Some (well, 2 or 3 of you anyway) might be wondering how transportation is planned and implemented in Northern Virgina. Since "Northern Virginia" belongs to a multi-state metropolitan region and is made of of several cities, counties and towns, it is actually a pretty mind-boggling, complex process. I've been a transportation planner here since 1998 and I am STILL trying to figure it out myself.
But one player in that process is the Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB). You can find out the details on their website (http://www.ctb.virginia.gov/), but in summary, "the CTB allocates highway, rail, public transportation and commuter services funding to specific projects, locates routes and provides funding for airports and seaports." They are a 17-member Board appointed by the Governor, and they sign off on all state transportation spending statewide.
On November 1st, they will hold the Northern Virginia public hearing to comment on the state's Fiscal Year 2008-2013 Six-Year Improvement Program (SYIP) (similar to a Capital Improvement Program). The SYIP is the budget for the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and the Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT). The public hearing is an opportunity for the public to voice their opinions about what transportation projects are important to them. It is taxpayer money, after all.
If you are interested, the public comment portion of the meeting starts at 7 PM at the Fairfax County Government Center. Details can be found here: http://www.virginiadot.org/infoservice/news/newsrelease.asp?ID=CO-SYIP-F06 Or, if you can't go this time but want to see the CTB in action, they hold monthly meetings in different areas across the state. You can find out information about those here: http://www.ctb.virginia.gov/meetings.asp.
This certainly isn't your only opportunity to comment on transportation policy; I'll try to keep you updated on other opportunities as I work my way through the alphabet soup of transportation agencies.
By Tamara Ashby.
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