Springfield supervisor Patrick Herrity is so frustrated with the tall grass and weeds in the right of way of some local roads, he decided to take matters into his own hands.
The elected official woke up early on Sunday, Sept. 13 and took his personal mower out to the median stripe of Rolling Road to cut some of the grass himself.
Herrity chose the spot directly outside West Springfield High School because several parents called his office during the first week of school to complain about the tall grass. They said the weeds — about three to six feet tall — presented a safety hazard for students.
Del. Dave Albo (R-42) and three of Herrity’s aides helped the supervisor clear the median. West Springfield athletic director Tim O’Reilly also used the school’s riding lawn mower to help cut the grass in public space that was closest to the school building.

THE VIRGINIA Department of Transportation is officially responsible for cutting grass in the public right of way on state-controlled thoroughfares like Rolling Road.
But transportation secretary Pierce Homer said the approximately $4.6 billion reduction in Virginia’s transportation funding over the past 18 months lead his department to make some tough choices, including a decision to mow state-controlled roads fewer times during the year.
"The $60 million per year we spend on mowing? We had to reduce it," said Homer at the Northern Virginia Transportation Alliance’s yearly "What You Need To Know About Transportation" seminar and fund-raiser Sept. 9.
Other reductions Homer’s department has had to make include shuttering 19 highway rest stops — which cost $500,000 each to run — and closing one third of the transportation department’s local storefronts, which means many rural communities will not be able to have face-to-face contact with state transportation officials.

HOMER SAID Virginia’s transportation department will probably have to "lower the standard" of snow removal statewide, meaning those same Fairfax County corridors that have not been mowed are at risk for not being plowed after a snow storm in timely fashion.
Homer has also had to drastically reduce the amount of funding Virginia gives out to localities to deal with smaller projects like new stop lights, parking signs, stop signs and turn lanes.
Two years ago, Fairfax County received $18 million from Virginia for these "bread and butter" functions. In this fiscal year, which started July 1, the locality received just $230,000, which does not even cover the cost of installing a traffic signal at a major intersection, said county officials.
Next year, Homer says Fairfax — and most other localities in Northern Virginia — should not expect to see any state money for such functions.
Currently, the transportation secretary is choosing between funding basic maintenance projects at the state level, like shoring up existing bridges and replacing pavement, and putting up the money required to access funding from the Federal Highway Administration.
Since Virginia receives four federal dollars for every one local dollar it offers up for federal highway administration projects, Homer has chosen to make matching federal highway dollars the priority over maintenance. But he wonders how long Virginia can afford not to fund its own upkeep projects.
"There are parts of the state where we are condemning bridges because there is no money to repair them," said Homer.
The Virginia Department of Transportation has also made significant staff cutbacks as a result of the loss of revenue. In the last 18 months, Homer has laid off 1,000 full-time employees and 450 part-time employees.
"When I started in this position, [the state transportation department] had 10,000 employees and I will leave it with 7,500 employees," said Homer, who has served as transportation secretary for almost eight years and plans to leave at the end of 2009.

VIRGINIA’S funding for transportation continues to diminish because its largest sources of revenue — mainly a state gas tax and fees associated with car sales — have diminished, according to Homer.
"In the last 18 months, we have lost $4.6 billion because we are a business based on the sale of gasoline and new and used cars. That is not a very good business model," said Homer.
In the current economic climate, consumers are not buying more expensive items like cars. Vehicles have also gotten far more fuel-efficient since the Virginia General Assembly last raised the gas tax in 1986 so that revenue source does not bring in as much money. Inflation has also reduced the purchasing power of money collected from the 1986 gas tax, which is fixed at 12 cents.
Almost everyone in the General Assembly agrees that the state needs to devote more money to transportation funding. Representatives from Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads in particular have pushed for a solution.
But the General Assembly has been deadlocked in a partisan and ideological divide over how to fund transportation for the past decade.
"All of us are a little surprised that we haven’t been able to find a solution," said Homer.
In general, Democrats in state senate and some in the House of Delegates have pushed for an increase in the gas tax. They argue that because the gas tax has not kept up with inflation, consumers have actually been receiving a "tax break" on gas for many years.
But some Democrats in the House of Delegates — particularly those from economically depressed and rural areas — have opposed an increase in the gas tax. And Republicans, particularly those who control the House of Delegates, have objected to any sort of tax increase for the most part.
Republicans say that the General Assembly should use more money from the state general fund — which supports public safety and education functions in the commonwealth — for transportation projects. Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob McDonnell has also called for the state to dedicate a portion of its future revenue growth to transportation.
In the last 10 years, only one bill with new transportation funding has made it out of the state assembly. Unfortunately, the Virginia Supreme Court declared a large part of that legislation — which largely passed off the responsibility of raising taxes and fees to local government officials– unconstitutional.