Browsing Category Transportation

Transportation and the Governor’s race

Bacon’s Rebellion posted this excellent link to a Q & A with Tim Kaine, candidate for Governer this fall. His ideas for linking transportation and land use planning show that, at the very least, he is thinking about transportation issues. Will all the talk online translate into more voters this fall? If nothing, Mr. Kaine is certainly working diligently to get his message out there.

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Gas tax.

A regional gas tax is an idea that has been floated occasionally for some time. Bacon’s Rebellion has a good article as does the Road to Ruin about this very subject…. I personally would be more prone to support a regional rather than a state gas tax (of course, we would need a regional authority to levy said tax). This sort of tax would be painful, no doubt about it, especially in light of some predictions/educated guesses that oil may shoot up to $75.

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Meadowcreek finds money

Sen. John Warner has helped the Meadowcreek Parkway see the light of day. Make no mistake – this is huge.Warner said he decided to earmark the federal transportation dollars available to him as a senior senator to pay for a grade-separated interchange at the U.S. 250 Bypass, McIntire Road and the southern end of the parkway that has been planned for more than 30 years. The 2-mile parkway would extend from East Rio Road to Melbourne Road, wind through the east edge of McIntire Park and end at the U.S. 250 Bypass“It doesn’t have a damn thing to do with politics or anything like that. It’s just an old [former University of Virginia law] student’s expression of gratefulness to the community,” Warner said in a telephone interview.This quote irritates me a bit as it is our money he is talking about.

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Alternative transportation poll

The Daily Progress has a poll asking “Do you think Charlottesville needs more alternative transportation options?”When I answered the poll question this morning, 80% (178 votes) had answered yes…. Not really.If I could figure out how to do a poll on this site, and I had the traffic to give a decent, non-scientific response, I would ask – –Do you think the Central Virginia region needs more alternative transportation options? –If yes, would you be willing to pay an additional $5 per day/more in a localized gas tax/higher consumption tax of some form in order to pay for these improvements?–If yes, would you be in favor of the local governments possibly taking property from private landowners so that they can build these improvements? (this would be an example of the right kind of eminent domain!)–If no, are you happy with the current amount of traffic/infrastructure in our region?We have to realize that the transportation issues we are all facing impact us all from a property value aspect as well as a basic quality of life aspect.

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Places 29

Transportation, open space and neighborhood concerns are some of area residents’ top priorities for the master plan for the U.S. 29 corridor in northern Albemarle County….The areas of top public concern for Places29 include pedestrian connections and facilities, preservation of the county’s natural environment, creation of public parks, improvements in the transportation system, protection of existing neighborhoods, provisions for retail services and maintenance of the county’s public facilities, according to the update.From today’s DP.Places 29 has an online questionnaire where residents may provide feedback on the master plan process. What I hope will not be lost is the fact that 29 needs to be an efficient corridor for moving traffic in and out of the area, not merely a commercial zone with several stoplights and roadblocks.

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Alternative transportation from a CVille-centric POV

It sounds expensive, she admitted, but added that when the price is compared with the cost of other transportation projects, it’s relatively low.She pointed to the Hillsdale Drive Extension, a one-mile road that will connect Hydraulic Road to Hillsdale at its existing terminus at Greenbrier Drive and cost between $17 million and $27 million. A design study is underway, and a build date has not been set.The Meadowcreek Parkway, running about two miles, is currently estimated to cost at least $50 million if it’s built with a grade-separated interchange at the U.S. 250 Bypass.Some form of mass transit that is fiscally viable and efficient for moving people is a laudable goal…. Continually focusing on the challenges that the City faces serves only to reinforce the myopic view that the City is the only important entity in the region. Many (most) of the people who work in the City cannot afford to live in the City so they have to drive to get to work!

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Alternative methods of transportation

It sure seems logical: More space, less congestion.But sometimes things aren’t as simple as they seem, at least to alternative transportation proponents.They are true believers in the “if you build it, they will come” argument. To them, more roads just mean more cars.The Daily Progress has a good story in yesterday’s paper about alternative methods of transportation in our region and some of the challenges we face. Providing clean, efficient, affordable transportation is a challenge for localities that is further complicated in our region by the fact that the City of CVille and the County of Albemarle get along sometimesabout as well as a couple of two year olds.County Board of Supervisors Chairman Dennis S. Rooker said he’d be willing to discuss contributing more money if the county played a greater role in CTS planning and decision making and if the county got credit for federal and state funding secured by the city.“We need to establish a more permanent participation between the city and county,” he said.

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