Going nowhere fast, Arlington streetcars hit political and fiscal wall

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Going nowhere fast, Arlington streetcars hit political and fiscal wall

Posted by: Streetcars? ()

Date: January 17, 2014 07:46AM

Going nowhere fast, Arlington streetcars hit political and fiscal wall
http://watchdog.org/123491/arlington-virginia-streetcars/

ARLINGTON, Va. — Growing public opposition and a lack of funds have derailed plans for two streetcar lines in this densely populated Northern Virginia county.

Local officials aren’t giving up their multimillion-dollar dream, but a regional transportation expert calls their campaign “overkill.” Per mile, the compact county already benefits from more state transit money than any other.

Arlington’s light-rail proposals — a 4.7-mile stretch of Columbia Pike and a 4-mile run through Crystal City — carry construction costs of $310 million and $140 million respectively. The figures don’t include all capital outlays, and operating expenses aren’t built in. It’s unclear how many riders either line would carry.

Joseph Warren, a transportation economist who opposes both projects, said the Columbia Pike price tag has more than doubled since county officials and their consultants began pitching the idea in 2005.

What’s worse, critics say streetcars will increase road congestion as the trolleys would share existing traffic lanes.

A member of the county’s Transit Advisory Committee, Warren said taxpayers are being abused.

“The county staff made statements that the public supported (streetcars). In fact, the County Board has refused to do even a random survey,” Warren told Watchdog.org in an interview.

Warren went ballistic last year when he learned the board had voted to move forward on the Crystal City project without informing the advisory committee.

That runaround and lack of transparency angered others, too.

Arlington County Board member Chris Zimmerman, a vocal streetcar and “smart growth” advocate, is resigning amid the rising public outcry. A special election to fill his seat in March has drawn several streetcar skeptics. Among them is independent John Vihstad, who has backing from Republicans as well as Democrats, who have dominated the board for three decades.

Most streetcar opponents prefer expansion of bus service, which could be done at a fraction of the cost of light rail.

“The Columbia Pike corridor is pretty well served by buses now,” said Bob Chase, director of the Northern Virginia Transportation Alliance. He noted that nearby Alexandria has expanded its bus service with success.

Compared with upgrading its bus network — including use of designated “bus rapid transit” lanes — Arlington’s fixation on streetcars “seems like overkill,” Chase said.

Arlington Board Chairman Walter Tejada told WTOP News that “streetcars will entice people to leave their cars and use mass transit.” He added, “Streetcars have the large capacity we need.”

Warren counters that Arlington officials and their consultants rigged the numbers to downplay buses.

Last month, Watchdog reported that “The Tide,” a light-rail line in downtown Norfolk, has fallen short of ridership projections while triggering higher fares on the train, as well as the buses.

On the Left Coast, Portland, Ore.’s long-running light-rail system has stalled, too. Streetcars there serve just 1 percent of commuters — the same share as in 2001.

“It’s a game that’s gone on for many, many years, and it’s the taxpayers who pay,” Warren said.

The Federal Transit Administration, sensing trouble in Arlington, rejected the county’s request for $60 million to kick-start streetcar funding. State support, even with Virginia’s new $3.5 billion transportation package, is unlikely.

Chase calls Arlington’s streetcar proposal “more of an amenity than a necessity.”

“Don’t say it’s in the interest of the region,” he said, noting that streetcars would have little impact on commuting patterns or volumes. If anything, he predicted the rail lines “would create more congestion and more obstacles.”

That said, Chase added that he had no objection “if the community wants to come up with its own money.”

“The problem,” he concluded, “is that there are no priorities. The regional (transportation) authority has added 200 additional projects and didn’t eliminate any.

“Until we have the discipline to do some hard analysis, there’s a danger we’ll continue to put money into projects that fail to give the return on the investment we need. That hurts public confidence.”

BACK TO THE FUTURE: A rendition of what Columbia Pike would look like with streetcars.
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Buck halts at $1.1 million bus ‘Super Stop’

Posted by: More info ()

Date: January 17, 2014 07:49AM

Buck halts at $1.1 million bus ‘Super Stop’
http://watchdog.org/123890/government-waste-transit/

ARLINGTON, Va. — Arlington County dubs itself a “world-class” community. Such hubris has led to a $1.1 million bus stop.

The so-called “Super Stop” was to be the first of 24 along the Columbia Pike corridor, but a torrent of bad publicity halted the $24 million program as local officials retrenched.

“Total expenditures, including local funds, are currently being examined,” Arlington spokesman Eric Balliet told Watchdog.org on Tuesday. An independent auditor has been called in to review the program.

The first Super Stop, installed at Columbia Pike and Walter Reed last year, hasn’t fared well.

Last summer’s heat wave fried its electronic schedule board. Open at the back, the shelter allows wind, rain and snow to blow in behind the huddled masses.

By contrast, an older Metro bus stop across the street affords greater protection from the elements, and more seating. And it was constructed for $30,000.

“This is such an embarrassment. It’s unbelievably stupid,” said Joseph Warren, a transportation economist and member of Arlington’s Transportation Advisory Committee.

Warren said his panel was initially told the Super Stop, which features a heated sidewalk, would run $500,000. “We were never apprised of the increased price,” he said in an interview with Watchdog.

Before county officials started deflecting blame on their consultants for the cost overruns, Warren said “no one was asking any questions.”

“They had the money,” he said.

But with an estimated $10.8 million sunk into the Super Stop project — and just one shelter to show for it — future funding is problematic.

Taxpayer groups, including Arlingtonians for Sensible Transit, have roundly criticized the program. Further federal and state funding is questionable in the wake of the public mockery.

Arlington Board Chairman Walter Tejada has called the Super Stop an isolated incident.

Balliet said the county spent “approximately $1.5 million in federal funds for planning and preliminary engineering” of new bus stops. The figure includes “fabrication of three stations, and construction of the prototype,” he said.

“The new stations will accommodate growing transit service and ridership on Columbia Pike and also serve a future streetcar line,” Balliet stated.

But the county has yet to account for the whereabouts of the $10.8 million that Warren says has been expended so far.

J.T. Parmalee, who has used the million-dollar bus shelter, calls the Super Stop a poster child for government waste.

Parmalee, a conservative political consultant, said such pricey edifices only fuel a push by state Delegate Ben Cline, R-Richmond, to repeal the multibillion-dollar transportation tax increase passed by the General Assembly last year.

SUPER SOAKER? Arlington’s “Super Stop” bus stop on Columbia Pike cost $1.1 million. Plans for an additional 23 stops are on hold while county officials review the design and financials.
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