Advancing active mobility in greater Prince William, Virginia

Tag: Active Prince William (Page 1 of 4)

Fund a Strategic Countywide Active Mobility Plan Plus $10 Million in Pedestrian, Bicycle, & Trail Improvements in the FY 2025 County Budget

On January 9, 2024, Active Prince William sent the following message to the Prince William Board of County Supervisors (PW BOCS) to request funding for two items in the FY 2025 County Budget: $3 million to develop a strategic active mobility plan for Prince William County and $10 million to implement active mobility and trail improvements.


Please consider funding the following items in the Prince William County FY 2025 Budget to support elements approved in the Community Energy and Sustainability Master Plan (CESMP).  Strong support was received from BOCS members for two of our recent BOCS candidates’ survey questions about 1) funding an Active Mobility Plan and 2) completing PWC’s planned National Capital Trail Network (NCTN) segments by 2030.

1. Active Mobility Plan  | $3 Million, one-time FY2025 funding line item

Justification: The Active Mobility Plan must be developed to provide a strategic/prioritized effort to enable bike/pedestrian projects identified in the 2040 Mobility Chapter to become projects in the Capital Improvement Program (CIP) budget.

The Active Mobility Plan–for transportation and recreation–must assess the existing pedestrian and bicycle networks within Prince William County and identify gaps to fill that will produce the greatest improvements in overall connectivity. This should include elements such as Complete Streets; Safe Route to Schools, Parks, and other community destinations; and Vision Zero policies and programs; regionally significant trails (NCTN, PHNST, ECG, US Bike Route 1, and the I-66 Parallel Trail); crossings of I-95, I-66, the Bull Run and Occoquan Rivers, and other barriers (highways and railroads); an active roadway reconfiguration program; plus various types of purely recreational trail projects and park sites and identifying the staff capacity to plan, construct, promote, operate, maintain, and rehabilitate all the elements not managed by VDOT.  The plan must also ensure that the County’s future active transportation networks mesh with neighboring networks planned for the City of Manassas, City of Manassas Park, Stafford County, and Fairfax County, in order to create the highest overall level of connectivity region-wide.

We recommend that the county hire an experienced outside consultant team to coordinate the development of this plan and to incorporate a robust public involvement component (e.g., a set of at least two public input opportunities, the involvement of agency staff and citizen work groups [including the existing Trails and Blueways Council], and targeted outreach to low-income, ethnic minority, and immigrant communities.  This would be analogous to how the County developed the CESMP and is planning to implement the SS4A Action Plan grant.

2. Mobility and Recreation Trails (General Fund) | $10 Million (Recommended to be an ongoing budget line item) 

Justification: Sustained General Fund money for trail infrastructure is needed to advance projects through the planning, engineering, right of way, and construction stages.  With over 200 miles of identified missing sidewalks and planned shared-use paths, this sustained funding level is needed to implement the Active Mobility Plan and leverage non-general fund dollars (e.g., TRIP and other developer contributions, VDOT revenue sharing, TAP, HSIP, CMAQ/RSTP, NVTA, USDOT grants, and concurrent highway construction, etc.)

Thank you for considering these requests.

Mark Scheufler & Allen Muchnick, Co-Chairs
Active Prince William
Advancing active mobility for a more livable, equitable, & sustainable greater Prince William, Virginia
Twitter: @Active_PW https://twitter.com/Active_PW

Our Questionnaire for All 2023 PWC BOCS Candidates

Active Prince William emailed the following questionnaire to all 2023 nominees for Prince William Board of County Supervisors seats on September 28, 2023.  We will post each candidate’s responses below each question once we receive them. After October 20, we will also identify those candidates who have declined to respond to this questionnaire.

Please note:  As a non-partisan advocacy organization, Active Prince William will NEVER endorse or oppose any candidate for elected office.  The candidates’ responses (and non-responses) are recorded below–in the order received–simply to educate the voting public.

Active Prince William’s Questionnaire for All 2023 Candidates for the Prince William Board of County Supervisors (BOCS)

Active Prince William is an all-volunteer education and advocacy organization that seeks better walking, bicycling, and public transportation options in greater Prince William, Virginia, to create more livable, equitable, and sustainable communities.

