Transportation and Military Construction Bills Clear House
U.S. Congressman Jim Moran (D-8th) welcomed the House’s passage of funding bills to support our national transportation infrastructure, military and veterans. The Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act for FY 2011, which was passed by a vote of 251 to 167 on Thursday, includes $98 million in Moran-backed funding for transportation and infrastructure projects in Northern Virginia. Earlier this week, the House passed the fiscal year 2011 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act which includes funding for military infrastructure projects in Northern Virginia and makes investments in programs that support our veterans, troops and military families.
Moran helped spearhead efforts to fund the extension of Metro to Dulles. The House passed Transportation bill includes $96 million for the project. “Over the next 20 years, employment in the Dulles Corridor is projected to increase by 63%, population will increase by 45% and travel demand will increase by 45%,” said Moran. “The Dulles rail project will save commuting time, reduce gas consumption, foster transit-oriented development and job growth, and generally improve the quality of life for Northern Virginians.”
Other projects in the two pieces of legislation benefiting Northern Virginia include:
Dental Clinic Replacement, Fort Belvoir– $6.3 million for construction of an addition to the new BRAC dental clinic to provide supplemental dental and support clinic space. This will consolidate dental services at Ft. Belvoir onto the main health campus currently under construction. The project will replace the outdated Logan Dental Clinic, which is technologically obsolete and does not meet current DoD dental health criteria.
BRAC-related Infrastructure, Fort Belvoir– $3.06 million to modernize and expand critical infrastructure at Fort Belvoir, VA. The completion of this fourth increment is required to provide necessary support infrastructure for units, agencies, and activities relocating to Fort Belvoir as a result of BRAC 2005 decisions. Specifically, the project will fund the relocation of water, sewer, natural gas, and communications lines, additional storm water management facilities, and an access control point, transportation network, and physical security and force protection improvements to comply with antiterrorism/force protection standards. These upgrades will directly support the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, Fort Belvoir Community Hospital, Missile Defense Agency, North Atlantic Region Medical Command, Dental Clinic, Office of the Chief of Army Reserve (Real Estate Exchange), Army units moving out of leased space in the National Capital Region, Army units relocating from other government installations, the Army and Air Force Exchange System and Defense Commissary Agency, and Fort Belvoir base support functions.
Dulles Metrorail Project to Wiehle Avenue– $96 million for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, in cooperation with the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, to construct a 23.1-mile extension of WMATA’s Metrorail system in the rapidly growing Dulles Corridor in Northern Virginia. Based on Federal Transit Administration guidance and the timing of funding availability, the Airports Authority plans to construct the extension in two phases: 1) Extension to Wiehle Avenue (Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project), and 2) the Extension to Dulles Airport/Route 772.
This funding will support Phase 1 of the project, which is the initial 11.7 miles diverging from the current Metrorail Orange Line near West Falls Church Station to Wiehle Avenue in Reston, providing direct service to Tysons Corner. Phase 1 will include five new stations, improvements to the existing West Falls Church Service and Inspection Yard and tail tracks outbound of the interim terminus station at Wiehle Avenue. The new service will operate as a separate Metrorail line between the Wiehle Avenue station and the Stadium-Armory Station in Washington, D.C.
Pedestrian Access Bridge Over Dulles Airport Access and Toll Road– $1 million for the erection of a new pedestrian bridge adjacent to the existing Trap Road overpass on the Dulles Airport Access & Toll Road (DAATR). The pedestrian bridge will increase safety and access to existing non-motorized transportation facilities and is supported by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.
Potomac Yard-Crystal City Transit Way– $1.25 million for the City of Alexandria and Arlington County to develop a transitway project to serve new transit customers moving into the residential, office, and retail centers which will be built over the next 20 years in Potomac Yard. This service will travel from Braddock Road Metrorail station, through Potomac Yard to the Crystal City Metrorail station, and eventually to Pentagon City and possibly the Pentagon. Funds are needed to buy vehicles and to engineer and build other portions of the transitway, including stations in the transitway.