bi-county parkway presentation
DESCRIPTION
TRANSCRIPT
Bi-County Parkway
“Question the Generalizations”
Traffic Source for Graph• Source: VDOT Traffic
Modeling and Analysis Memorandum
• May 18 Revised• 366 pages• Page 15 Analysis is easy
to understand• The proposal for this
road is based on percentages, should be based on actual numbers and capacity
Notice significant decrease in traffic on Gum Spring Road, but not significant decrease on other roads
This road helps Gum Spring RoadPersonal Testimony:I drove up Gum Spring Road during PM rush hour last week and there was no traffic.
Recently, Gum Spring Road has been widened to four lanes.
There is no need to relieve congestion on Gum Spring Road anymore.
I question whether these traffic numbers take the new lanes on Gum Spring Road into consideration.
• Notice Gum Spring Road is Purple going south
• Arrows point to true congestion
• Source: Mr. Kilpatrick’s VDOT Hylton Presentation, July 3rd, 2013
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2040 PM Traffic No BuildRoad color indicates capacity
2040 PM Build Scenario
• Notice Gum Spring Road is now pink going south
• All other areas stay the same for rush hour traffic
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Land Bought by Developers
• Source: Piedmont Environmental Council
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Population Growth Per Square Mile
Source:Corridor Master Plan
Population Growth Per Square Mile
With Developer’s
Map
Source:Corridor Master Plan
What about the economic benefit?
Employment Growth Per Square Mile
Economic Growth is east and north of
PWC
Source: Corridor Master Plan
• I thought it was interesting that Mr. Connaughton’s presentation showed economic growth in the Gainesville area, but that doesn’t seem to be reflected in the maps in the Corridor Master Plan
• Leesburg City Council is against the Bi-County Parkway
• Political threats
• Source: Leesburgtoday,
• July 20, 2013
Why Leesburg City Council is against this Road
“I attended almost all of the meeting VDOT held including in Prince William and other locations and I found it interesting that
every meeting I went to the message was different. In Prince William they talked about air cargo and in the next meeting it wasn't going to have anything to do with airport cargo,” Burk
said. “So every one of the meetings I went to I got more frustrated because I felt there was a different emphasis on each
meeting. It is obvious economic development has twice as much value with the project. I don't necessarily agree with
that, but what struck me is the economic development is all east of the actual road.” Burkehttp://
www.loudountimes.com/news/article/leesburg_town_council_stands_firm_opposes_vdot_north_south_corridor_stud312
% of Pages Dedicated to Economic Data to Support Bi-County Parkway in the
Corridor Master Plan
2 of 173 pages included data to indicate there would be an increase in cargo at Dulles
Growth at Dulles• This is the only
evidence of cargo growth in the Corridor Master Plan
• Found on page 50• Notice the source
for the freight data is Boeing and MWAA
Facts about Dulles Cargo Growth• Dulles
Cargo down 11% this past year
• Tied to Europe’s economy
• Source: Wash Biz Journal, 4/11/13
Facts about Dulles• Dulles
ridership down 8% this past year
• Meanwhile, Raegan and BWI are growing
• Source: Washington Post, July 19 2013
Question the Generalizations
“This road will bring economic benefit to Prince William County.”
• Growth will be north and east of PWC• Dulles is currently on the decline• Corridor Master Plan doesn’t seem to have a lot
of objective data to support their economic claims
Question the Generalizations• “…all should be able to agree that traffic in western
Prince William and eastern Loudoun County is bad and going to be getting worse unless we build the transportation facilities necessary to address it.” Mr. Connaughton, letter to the editor, June 20, 2013
• This road does not address the traffic issues in Western Prince William, it is designed to help Gum Spring Road – and that road is already clear because of the widening to 4 lanes. It will also help Rt. 15 10% - 16%.
Question the Generalizations• “Anyone regularly traveling in this area knows
going north and south already can be a miserable slog. Current traffic counts and projected forecasts show that roads like Routes 15, 234, Gum Spring Road and other north-south routes already are overwhelmed and face pandemic congestion by 2040 if the Bi-County Parkway is not built.” Mr. Connaughton, June 20, 2013, Letter to the Editor Ashburn Patch
“Pandemic” Congestion is Still East-West in 2040
?• Notice traffic on Balls Ford Road gets worse with the build scenario
Question the Generalizations
• I would like to request the Board of County Supervisors look for data to support the claims
Suggestions• Focus on public transportation– Gas prices are going to go up as we run out of
“easy oil”– Advocate to build bus, VRE, and metro
infrastructure now to prevent an uncomfortable transition to alternative transportation later• Build VRE to Gainesville• Increase buses to/from DC, including the commuter lot
at 234 bypass and during off-peak hours• Advocate for Metro to Fairfax County Parkway• Add a bus from Gainesville to Woodbridge
What about the connection b/t PWC and Loudoun?
• Build the Battlefield Bypass first before closing 234, as was intended in the 1988 resolution
• Is there a way to make a little two lane connection from 234 Bypass to Pageland Lane that doesn’t utilize park land?
What about the traffic in the park?• Put up “No
Trucks” signs• Lower the roads
within the park - or - • Build pedestrian
tunnels under the road
• Example:JMU pedestrian tunnel to the arts facility. It’s beautiful!