoid congestion.<br />
<br />
NO TOLL INCREASE .org works to advance both of these ideas.</div>
No Toll Increasehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14697407923320729069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-82066040414507020522012-08-13T16:03:00.000-04:002012-09-26T10:44:48.694-04:00Toll Avoidance, Rt. 7 Traffic, and the Environment<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOlEvS-ft6Up7Rv6ye83d66KPEsyWQID5cne7Ts0r93yqUbM8XRyyv_XH61daX7PaMMda0tlH_l_jYxvISG2jhIEtDatODc6ty7twYDPCPGh4Ta7tFm_gwXDkqUUY7myaNVw1eW5Cs832l/s1600/Traffic+Fail+with+Highlights-001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOlEvS-ft6Up7Rv6ye83d66KPEsyWQID5cne7Ts0r93yqUbM8XRyyv_XH61daX7PaMMda0tlH_l_jYxvISG2jhIEtDatODc6ty7twYDPCPGh4Ta7tFm_gwXDkqUUY7myaNVw1eW5Cs832l/s1600/Traffic+Fail+with+Highlights-001.JPG" /></a></div>
Higher tolls are bad for one primary reason: they force all but the most wealthy drivers off the Toll Road. The result of this is that the alternate free roads see drastically increased congestion. How bad will the increased congestion be? We really don't know, because the people planning the Dulles Rail Project hid the data.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
As with any major project, the federal government required an Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) showing what effect the project would have on the surrounding area. This was completed in 2004 and included an analysis of the transportation effects on other roads. This is the chart that the FEIS included:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjigvq5GRe5HGFx7NA4mFR7KvdOXviU-WQf1beNDLxAAUJLyQRprz7zlDS_w-7D_8Zch15N2naEFe4BWqfobRpb_2ifhmGiSe7kenqSxluq4BNyzBMBMvndjUyo5wU4B-VxKDfpInePdupX/s1600/Traffic2025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjigvq5GRe5HGFx7NA4mFR7KvdOXviU-WQf1beNDLxAAUJLyQRprz7zlDS_w-7D_8Zch15N2naEFe4BWqfobRpb_2ifhmGiSe7kenqSxluq4BNyzBMBMvndjUyo5wU4B-VxKDfpInePdupX/s400/Traffic2025.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
OK, so there isn't any real traffic relief, but I thought you said they "hid the data", right? Correct. Look at that list again. Notice anything missing? How about Rt. 7, the only other road that follows the Dulles Toll Road/Dulles Greenway from Falls Church through Tyson's Corner, Reston, Herndon, Sterling, and Ashburn to Leesburg? Anyone from this area knows that Rt. 7 is the alternate route. Look at the map below to see this:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW85zOUrlZ1i88ERBXcAVnP6Ff26nZx5OV32Zbr_D_yt2dFzbn4O35fMTuz4NO-xcELgbPXgsYRmP6w378VJhzCxDY-fBHTsirHKWQ3CYBcKriot0WcWic36EGscrZWe3PmhdFbD0R_zmy/s1600/Dulles+Toll+Road-Greenway+and+Rt.+7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="277" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW85zOUrlZ1i88ERBXcAVnP6Ff26nZx5OV32Zbr_D_yt2dFzbn4O35fMTuz4NO-xcELgbPXgsYRmP6w378VJhzCxDY-fBHTsirHKWQ3CYBcKriot0WcWic36EGscrZWe3PmhdFbD0R_zmy/s400/Dulles+Toll+Road-Greenway+and+Rt.+7.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
If people in Leesburg, Ashburn, Sterling, Herndon, or Reston want to get to Tyson's Corner or Washington, DC, and can't afford the additional $1,125/yr to commute when tolls double, they're going to take Rt. 7 or the little two-lane neighborhood roads. Rt. 7 is already super-congested and accident-prone with about 60,000 vehicles/day through Fairfax County from the Loudoun County line to I-495. Rt. 193 (Georgetown Pike) is a hilly, curvy, two-lane road that carries about 20,000 vehicles/day from Rt. 7 to I-495. <br />
<br />
Estimates show that up to 50,000 cars/day will be forced off the toll road and onto the free roads. How much time will local residents and commuters waste sitting in traffic? How many more accidents will cause injuries and deaths? How much more pollution will there be from all those cars idling in traffic? <br />
<br />
The 2004 FEIS didn't even consider Rt. 7, the only real alternate road with more than two lanes. The 2006 and 2012 Environmental Assessments (EA) didn't see fit to look into it either! This is an outrageous, blatant disregard for the federal law. We can't say why, since several days of phone calls and emails to the responsible parties have yielded no response. The only way to find answers and prevent the coming Tollmageddon is to force a new Environmental Assessment, with a proper analysis of the effects of higher tolls.<br />
