The burning issue in any Northern Virginia community is the transportation. The population and economic boom of Fairfax County and its neighbors brings more commuters, and therefore more vehicles, into and through the county, especially in the Dulles Corridor where businesses are finding their new homes.
FOR THE FIRST time since 1991, Fairfax County is reviewing its transportation plan, and sharing its findings with the public through a series of meetings held in different communities. The meeting held in Reston took place on Tuesday, March 8, at Reston Community Center Lake Anne. The transportation plan, said Leonard Wolfenstein, head of the planning section of the Fairfax County Transportation Planning Division, is a tool for securing the right-of-way in the spots where the county thinks it will have to work on road improvements. Securing the right-of-way in those areas will make any future work there more affordable. "This is not a funding or a financial plan," he said.
The transportation plan serves as a basis for Virginia Department of Transportation's (VDOT) six-year plan, which is a funding plan. The projects within the transportation plan are not realized before being put in VDOT's six-year plan, because in Virginia the state is responsible for building transportation projects.
The transportation plan has been amended a few times since its last review in 1991, but the county is looking at the whole plan now. "What we are trying to do now is a comprehensive review," said Wolfenstein.
Don Vary, a consultant with Cambridge Systematics, helping the county conduct studies, said the year 2030 was decided on because that is the projected year of when Fairfax County will have built out. He added that strong population growth is projected for the western part of the county, where Reston lies. Vary said the forecast on traffic patterns in the region incorporated the building of the rail to Dulles. "We are taking off some projects that don't make sense any more, and adding ones that now make more sense, given the patterns in land use," added Vary.
RESTON RESIDENTS posed questions pertaining to Reston issues, such as higher density development and toll increases on Dulles Toll Road, which will likely bring more traffic to local roads. Wolfenstein explained the plan is a macro level analysis, and the questions posed by the residents are micro level questions. The Reston residents, therefore, did not get answers to most of their questions. "They get so hung up on the macro scale, that they lose sight of what is happening in specific communities," said Dave Edwards, a Reston resident. Wolfenstein explained community input in the transportation plan is important. The next step in the process, after the public meetings, is to review the public input, given through written comments. The second round of public meetings will be held in the summer.