This survey, intended for all nominated 2023 BOCS candidates, asks several multiple-choice questions concerning our organization’s current issue priorities. Each question, highlighted in bold, is preceded or followed with brief background information. Candidates are invited to elaborate on their answers in the final question.

For a few of the questions, we’ve recently added more background information.  The newly added information is underlined and bracketed by *** at the beginning and end and also shown here in a red font.

Candidate responses will be posted verbatim on Active Prince William’s website, to inform voters about your positions regarding these issues. Thank you in advance for completing our questionnaire!

Please feel free to email us at [email protected] if you need more information or clarification regarding any of these questions.



Early and proactive community involvement in the development of significant transportation improvement projects ensures that the community’s needs and preferences are well integrated into the selection and scope of those projects.  Currently, however, the Board of County Supervisors routinely endorses staff recommendations for non-local transportation funding requests with minimal public notice or opportunities for citizen comment.

*** If the BOCS were to require the PWC Department of Transportation to present–at one annual advertised public hearing–all transportation projects being considered in the coming year for various non-local transportation funding programs, both the Department and the BOCS could obtain valuable community input near the very beginning of the project development process. ***

Question 1:  Do you support requiring the PWC Department of Transportation to hold advertised public hearings before the Board of County Supervisors is scheduled to endorse any future applications for regional (e.g., NVTA, NVTC Commuter Choice), state, or federal transportation improvement funds? *

        Yes:
  • Andrea Bailey, Potomac District (incumbent)
  • Verndell Robinson, Potomac District
  • Deshundra Jefferson, Chairman At Large
  • Bob Weir, Gainesville District (incumbent)
  • Margaret Franklin, Woodbridge District (incumbent)
 
        Need more information:
  • Victor Angry, Neabsco District (incumbent)
  • Tom Gordy, Brentsville District
  • Kenny Boddye, Occoquan District (incumbent)

Except for Prince William County, virtually every local governing body in our region has an adopted master plan for active mobility (walking, rolling, and bicycling) that articulates policies, programs, and strategic actions to effectively and expeditiously develop well-connected pedestrian, bikeway, and trail networks; provide equitable non-motorized access and mobility for the entire community; and ensure the safety of vulnerable road users. 

Question 2:  Do you support directing the County’s Planning Office, Department of Transportation, and Department of Parks & Recreation to jointly develop a robust countywide plan for expanding active mobility (pedestrian, bikeway, and trails) infrastructure and programs, ideally using an extensive community engagement process and hiring an experienced outside consultant team, well versed in suburban active mobility planning, to organize and coordinate this vital community planning initiative?*

        Yes:
  • Victor Angry, Neabsco District (incumbent)
  • Tom Gordy, Brentsville District
  • Kenny Boddye, Occoquan District (incumbent)
  • Andrea Bailey, Potomac District (incumbent)
  • Verndell Robinson, Potomac District
  • Deshundra Jefferson, Chairman At Large
  • Bob Weir, Gainesville District (incumbent)
  • Margaret Franklin, Woodbridge District (incumbent)
 
        Need more information:

Prince William County is fortuitously situated along four designated long-distance non-motorized or multi-modal travel routes; namely, the Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail, the East Coast Greenway, the Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary Route, and U.S. Bicycle Route 1.   (The first three routes listed above would meander along the Route 1/I-95 corridor between the Town of Occoquan and Triangle, whereas US Bicycle Route 1 runs generally southwest from the Town of Occoquan to Independent Hill and Aden, exiting the County on Fleetwood Drive).  In addition, both the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB) and the MWCOG Board of Directors endorsed a 1,400-mile National Capital Trail Network in the summer of 2020, and, in June 2022, the TPB adopted a transportation-sector climate strategy to complete all currently planned segments of the National Capital Trail Network by 2030.