<br />
The Project FEIS's official excuse for not studying toll avoidance traffic on Rt. 7 is below, in response to an FEIS Comment from the City of Falls Church:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>Traffic and Mitigation Measures Not Fully Addressed for the City of Falls Church</b><b>Potential Impacts to City of Falls Church</b><b><br /></b><b>Local Comment:</b> I am pleased to provide the following "Impact Evaluation" for the referenced draft EIS report dated January 28, 2002 (including revised Section 8.0 dated March 15, 2002). This brief evaluation reviews this EIS report in consideration of possible impacts to the City of Falls Church, particularly the affected Metrorail stations and environs with the City of Falls Church. Based on my evaluation of this report (and revised Section 8.0 attachment), I offer the following observations and comments (presented in order by Section of the EIS report):<br /><br />Section 6.1 -- Level of Service (LOS) analyses were conducted for selected highway links, but not Rt. 7. Why not? Again, it seems this important highway corridor within the study area should have been included. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><b>Response: </b>Section 6.1. The links included in Table 6-1 were a sample of the important highway links in the project area. The table was not meant to be comprehensive of all heavily traveled links in the corridor. The links included in the table were selected based on their proximity to the BRT and Metrorail alignments, and were adjusted to be links most affected by implementation of the Build Alternatives.</i> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Final Environmental Impact Statement J-6-26 Dulles Corridor Rapid Transit Project</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<br /></blockquote>
<br />
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-5780723245844695892012-08-13T10:17:00.000-04:002012-09-17T14:38:04.705-04:00When are Tolls Going Up?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2TBCT6jBI_coKtNSSK9rQA3Ddhk1T0ZMkodSUiyt4DuphNjHWvs1VoGiX_c3e1b9nb-2BjoM2loaQGJ4SlqQD7lkMvOF5MX6ZsUZqirb9FyQvBSTaK21rnGEdm31KFL4863sumBFH6Hor/s1600/Tolls+Graph-001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2TBCT6jBI_coKtNSSK9rQA3Ddhk1T0ZMkodSUiyt4DuphNjHWvs1VoGiX_c3e1b9nb-2BjoM2loaQGJ4SlqQD7lkMvOF5MX6ZsUZqirb9FyQvBSTaK21rnGEdm31KFL4863sumBFH6Hor/s1600/Tolls+Graph-001.JPG" /></a></div>
Tolls were projected to double to $4.50 on Jan. 1, 2013, then keep rising at a level to keep future usage at about 75% of current usage. <br />
<br />
MWAA is currently proposing to use $150 million from the Commonwealth of Virginia to 'buy down' the toll increases for two years, so that a $0.50 hike will take place Jan. 1, 2013, another $0.75 Jan. 1, 2014, and another $1.00 Jan. 1, 2015. <br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
While this lessens the public outrage by making the increase more gradual, it means that the tolls will probably have to increase more rapidly in the future, or MWAA will continue asking for additional taxpayer bailouts. The toll avoidance traffic impact on alternate routes will be 32,000 cars/day diverted onto free roads like Rt. 7 by 2015.<br />
<br />
Click on the picture to view a larger version.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK4a6-kkAGF_u6DLUuvHfjGIbHUyp_Kt5U1_mEDHgKMbWyNMK_jsMh_TDDOq-Fx5VXjB6U6zKezUf2u0JLLZLkoMBQLjG3Kk4fY3BS8AjmSNd7Nw2wAD8ePuO9bVzSTyCQM_RU2eJkNatW/s1600/2012+Tolls+estimates.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK4a6-kkAGF_u6DLUuvHfjGIbHUyp_Kt5U1_mEDHgKMbWyNMK_jsMh_TDDOq-Fx5VXjB6U6zKezUf2u0JLLZLkoMBQLjG3Kk4fY3BS8AjmSNd7Nw2wAD8ePuO9bVzSTyCQM_RU2eJkNatW/s400/2012+Tolls+estimates.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGLAsswH7O23GShoANVFj9dDu3DeHW5GKYiyGyJj4K19l-4qetieQrF05b-ouBbDh6O7dKGjfR2JT8kePlvVcAT8klGYAFoGeYLcV_Bzmj-dR8v0n8pje36mL6oyQPghCaxYhJD0Yf-JtC/s1600/Tolls+Graph.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGLAsswH7O23GShoANVFj9dDu3DeHW5GKYiyGyJj4K19l-4qetieQrF05b-ouBbDh6O7dKGjfR2JT8kePlvVcAT8klGYAFoGeYLcV_Bzmj-dR8v0n8pje36mL6oyQPghCaxYhJD0Yf-JtC/s400/Tolls+Graph.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihjUF6Jhsjrv05ZdHzwuHQgK-H1P27Up6lZSIovsB9HvGn8O1n3DxkzkSAZWZA4PWPKhfpuHKWDfiP1Yh1zhOclGdz2ljLpbha-LkHQy_9cjr4VwV-Qn7uEApbzIpFSqGr8M9-ZAu9gyfi/s1600/Tolls+2013-2015.