VIRGINIA BRIEFING

METRO

Aboveground Route to Dulles Gets Federal Approval

The Federal Transit Administration approved yesterday Virginia's plan to bring Metrorail to Dulles International Airport, allowing the state to enter final negotiations with contractors to start construction late next year.

The $4 billion project will extend Metro 23 miles from West Falls Church to Dulles and Loudoun County, with the line scheduled to reach Wiehle Avenue in Reston by 2012 and the airport by 2015. Funding will come from the federal government, taxes paid by landowners along the line and Dulles Toll Road revenue.

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) decided in September to stick with plans to run the line mostly aboveground, citing cost and scheduling concerns as he rejected a proposal for a rail tunnel through Tysons Corner. Some Fairfax County businesses and residents continue to push for a tunnel, but the FTA action was another sign that the project's state and federal overseers intend to move forward with an elevated track.

-- Alec MacGillis

LOUDOUN COUNTY

Father Convicted of Raping Daughter Over 5-Year Period

A Loudoun County jury recommended yesterday a 362-year prison sentence for a 51-year-old Sterling man convicted of repeatedly raping his daughter.

The man, who is not being named to protect his daughter's identity, was charged in May with eight counts of rape and two counts of indecent liberties with a minor.

According to court testimony, the man molested his daughter in their Sterling home over a five-year period starting when she was 12. Prosecutors said he admitted, in a taped telephone conversation, to having molested his daughter.