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Officials see potholes in transportation plan

Local transportation leaders respond to Virginia General Assembly transportation package

Date published: 2/27/2007

By KELLY HANNON

The Virginia General Assembly's transportation package is getting a lukewarm reception among some Fredericksburg-area leaders.

Their chief complaint?

There's no pool of sustainable money to spend on projects year after year because the initiative taps a portion of projected state revenue surpluses.

"I certainly would have looked to have seen funding that was going to be there in the years ahead, for the future," said Mary Lee Carter, a Spotsylvania County resident and Fredericksburg District representative on the Commonwealth Transportation Board.

"I'm disappointed. I don't think it shows any real solution. It's a quick fix and what we really need is a dedicated source of revenue," said John J. "Butch" Davies III, the Culpeper District representative on the transportation board.

Matt Kelly, chairman of the Fredericksburg Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, and a Fredericksburg councilman, said it's not a long-term solution.

"After the governor gets to it, it'll be a compromise of a compromise of a compromise," Kelly said. "That doesn't make me feel warm and fuzzy."

Cord Sterling, a Stafford County resident and member of the Commonwealth Transportation Board, said he is withholding judgment until he has a chance to review the entire piece of legislation. He's requested more information from the General Assembly and the Virginia Department of Transportation.

The compromise plan was put forward by the Republican majority in the House of Delegates and some Senate Republicans. It narrowly passed the Senate before the assembly adjourned Saturday. Gov. Tim Kaine is expected to amend the plan

It allows Virginia to borrow $2.5 billion in bonds for transportation projects, and money to pay the debt off will come from recordation taxes, fees charged on real estate transactions that now go into the state's general fund.

There would be a $10 increase in vehicle registration fees, which falls short of the $15 to $20 increases, the governor suggested. The legislature also imposed harsher fines on bad drivers. There is no increase in the state gas tax.

Davies wanted the General Assembly to find a way to devote $500 million to $800 million a year to transportation.

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Date published: 2/27/2007