Question 3:  Do you support a formal commitment by the Board of County Supervisors to complete all planned Prince William County segments of the National Capital Trail Network, the Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail, and the East Coast Greenway by the year 2030? *

        Yes:
  • Victor Angry, Neabsco District (incumbent)
  • Tom Gordy, Brentsville District
  • Kenny Boddye, Occoquan District (incumbent)
  • Andrea Bailey, Potomac District (incumbent)
  • Deshundra Jefferson, Chairman At Large
  • Bob Weir, Gainesville District (incumbent)
  • Margaret Franklin, Woodbridge District (incumbent)
         Need more information:
  • Verndell Robinson, Potomac District

Most large NoVA localities, including Fairfax County, Arlington, and Alexandria, have citizen transportation advisory commissions—appointed by and reporting to the governing body–to act as community advocates, assist with public outreach, and give timely advice to the governing body on diverse transportation issues, policies, planning, programming, and project designs and features.   (Loudoun County still only has a Transit Advisory Board that is focused on public transportation).

*** Several years ago, the BOCS directed the PWC Department of Transportation to engage the Planning Commission as a transportation advisory body.  However, that initiative has not produced effective citizen involvement: planning commissioners may lack transportation policy expertise; the transportation project briefings are an added burden; and the meetings have not allowed meaningful public comment on transportation matters. ***

Question 4:  Do you support having the Board of County Supervisors establish a citizen Transportation Advisory Commission that is separate from the Planning Commission?*

        Yes:

  • Victor Angry, Neabsco District (incumbent)
  • Tom Gordy, Brentsville District
  • Andrea Bailey, Potomac District (incumbent)
  • Verndell Robinson, Potomac District
  • Bob Weir, Gainesville District (incumbent)
        Need more information:
  • Kenny Boddye, Occoquan District (incumbent)
  • Deshundra Jefferson, Chairman At Large
  • Margaret Franklin, Woodbridge District (incumbent)

Over the past decade, Fairfax County and other Virginia localities have actively used VDOT’s scheduled roadway resurfacing program to cost-effectively reconfigure scores of roadways to improve safe access for people walking and bicycling.

Question 5:  Do you support directing the PWC Department of Transportation to actively engage with VDOT’s annual roadway repaving program to cost-effectively reallocate existing roadway space to better serve pedestrians, bicyclists, transit riders, and motorists?*

        Yes:
  • Victor Angry, Neabsco District (incumbent)
  • Tom Gordy, Brentsville District
  • Kenny Boddye, Occoquan District (incumbent)
  • Andrea Bailey, Potomac District (incumbent)
  • Deshundra Jefferson, Chairman At Large
  • Margaret Franklin, Woodbridge District (incumbent)
        Need more information:
  • Verndell Robinson, Potomac District
  • Bob Weir, Gainesville District (incumbent)

The proposed Route 28 Bypass (Godwin Drive Extension) along the Flat Branch and Bull Run floodplains would remove more than 50 affordable housing units in a designated Equity Emphasis Area, establish a permanent freeway barrier between the West Gate/Sudley and Loch Lomond communities, foster more exurban sprawl and long-distance drive-alone commuting from west and south of Prince William County, and increase traffic congestion and delays along Centreville Road in Fairfax County.  Moreover, due to inflation since 2019, the roughly $300 million already earmarked for this project (including $200 million from the County’s 2019 transportation bond referendum that PWC taxpayers would then repay over perhaps two decades) may not cover all construction costs. 

Meanwhile, both our organization and the Prince William County Trails and Blueways Council have formally commented that the recently proposed shared-use path component of this highway project is substantially inadequate.

Question 6a:  Do you agree than any Route 28 Bypass should include a robust shared-use path component–both along and across the Flat Branch stream valley and with multiple connections to the adjacent neighborhoods—as recommended by both the Trails and Blueways Council and Active Prince William?*

        Yes:
  • Tom Gordy, Brentsville District
  • Kenny Boddye, Occoquan District (incumbent)
  • Andrea Bailey, Potomac District (incumbent)
  • Deshundra Jefferson, Chairman At Large
  • Bob Weir, Gainesville District (incumbent)
  • Margaret Franklin, Woodbridge District (incumbent)
        Need more information:
  • Victor Angry, Neabsco District (incumbent)
  • Verndell Robinson, Potomac District

