The Dulles Rail Death Knell

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Dulles Rail Project Hits Snag

Many who work in the area worry that congestion will only worsen if the Dulles rail project fails.

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More than $140 million in state and federal dollars have been spent on the project, and Kaine was facing the decision of terminating the construction contract to avoid incurring further costs on a project that may be dead. The contractor consortium, led by Bechtel, was willing to renegotiate because "they want the project to go forward, too," Kaine said.

Northern Virginia political and business leaders are steadfast in their belief that the rail line must happen -- with or without federal funding.

Clark Tyler, chairman of the Tysons Corner Land Use Task Force, said he wanted the 36-member panel to continue its charge. The task force has spent three years and more than $1 million in Fairfax County money studying how to transform Tysons.

Gerald E. Connolly (D), chairman of the Board of Supervisors, said, "We need multi-modal transportation, and we needed it yesterday."

Similarly, landowners in Tysons have spent millions of dollars on legal fees and architectural renderings to ready their property for development.

"We have spent five or six years preparing for what they told us was a reality," said Jonathan Cherner, co-owner of Cherner Automotive Group on Route 7 in Tysons Corner. "The whole region has been preparing for the eventuality of mass transit for years."

Cherner and other landowners are joining the fight to reverse the FTA's decision. They will run a full-page ad in The Washington Post on Tuesday urging President Bush to intervene.

Local government leaders have joined the fight. The Northern Virginia Regional Commission, a coalition of 14 local governments, voted overwhelmingly to urge the FTA to reconsider. And Connolly said he will introduce a similar resolution tomorrow to the Fairfax board.

In the meantime, figuring out how to make the rail project happen without the federal government is moving to the forefront.

One option would be to sell the Dulles Toll Road and use the proceeds to make up the federal funding gap. The highway is operated by the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, which is managing the rail project and was supposed to use toll revenue to pay for a large chunk of the project's second phase. The $2.6 billion first phase, for which Virginia is seeking the federal funding, would extend from Falls Church to Wiehle Avenue in Reston. The second phase would go to the airport and beyond into Loudoun County.

Kaine said it is premature to talk about privatizing the toll road, which opponents say is a bad idea because the state-owned asset is so valuable. But others say state leaders must not let Dulles rail die.

"Given the stakes, it's hard to believe it's gone for good," said Lecos, the Fairfax chamber president. "Because there are no alternatives."

Staff writer Robert Thomson contributed to this report.