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REGION HAS PLANS FOR FEDERAL CASH

January 31, 2009 12:36 am

BY KELLY HANNON

Stafford County could use $47 million to widen U.S. 17.

Spotsylvania County would like $27.5 million to expand State Route 3 from Chewning Lane to Gordon Road.

Caroline County is seeking $19.3 million to improve the Interstate 95 interchange at Ladysmith.

Fredericksburg needs $950,000 to rehabilitate the U.S. 1 bridge over Route 3.

These projects, and dozens more, have been put forward by governments in the Fredericksburg area as examples of long-desired transportation improvements that could be accomplished with the federal economic-stimulus money. The package worth $800 billion to $900 billion is chugging its way through Congress.

Consolidating all the needs and wishes into one place, specifically identified as a proposed federal economic-stimulus package, seems like a good idea.

Caroline County Administrator Percy Ashcraft said he kept hearing that "shovel-ready" projects that could be started within 90 days will be considered for funding, and the county wanted to have examples ready at hand.

"It's wasn't hard," Ashcraft said. The county looked at projects it hadn't been able to fund, and made a list.

The federal stimulus comes with a hitch: No one knows yet exactly much money will be available, at least until Congress passes a final version of the bill. Or how that money will be distributed.

Some states have created lists of road, infrastructure and public transit priorities as they wait.

The Virginia Department of Transportation has not created a list, citing the uncertainty.

"We just don't know what the rules are going to be," said Jeff Caldwell, VDOT chief of communications.

Virginia Secretary of Transportation Pierce Homer has said that, in general, priorities will include fixing structurally deficient bridges and paving roads.

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials in Washington has been tracking the stimulus bills closely. The House-passed version does have specifics on funding levels and the process, said AASHTO spokesman Tony Dorsey.

He cautioned that it could all change depending on the final bill.

But at least at the end of this week, the House version would give Virginia between $750 and $800 million to spend on transportation.

About 70 percent of that would go to VDOT, Dorsey said. The remaining 30 percent would go to a state's metropolitan planning organizations, which are regional transportation groups. The Fredericksburg Area Metropolitan Planning Organization includes the city and Spotsylvania and Stafford counties.

The federal money comes with conditions.

"States can't just spend it on anything," Dorsey said.

States and MPOs will have a time window, about 90 days, Dorsey said, to submit lists of projects to the federal government for approval.

The projects need to be "ready to go," Dorsey said.

AASHTO is using "ready to go" instead of "shovel-ready" because the latter phrase isn't quite accurate, he said.

AASHTO believes submitted projects need to be designed and to have completed the engineering and environmental process, Dorsey said. Those steps can take years, and the idea is to have projects that are ready to be bid for construction work.

"The idea is that they are ready to go, and once the money is obligated, then they can move forward to release the [construction] bids," Dorsey said.

"The bidding process takes place, the contractor starts the work," he said.

So, even though a project is ready to be built, it could take 90 days or longer for federal approval, then more time for the bidding process, then 45 days between the end of the bidding process and the beginning of actual construction, Dorsey said.

"So there's a big difference between shovel-ready and ready to go," Dorsey said.

The Fredericksburg Area Metropolitan Planning Organization has created a regional list, with many of the same transportation priorities as the localities.

FAMPO administrator Lloyd Robinson said the Fredericksburg-area MPO may receive $2 million to $3 million from the stimulus package. Larger MPOs, such as the one in the Washington area, will get a larger share.

"The word is 'disappointment.' It's just not that much money," Robinson said.

But officials are grateful for what they will receive in a difficult budget year.

Virginia has had to remove $2 billion worth of projects from the state transportation budget for 2009-14.

The Commonwealth Transportation Board is holding a public hearing Thursday in Richmond to discuss the budget and how the money will affect projects.

So $700 million to $800 million will help.

"We're enthusiastic about getting that funding," Caldwell said. "But it's not going to solve our long-term transportation funding shortfalls here in Virginia."

Kelly Hannon: 540/374-5436
Email: khannon@freelancestar.com