Question 6b, also related to the proposed Route 28 Bypass:  Would you support asking the Upper Occoquan Service Authority (UOSA) to grant immediate public access to UOSA’s existing service road along this corridor as a key component of a shared-path network along and across the Flat Branch stream valley?*

        Yes:
  • Victor Angry, Neabsco District (incumbent)
  • Tom Gordy, Brentsville District
  • Kenny Boddye, Occoquan District (incumbent)
  • Andrea Bailey, Potomac District (incumbent)
  • Deshundra Jefferson, Chairman At Large
        Need more information:
  • Verndell Robinson, Potomac District
  • Bob Weir, Gainesville District (incumbent)
  • Margaret Franklin, Woodbridge District (incumbent)

Question 6c, also related to the proposed Route 28 Bypass:   When this highway project’s design, costs, and myriad impacts are more fully known in spring 2024, would you support the Board of County Supervisors objectively reevaluating the pros and cons of this controversial project and considering significant modifications or even a partial or full cancellation?*

*** On October 10, 2023, the BOCS authorized pursuing a potential alternative alignment (“Modified Alternative 2A”) that would not cross Bull Run into Fairfax County, because Alternative 2B, which was advanced for preliminary engineering in September 2020, may not be feasible for various reasons (cost, project impacts, and/or right-of-way acquisition issues).  Besides displacing additional affordable dwelling units, Modified Alternative 2A would create a substantial new bottleneck on Centreville Road in Yorkshire, necessitating an additional bridge and road-widening project in both Fairfax and Prince William Counties. ***

[As examples, substantial project changes might include 1) use automated tolling to both finance construction (in lieu of County bonds) and manage transportation demand and/or 2) construct the project segment across and north of Bull Run with the existing NVTA funds and separately expand Old Centreville Rd (possibly as part of an extended multi-locality, multi-modal transit-oriented-development corridor)–in lieu of extending Godwin Dr–to reduce net residential displacements and preserve the Flat Branch stream valley as valuable and much-needed regional parkland.]

        Yes:
  • Tom Gordy, Brentsville District
  • Verndell Robinson, Potomac District
  • Bob Weir, Gainesville District (incumbent)
        Need more information:
  • Victor Angry, Neabsco District (incumbent)
  • Kenny Boddye, Occoquan District (incumbent)
  • Andrea Bailey, Potomac District (incumbent)
  • Deshundra Jefferson, Chairman At Large
  • Margaret Franklin, Woodbridge District (incumbent)

Question 7 (Optional): What else would you like to share about your responses above and/or your views of active mobility and/or public transportation in Prince William County? You are welcome to elaborate here on any or all of your responses above and to provide any additional information that you wish to share with Prince William County voters.   See below for all responses received.

Tom Gordy, Brentsville District:

I am an outdoorsman. I love fishing, kayaking, hiking, boating, and fishing. I also travel extensively due to being a Navy Reservist and have been tremendously impressed by the trail networks in German cities like Stuttgart, where you see families spending their weekends on bike trails visiting local recreational sites and historical sites along with the occasional beer garden. I have a vision to be able to get from the Potomac to the Manassas Battlefield by trail, visiting local, state and national parks, and agribusinesses and agritourism sites along the way. I also support providing more and better access for blue trails in the county that allow residents to experience all of the beauty our county has to offer. Providing more bikeable and walkable communities must be a priority, but that means having a more disciplined and intentional planning and development program. Thank you for what you are doing to support these initiatives. You will always have an open door with and advocate in me if I am honored to be elected.


Kenny Boddye, Occoquan District (incumbent):

I’m committed to more transparency as it pertains to mobility in Prince William County. I gave a directive several years ago to have large scale transportation projects and grant applications heard at the Planning Commission level, which hadn’t been done before. I also still support creation of a Mobility subcommittee of the Planning Commission.

I’ve also been a vocal supporter of more robust multi-modal transportation planning. I supported and gained additional suuport for the DRPT Springfield to Quantico Enhanced Public Transportation Feasibility Study. I endorsed the Mobility chapter updates and Future Transportation Alternatives of the new Comprehensive Plan; I also directed staff to improve upon them by adding the aspirational trails map drafted by the Trails and Blueways Council. Finally, I had BOCS support for exploring bi-directional HOV lanes on I-95 added to the Comprehensive Plan Update.

