Four Supervisors Expose Metro's Serious Problems

Four Supervisors Disclose Rail's Serious Problems and Possible Solutions  Last night Supervisors Clarke, Higgins, and Reid presented a summary of some major problems with the Dulles Rail Project, which would need to be fixed before they could support the project. The letter was clearly intended to fix many of the serious problems with the project, and provide Loudoun with some leverage to prevent taxpayers’ hard-earned money from going to a project that would make taxes, tolls and traffic worse. The project could be made more workable if the items the document are resolved as requested. Supervisors Buona, Letourneau, and Williams berated the others for bringing their concerns forward, and thus exposing Dulles Rail’s problems. Supervisor Delgaudio indicated he was in agreement with the points made in the letter, but would still vote against Metro even if the qualifications were met. Supervisor Higgins, the primary author of the resolution, is a professional negotiator, and understands that if Loudoun opt into the rail project without these conditions being met, Loudoun will lose any leverage to fix the project for taxpayers and commuters from Loudoun and the rest of the region. Loudoun’s vote to Opt In or Out is the only opportunity we have remaining to ensure the toll increases are prevented or reduced, WMATA and MWAA are made more transparent and accountable, taxpayer liability is limited, and traffic reduction is maximized. Please read the document, and encourage all nine supervisors to join in pushing for these common-sense changes in the agreement, before it is too late. Loudoun County’s motto is I Byde My Time, and rather than vote for the project before they can figure out how to fund it, Loudoun’s Supervisors should request the additional 5 months to Dec 1, 2102. This is the biggest financial commitment in Loudoun County history, and if we can’t do this right, we shouldn’t do it at all. The Supervisors are under intense lobbying pressure to vote for this project. The handful of speculative developers who would profit from it are working them hard, and taxpayers have been hearing much more about the benefits than the costs. The Board will hold a Public Input session tonight. We, as taxpayers, need to encourage our Supervisors to vote the right way. Please join us to publicly support those Supervisors who want to Opt Out. Ashburn and Broadlands Don't Want to Pay for Metro Hello Friends, This is the voice of people from Ashburn, where the interest is waning. The disgust will continue to grow. Last night Supervisor Bouna presented a poll that was a new version of the "do you like shiny trains" survey. Wow, it has come to this. Experts conclude unanimously this Metro/Business Bailout project that FAILS to relieve traffic, make traffic far worse, will cripple the businesses and citizens in the county with taxation AND will drive new business away... but Supervisors still trumpet rail as the people’s choice. The simple, obvious facts of this disaster-in-the-making are of no interest to Bouna, Williams, Letourneau, and York. That is very bad news and a strong reminder of how important a rigid vetting process is and will be in the future. Start thinking about that folks. Our work is cut out for us. With just a little information which for the most part has NOT been provided to residents by the County, these people get it and they reject it. Instead of saying yes to a fluff survey question about rail and transportation as your survey people did, these people who comment, as Mr. Reid points out, have knowledge of cost, and so they reject the shiny train. For them it is a simple no-brainer to discern the lack of merit.  If this proposition was presented to a corporate Board of Directors with all its uncertainty, extreme costs, and lack of any basis for expectation of providing a return, it's presenters would be laughed out of the room and dismissed for wasting the time of the board, yet some of our Loudoun Board still hold tight to the shiny train.  Please listen to the people who elected you, they are few now, but in the months and years ahead, if you pass this, they will look to you with disgust as they realize their trust has been betrayed.  Jennifer Nolan While Metro Rail to Dulles Airport would be nice, there is absolutely no - repeat, no - justification for the monumental taxes and fees being proposed to pay for it.  The Silver Line should have been built 10, 20 or 30 years ago. That the powers that were at the time were too short-sighted to see the need for the rail line then is not the fault of the people who live in the area now.  We are getting along fine without the Silver Line and have been for years. If it is so unaffordable that it cannot be paid for without imposing crippling property tax increases (and toll hikes, for that matter), then we don't need it.  In case you haven't noticed, dear Board of Supervisors, this economy is not yet back on its feet. There are still people in Loudoun County who are unemployed or under-employed and struggling to keep their homes as it is. How do you propose they pay for this tax hike?  Until Metro, the State of Virginia and the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors can find a fair, affordable way to pay for the Silver Line, then forget it! Diane Greene Completely against the special tax district. I thought I was pro-metro but it is clear we need more answers before BOS decides on 7/4. What are the additional costs to our residents, who will pay, how long, potential increases, and how this will affect local traffic & roads, further widening of roads between Rt 7 & 50, & east/west crossroads,and how the increased development around the stations will impact the funding to our schools & class size. Keith Hyde Metro doesn't have enough riders now to support itself and has to be subsidized. Metro is a waste, only a few want it or use it. Most do not so why should the minority dictate what we pay for and use??  IF you lived in a Special Tax District, where you'd pay an additional $1200 per year, (let's round that to $100 per month) effective Jan. 2013, FIVE full years before a single train arrives....WOULD YOU STILL BE telling everyone to shut up and pay for your new toy? $6000, and not a single ride....Wow, just how MUCH money do you make? When it's coming out of YOUR pocket, you may feel a bit differently.