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihjUF6Jhsjrv05ZdHzwuHQgK-H1P27Up6lZSIovsB9HvGn8O1n3DxkzkSAZWZA4PWPKhfpuHKWDfiP1Yh1zhOclGdz2ljLpbha-LkHQy_9cjr4VwV-Qn7uEApbzIpFSqGr8M9-ZAu9gyfi/s400/Tolls+2013-2015.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-27119642396393794812012-08-12T16:07:00.000-04:002012-09-20T15:17:49.915-04:00Sample Letters to Elected Officials<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5yNUTbPAnGt5JwGJmRrMXTOcd2esuP5uFOKl3-ZiRAQYrrRBdqTjW_piXHTeNQ0iRq6r3yKJPky8SoNAUK_i51laf4fX00TvFnYF1OTi3Vl0kjdmk2UvErbrUmxhP9WGWlaG9pE9PkdI/s1600/Comstock2-001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5yNUTbPAnGt5JwGJmRrMXTOcd2esuP5uFOKl3-ZiRAQYrrRBdqTjW_piXHTeNQ0iRq6r3yKJPky8SoNAUK_i51laf4fX00TvFnYF1OTi3Vl0kjdmk2UvErbrUmxhP9WGWlaG9pE9PkdI/s1600/Comstock2-001.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">Dear Delegate Comstock,</span><br />
<br />
The pending toll increases on the Dulles Toll Road are an enormous threat to quality of life for your constituents, and they realize it. When tolls double, up to 50,000 cars/day will be diverted off of the DTR, with most of them diverted onto Rt. 7, Rt. 193, and neighborhood roads that go straight through neighborhoods in your district. For reference, Rt. 7 handled approximately 60,000 cars/day between the Loudoun County line and the beltway, and Georgetown Pike runs 20,000 between Rt. 7 and the Beltway (<a href="http://virginiadot.org/info/2010_traffic_data.asp">VDOT's 2010 AADT report</a>). These roads are already congested and cannot safely absorb this influx of additional traffic. <br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
Your constituents understand the devastating impacts Tollmageddon will bring to their communities, and are looking to you for leadership. The first step in reigning in the toll increases is for Virginia to revoke the Dulles Toll Road Permit and Operating Agreement, and rescue our toll road from the waste and corruption of MWAA. Secretary Connaughton, days after receiving a notice from MWAA that they wanted to extend their substantial completion deadline for the Dulles Metrorail project, said<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"We are actively evaluating whether we can take the project over," Connaughton said. "These guys [MWAA] are a disaster. ... We're at the point, quite honestly, where we think we could potentially do it better, cheaper, faster."</blockquote>
<a href="http://washingtonexaminer.com/virginia-should-take-back-the-dulles-toll-road/article/2505637">A recent OpEd in the Washington Examiner</a> and another <a href="http://fairfaxnews.com/2012/09/first-train-to-dulles-to-be-two-years-late/" target="_blank">in Fairfax News</a> started a discussion on this issue of retaking the toll road. The citizens of Northern Virginia will not allow this corrupt MWAA board to destroy our communities and way of life. Hundreds of local residents have signed <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/p/sign-petition.html">our petition to say NO TOLL INCREASE!</a> Please read the some of the comments from your constituents we have selected and posted under the petition. We have removed the zip codes for privacy reasons, but a large number of these are from your district, and they are looking to you for leadership. "Reforming" MWAA will not fix the problem, as they will still be an independent body that is not accountable to voters, and have no real incentive to lower costs. Retaking the Dulles Toll Road is the best road forward, and your constituents know this. <br />
<br />
What will you do to protect your constituents from Tollmageddon? More appropriation from the Commonwealth is not an acceptable option, as taking funding from desperately needed road improvement projects to feed the MWAA monster's greedy appetite merely wastes those funds on MWAA's insane 6%+ interest rates. A retake of the Toll Road is the best way forward. Are you willing to work for your constituents on this? We are working this issue hard, and will be glad to let them know if/when you start leading on this. <br />
<br />
Daniel Davies<br />
Operations Manager<br />
<a href="http://www.notollincrease.org/">www.NoTollIncrease.org</a><br />
<a href="tel:540-751-8267">540-751-8082</a><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