I’ve also been an advocate for ped/bike/motorist safety improvements. Last year I called for a BOCS Work Session on Traffic Safety, which led to the creation of pilot programs for red light cameras and speed cameras, as well as the county getting a grant to develop its first Comprehensive Traffic Safety Plan.


Andrea Bailey, Potomac District (incumbent):

This application/questionnaire intrigued me because I am a strong advocate of improvements in transportation and mobility. I serve on the NVRC and PRTC Boards. Both boards have made major impacts on data driven solutions to improve mobility and community engaged changes for citizens to enjoy and travel in Northern Virginia. I believe that citizen participation is necessary to create transparency of needs in our region.

I need more information on item 6c in order to give a definite answer.


Verndell Robinson, Potomac District:

#3 Does this include the Potomac Tech Park that is planned next to Forest Park?

#5 What are the requirements for applying for the VDOT scheduled roadway resurfacing program?

#6a & b: this needs to be studied to determine an answer.


Deshundra Jefferson, Chairman At Large:

I am committed to using a multimodal approach to make it easier to get around the county, and I look forward to working with you to make that happen.


###

Our May 2023 Comments on the Route 28 Bypass Project

On April 19 and 20, 2023, the Prince William County Department of Transportation held a pair of public information meetings to present the status of its Route 28 Bypass project at roughly the 30% design stage.  In response to the information presented, Active Prince William submitted the following written comments on May 3, 2023.

Related Update:  On May 23, 2023, the Prince William County Trails and Blueways Council unanimously adopted this resolution that also calls for better shared-use path connections in the Route 28 Bypass project.


Please consider these comments on the Route 28 Bypass, based on information that was presented at the April 19 and 20 Route 28 Bypass Project Public Information Meetings:

Traffic and Environmental Studies, Sustainability, and Cost Comments

The ongoing traffic forecast and environmental studies for the Bypass should report relevant data that will help the public, the Prince William Board of County Supervisors, environmental oversight agencies, and other stakeholders determine whether building this highway project would be a prudent investment for both our region and for Prince William County taxpayers.

 1.  Please report the additional Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) and Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions this project would generate vs. the no-build alternative.

Justification:  The information will help the PWC BOCS make an informed decision about the project as it weighs competing priorities about the environment and sustainability, including consistency with Visualize 2050’s policies and the objectives of the County’s own Community Energy and Sustainability Master Plan.

2.  Please report the additional noise and air pollution this project would generate within ½ mile of the corridor vs. the no-build alternative.

Justification:  Understanding the full impacts on nearby property owners within an Equity Emphasis Area that would lack direct access to the roadway facility is paramount for PWC BOCS to make strategic future decisions about this project vs. other priorities.

3.  Please report the residency locations of the projected Route 28 Bypass users; in particular, what percentage of projected highway users would reside in a) Prince William County, b) the City of Manassas, c) localities west or south of Prince William County, and d) localities north or east of Prince William County?

Justification:  With 90%+ of the cost of the project being funded by PWC taxpayers via NVTA and the 2019 Mobility Bond, this is useful information to help the PWC BOCS make strategic future decisions about this project vs. other priorities.

4.  Please report an updated project cost estimate based on the 30% design.

Justification:  With highway construction costs increasing by 50% in the past two years, it is difficult for stakeholders to understand the viability of a 2019 $300M cost estimate as the PWC BOCS plans to invest significant taxpayer $$$ into the project soon.

* * *

Shared Use Path/Trail Comments

If located in most other suburban communities, the Flat Branch stream valley would have been developed–decades ago–as a linear regional park, with non-motorized access serving and unifying the communities on either side.  Because the County has long reserved this corridor for a potential future freeway, the development of such a stream valley park has been delayed for decades.  Construction of the Bypass would establish a permanent man-made physical highway barrier between the equity-emphasis-area communities on each side.  In the interests of environmental justice and sustainable transportation, it is essential that the Bypass include a robust network of paved (and natural-surface) trails for transportation and recreation, both along and across the stream valley.

* * *

5.  Please consider relocating the adjoining shared-use path–along the Bypass segment between Sudley Rd and the Bypass bridge over Flat Branch–to follow the west side of the Bypass, to facilitate access from the Fairmont, West Gate, and Sudley communities.

In addition, build local asphalt shared-path connections between the relocated shared-use path along the west side of the Bypass to the Fairmont, West Gate, and Sudley neighborhoods from at least these five locations:

Also, please ensure that all shared-use paths are generally designed to be as flat/level as the Bypass roadway, except where needed to achieve grade-separated roadway or stream crossings.  Provide physical barriers between the shared-use path and the roadway–such as non-mountable concrete curbs and/or jersey barriers–especially wherever the grass buffer between the shared-use path and the roadway would be less than eight feet wide

Justifications:  The Flat Branch stream would limit and complicate access to any shared-use path along the east side of the Bypass from the neighborhoods in Loch Lomond; any shared-use  along the Bypass requires frequently spaced connections to nearby neighborhoods for reasonable access by foot or bicycle; and any shared-use path near the Bypass must provide a physical barrier from roadway departures by high-speed motor vehicles.

 *  *  *

6.  Please consider developing and improving the existing UOSA access road to the east of the Bypass as a second, better separated shared-use path , with trail bridge connections across Flat Branch and its tributaries to serve the Loch Lomond neighborhood between Sudley Rd and Splashdown Waterpark.  This shared-use path should be extended beyond the current northern end of the UOSA access road, to parallel the remainder of the Bypass to its northern terminus along its east side.  Trails along UOSA easements are common in Fairfax County.

In addition, provide access to the UOSA access road/future shared-use path along the east side of the Bypass from the Loch Lomond neighborhood via asphalt shared-use paths (with ped/bike trail bridges across Flat Branch and/or its tributaries where necessary) from at least these eight locations:

Use trail underpasses in stream box culverts, the Bypass bridge over Flat Branch, or along both sides of Lomond Dr to connect the shared-use path along the current UOSA access road to the relocated shared-use path along the west side of the Bypass and from there to the Fairmont, West Gate, and Sudley communities.

Justification:  The area along Flat Branch should be developed into a linear park for enjoyment by the surrounding communities that would lack direct access to the new roadway.  By providing shared-use paths along both sides of the Bypass, the shared-use path connections under the Bypass would become much more effective in linking the low- and moderate-income, majority-minority communities that the Bypass would otherwise permanently sever

* * *

7.  Please design a shared-use path /trail connection under the Bypass bridge that crosses over Flat Branch.

Justification:  This connection would provide non-motorized access between communities on the east and west of the Bypass and provide communities on the east side of the Bypass with access to Splashdown Waterpark, thus reducing vehicle trips along neighborhood streets.  Moreover, north of the Bypass bridge over Flat Branch, only one shared-use path would be provided along the Bypass, on its east side, and the UOSA access road ends south of that crossing .  In other words, this trail connection would extend any adjacent shared-use path that begins on the west side of the Bypass at Sudley Rd though the remainder of the Bypass route.

* * *

8.  Please consider leaving all or part of the existing Old Centreville Rd Bridge over Bull Run in place as the Ped/Bike connection over the waterway.

Justification:  This reduces the cost to the project and is a much more pleasant access point and amenity to the surrounding community than walking or biking next to a 45-mph roadway

* * *

9.  Please consider including as part of the project planting hundreds/thousands of canopy trees to absorb and filter stormwater, reduce highway noise in the adjoining neighborhoods, and provide much-needed shade for trail users in warm and hot weather.  The trail(s) should also include user amenities such as trail lighting, benches, and trash receptacles.

Justification:  This project clearly bisects Equity Emphasis Areas while simultaneously not providing them access to the roadway.  It is imperative to add trail, park, and flood control amenities with the project to support the surrounding community.

* * *

Roadway Comments

10.  Please consider implementing a Continuous Green-T intersection at Route 28 Bypass/Old Centreville intersection.

Justification:  This allows for a non-stop southbound trip between existing Route 28 and Sudley Rd.