========================================================================</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnRO_G1PYGMqqa3vqXqBC3bfGJn2yH8xuvjqlSPn9XUGJMUZG05T6V0dDH4SSi8JKjLrCyOqL8TSNuOowiXTR0BrGL6wsin2wkqZSSCdh4MXLWDrtuoxEGl0qHqMe0dOdmUNguD9XrkIY/s1600/Herring-001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnRO_G1PYGMqqa3vqXqBC3bfGJn2yH8xuvjqlSPn9XUGJMUZG05T6V0dDH4SSi8JKjLrCyOqL8TSNuOowiXTR0BrGL6wsin2wkqZSSCdh4MXLWDrtuoxEGl0qHqMe0dOdmUNguD9XrkIY/s1600/Herring-001.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">Dear Senator Herring,</span><br />
<br />
As you know, the pending toll increases on the Dulles Toll Road are an enormous threat to quality of life for your constituents, and they realize it. Soon, when tolls double, up to 50,000 cars/day will be diverted off of the DTR, with most of them diverted onto Rt. 7 and neighborhood roads. For reference, Rt. 7 handled approximately 60,000 cars/day between the Loudoun County line and the beltway, (<a href="http://www.vdot.virginia.gov/info/resources/2010/AADT_PrimaryInterstate_2010.xls">VDOT's 2010 AADT report</a>). These roads are already congested and cannot safely absorb this influx of additional traffic. The air pollution caused by thousands of cars and trucks stuck in traffic will be enormous. This reduced mobility will cause Loudoun County to become isolated from the Washington DC area.<br />
<br />
Your constituents do not like toll increases, hate traffic, and are learning about the devastating impacts<a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/2012/08/aaa-mid-atlantic-dulles-toll-road.html"> Tollmageddon</a> will bring to their communities. They are looking to you for leadership. The first step in reining in the toll increases is for Virginia to revoke the Dulles Toll Road Permit and Operating Agreement, and rescue our toll road from the waste and corruption of MWAA. Secretary Connaughton, days after receiving a notice from MWAA that they wanted to extend their substantial completion deadline for the Dulles Metrorail project, said<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"We are actively evaluating whether we can take the project over," Connaughton said. "These guys [MWAA] are a disaster. ... We're at the point, quite honestly, where we think we could potentially do it better, cheaper, faster."</blockquote>
<a href="http://washingtonexaminer.com/virginia-should-take-back-the-dulles-toll-road/article/2505637">A recent OpEd in the Washington Examiner</a> and another <a href="http://fairfaxnews.com/2012/09/first-train-to-dulles-to-be-two-years-late/" target="_blank">in Fairfax News</a> started a public discussion on this issue of retaking the toll road. The citizens of Northern Virginia will not allow this corrupt MWAA board to destroy our communities and way of life and to squander our hard-earned money. Hundreds of local residents have signed <a href="http://notollincrease.blogspot.com/p/sign-petition.html">our petition to say NO TOLL INCREASE!</a><br />
<br />
Please read the comments posted under the petition. We have removed the zip codes for privacy reasons, but a large number of these are from your district, and they are looking to you for solutions and that will only come from decisive leadership. MWAA is a corrupt organization, and I hope Virginia will not continue to hand money to them. "Reforming" MWAA will not fix the problem, as they will still be an independent body that is not accountable to voters and have no real incentive to lower costs.<br />
<br />
Retaking the Dulles Toll Road is the best road forward, and your constituents know this. Senator Richard Black wrote a <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B64IfZTFiYIAeGo1dmpWVjlhMUE" target="_blank">letter to Gov. McDonnell</a> outlining how and why the Governor should take our road back. Will you join this effort to protect your constituents from Tollmageddon?No Toll Increasehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14697407923320729069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-92027284420838605.post-17875638292415459382012-08-03T10:18:00.001-04:002012-08-14T09:25:53.448-04:00AAA Mid-Atlantic: Dulles Toll Road "Reverse Robin Hood Syndrome"<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicxkZimUB1qWq3IOXc0xKcNMWH2r4YsZ8GHtwpeKmDFac_siZgFL_J4mVDPtOcr9b35Fzt3cc2zYXBY7uzuEk546WA5nepQ1aJojAsRMip9n59dwn0B7USeEnwNUTXvpLqffMGLuOhOhgn/s1600/AAA.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicxkZimUB1qWq3IOXc0xKcNMWH2r4YsZ8GHtwpeKmDFac_siZgFL_J4mVDPtOcr9b35Fzt3cc2zYXBY7uzuEk546WA5nepQ1aJojAsRMip9n59dwn0B7USeEnwNUTXvpLqffMGLuOhOhgn/s1600/AAA.JPG" /></a>AAA Mid-Atlantic recently exposed the pain that will come to Loudoun and Fairfax Counties from the planned toll increases on the Dulles Toll Road (DTR). Toll avoidance will make traffic worse for everyone except the extremely wealthy who will find the DTR wide open because most people won't be able to afford an extra $1,125/yr. in tolls to commute.<br />