11.  Please consider providing some form of [emergency or uncontrolled] left turn capacity from Northbound Route 28 Bypass to Ordway Rd.

Justification:  During  incidents  in or around the Route 28/Compton Rd intersection, this capacity would provide a relief valve to clear traffic congestion more quickly

12.  Please consider adding a left turn from Route 28 Northbound to Route 28 Bypass Southbound (with access to Ordway Rd) and removing both left turns from Route 28 Compton Rd intersection.

Justification:  This creates a third light phase to the Route 28 Bypass/Route 28 intersection and reduces the Compton Rd/Route 28 intersection to three light phases.  Access via Ordway Rd provides the route to Compton Rd.  This will improve synchronization between the two adjacent light signals (Route 28/Route 28 Bypass & Route 28/Compton Rd).

* * *

Thank you for soliciting public comments at this early stage of project design.  We would be happy to meet with members of the project team to discuss these comments in more detail.

Sincerely,

Mark and Allen

Mark Scheufler & Allen Muchnick, Co-Chairs
Active Prince William
Advancing active mobility for a more livable, equitable, & sustainable greater Prince William, Virginia
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.activepw.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ActivePW
Twitter: @Active_PW https://twitter.com/Active_PW

###

Our Statement At The VDOT NoVA District’s Spring 2023 Joint Transportation Meeting


Annual Joint Transportation Meeting for Northern Virginia, May 1, 2023
Statement of Allen Muchnick, Member of the Virginia Bicycling Federation
and Active Prince William Boards of Directors

Good evening.  I’m Allen Muchnick.  I live in the City of Manassas, and I serve on the boards of the Virginia Bicycling Federation and Active Prince William, statewide and sub-regional active transportation advocacy organizations, respectively.

We thank VDOT for recently re-filling its statewide bicycle and pedestrian planner position and for staffing a new statewide trails office.  We look forward to seeing those offices advance safe active mobility.  We believe it’s time to review and update both VDOT’s 2011 State Bicycle Policy Plan and the CTB’s 2004 Policy for Integrating Bicycle and Pedestrian Accommodations.

I commend VDOT’s NoVA District Office for initiating a study to estimate the cost to complete all locally planned but unfunded bicycle and pedestrian facilities within the NoVA District.  While most NoVA localities have robust active mobility plans and even Vision Zero programs, Prince William County still lacks both, so its official inventory of missing pedestrian and bicycle facilities is woefully incomplete.

Since 2010, VDOT’s roadway reconfiguration program has cost-effectively retrofit bike lanes and pedestrian crossing improvements on many dozens of roadways during scheduled resurfacing, especially in Fairfax County.  Prince William County, however, has largely ignored this enormous opportunity to improve the access and safety of its vulnerable road users.  We urge the County and VDOT to actively implement this program in our communities.

The alignment of US Bicycle Route 1 through Prince William County is a prime example where retrofitted bike lanes or paved shoulders are desperately needed.  Although AASHTO and VDOT established this route more than 40 years ago and a VDOT consultant re-evaluated the route’s alignment through NoVA nearly a decade ago, the bicycling conditions on several Prince William route segments are horrendous.  For example, the County’s online Bicycle Skill Level Map labels Old Bridge Road, part of Minnieville Rd, Aden Rd, and Fleetwood Dr—all lacking bicycle facilities and posted at 45-MPH–as “Roads to Avoid” and tags Hoadly Rd and Tanyard Hill Rd as “Low Comfort”.  VDOT’s 2015 Bicycle Level of Service Map for the NoVA District rated those segments similarly.  It’s long past time for VDOT and the County to fix these embarrassing and potentially deadly deficiencies.

To address the ongoing epidemic of pedestrian fatalities, VDOT should aggressively implement design-speed reductions and pedestrian safety improvements along its multi-lane commercial arterials.  VDOT and Prince William should also establish safer bike/ped crossings of I-95 and I-66 and extend the I-66 Trail, now being built in Fairfax County, over Bull Run to connect to both Balls Ford Rd and the Northern Virginia Community College’s Manassas campus.

In closing, we strongly support the recommended SMART SCALE, CMAQ, and RSTP awards for Manassas, Manassas Park, and Prince William County.