That increased traffic will lead to more accidents, more time and gas wasted idling in traffic, and less time spent with family and friends. Help us spread the word: No Toll Increases!<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
AAA News Release: 7/19/2012<br />
<br />
<strong>LATEST TOLL FEE HIKES FOR DULLES TOLL ROAD USERS DECRIED BY MID-ATLANTIC</strong><br />
<br />
AAA MID-ATLANTIC LAMBASTES LATEST INCREASES IN DULLES TOLL ROAD FEES TO HELP PAY FOR THE SILVER LINE<br />
<br />
Statement by John B. Townsend II, AAA Mid-Atlantic Manager of Public and Government Affairs<br />
<br />
Another increasingly expensive round of toll fee hikes is in the offing for users of the Dulles Toll Road, according to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA), which operates the toll road. The $6 billion cost of the construction of the Silver Line, and the ever escalating tolls to finance it, are like a “silver bullet” in the heart of motorists and commuters.<br />
<br />
It appears the Board of Directors of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority has a tin ear. It has done little to convince us otherwise. It is not heeding the cry of over-burdened motorists and commuters who are being nickled and dimed to death at the toll booth.<br />
<br />
Since January of this year, motorists have been forking over $1.50 at the Main Toll Plaza and another 75 cents at the on-ramps and off-ramps. But let’s do the math, just as commuters and motorists are currently doing because they are being hit right and left as they travel through the toll plaza. On the top of that, the cost of a round-trip will increase next year and will soar eventually to as much as $9 by 2015.<br />
<br />
Adding insult to injury, many commuters along the Dulles Toll Road also take the Dulles Greenway, where the peak tolls for a one-way trip are as much as $4.80. That’s a staggering fee, making it one of the most expensive daily commutes in the country.<br />
<br />
This is the fate that befalls many toll road users who live in the area, to the ire and the chagrin of Congressman Frank Wolf (R-Virginia 10th). As to the exorbitant toll fees along the Greenway, we also concur with the observation of Rep. Wolf, who is rightly calling this “highway robbery.”<br />
<br />
Although we support the Silver Line to Dulles, and the use of toll revenue for transportation improvements along the Dulles corridor, the cost of the project is being disproportionately shouldered by motorists. That is not only draconian, it is also patently unfair.<br />
<br />
Drivers know it, and they are bailing out along both the Dulles Toll Road and the Dulles Greenway. With potential tragic consequences, so too are the drivers of large vehicles and trucks. As Rep. Wolf has pointed us, “These outrageous tolls cause cars as well as large trucks from most area businesses to divert to side roads and residential streets.”<br />
<br />
We say it again, as we have in the past, the latest round of toll increases probably will lead even more motorists to seek alternatives to the toll road, spreading congestion to nearby roads.<br />
<br />
The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority’s Board of Directors approved the three-year schedule for new toll rates back in November of 2009. Now the motoring public will feel the full brunt of the toll rates on their wallets and household budgets. By capturing the hard-earned money of motorists at the toll booth, the MWAA is financing the construction of the 23-mile, 11 station extension of Metrorail from East Falls Church to Washington Dulles International Airport west into Loudoun County.<br />
<br />
That’s the reverse Robin Hood syndrome, and it is sickening to motorists. That’s robbing from the poor to give to the rich.<br />
<br />
As the latest round of toll hikes for a round-trip on the Dulles Toll Road prove, they don’t call it the “Silver Line” for nothing.<br />
###Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0