Thank you for this opportunity to comment.

###

Our Comments to NVTA for 2023

The Northern Virginia Transportation Authority held an public annual hearing on January 12, 2023.  Active Prince William’s co-chairs delivered the statements reproduced below.


Statement by Allen Muchnick, City of Manassas Resident

2022 was a busy year for the Authority.  While the processes for updating TransAction and the Six-Year Program were badly flawed, I appreciate that the outcomes were better than many had feared.

I urge the Authority to devote 2023 to reevaluate its approach to transportation project development in our region, to better align its processes and outcomes with its Core Values of Equity, Sustainability, and Safety and its goal of developing “an integrated multimodal transportation system that enhances quality of life, strengthens the economy, and builds resilience.”

A transportation program that—in our outer suburbs–is heavily focused on expanding fast, multilane arterials is neither equitable nor sustainable and only worsens safety and access for vulnerable road users and non-motorists.  NVTA funding—which is devoid of any motor vehicle user fees—has not effectively addressed our region’s growing traffic violence problem.

The Authority should establish a task force this year to reevaluate its fundamental policies and procedures, starting with its statutory emphasis on reducing traffic congestion.  The recent TransAction planning process found that–even if our region could obtain $75 billion to complete every listed project over the next 23 years—traffic congestion overall would be essentially unchanged.  The Authority should evaluate more cost-effective, equitable, sustainable, and safer approaches to regional transportation planning and investment and then recommend changes to its current statutory mandate to the Virginia General Assembly.

A simpler, yet much-needed, NVTA reform would require advertised public hearings before a relevant governing body endorses any project for NVTA-related funding, including from the CMAQ and RSTP programs.  Currently, such funding requests are often developed behind closed doors and simply placed on the governing body’s consent agenda.  Requiring advertised public hearings before governing body endorsement could alter the mix of the submitted projects and/or expand or modify their scope in light of the early public input.

The Authority also needs to develop and adopt a robust Complete Streets policy, to ensure that all NVTA-funded projects adequately meet the access and safety needs of vulnerable road users.  Early public involvement before projects are submitted for funding is related to this need, to ensure that project scopes and funding allocations will properly accommodate vulnerable road users.

Thank you for this public comment opportunity and for considering my recommendations.


Statement by Mark Scheufler, Prince William County Resident

Good Evening. Mark Scheufler. Prince William County.  Thank you for the opportunity to address you tonight.

To meet the regional, state, and federal greenhouse gas emission objectives and goals, a structural change in the transportation planning and investment needs to occur.  In addition to improved vehicle emission standards and investing in electric vehicles and infrastructure, vehicle miles traveled (or VMT) for Single Occupancy Vehicles as a whole needs to decrease, even as the Northern Virginia population grows.  At a basic level, this means that we need to stop expanding unmanaged roadway lane miles.

This means the recently adopted TransAction plan would need a major modification.  Any government funding for highway expansion is one less $ going to meeting these urgent climate goals in the transportation sector.  We need to change the paradigm that Congestion is reduced–not by adding unmanaged roadway supply to the system–but by reduced Single Occupancy Vehicle travel demand.  This will require reducing car dependency by developing near high-capacity transit, repurposing roadway space for transit and non-motorized users, and reforming parking requirements and level of service standards, especially in outer jurisdictions.

The one roadway widening project that I do support, that is currently being studied, is modifying the I-95 express lanes to a bi-directional configuration.  Somehow this is not included in the $74B TransAction list.  According to the TransAction documents, NVTA supports more general-purpose widening of the existing I-95 roadway that VDOT indicated would be a very poor investment.

But this only makes sense if jurisdictions simultaneously take advantage of the opportunity to transform the currently adjacent high-speed deadly Route 1 arterial  corridor in Fairfax and Prince William.

I applaud Arlington County staff for recommending a 25 mph design speed for their section of Route 1 through the National Landing area.  I would hope it can be a model, along with dedicated transit lanes in the Route 1 corridor, for all the other jurisdictions from Pentagon City to Dumfries.  These types of regional initiatives should be the focus for the NVTA this coming year.

###

« Older posts