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FCDOT to design protected bike facilities on part of Sunrise Valley Drive

By Angela Woolsey
Sunrise Valley Drive at Innovation Center Drive in Herndon (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

With a recently awarded grant, Fairfax County can begin designing protected bicycle facilities along Sunrise Valley Drive near the Innovation Center Metro station, the latest effort to make the roadway more accessible for pedestrians and cyclists.

At its Nov. 19 meeting, the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB) unanimously approved $84,000 for the Sunrise Valley Drive Protected Bicycle Infrastructure project as part of its fiscal year 2026-2027 Transit Within Reach program.

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Countywide

Plan for dedicated Metro funding wins support from key D.C. region leaders

By Scott McCaffrey
Boarding a Metro train at the Vienna Metro station (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

A plan to upgrade Metro’s service and long-term sustainability by establishing dedicated funding for the transit system won backing Monday afternoon (Nov. 17) from two key panels.

The boards of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) each formally endorsed the funding plan laid out in late October by the DMV Moves Task Force at a joint meeting.

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Countywide

N. Va. officials show initial support for proposed transit funding increases

By Scott McCaffrey
The Northern Virginia Transportation Commission board discusses transit funding recommendations at its Nov. 6, 2025 meeting (via NVTC/YouTube)

The Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC) on Thursday (Nov. 6) gave its support to two transit-funding initiatives currently working their way through a complex review process.

With no dissents, the commission signaled its backing of recommendations of the DMV Moves task force and the General Assembly’s Northern Virginia Growing Needs of Public Transit Joint Subcommittee, also known as the SJ28 Subcommittee after the state Senate resolution that established it.

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Countywide

Task force recommends increasing Metro funding, starting at $460M

By Scott McCaffrey
An Orange Line Metro train stops at Foggy Bottom en route to Vienna (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Virginia’s state and local governments would be required to come up with $136 million annually in additional funding for Metro rail and bus service starting in mid-2027, if recommendations from a key regional task force make it through a still-uncertain future.

The DMV Moves task force approved a nonbinding framework yesterday (Wednesday) for increased, dedicated capital spending in support of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA). It recommends $460 million in additional funding split between Virginia, Maryland and D.C., starting in fiscal year 2028 and rising after that at a rate of 3% per year.

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News

Key vote on I-495 Southside express lanes project postponed to 2026 or beyond

By Scott McCaffrey
Traffic heading west on I-495 in Alexandria near South Van Dorn Street (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

A key regional planning body voted today (Wednesday) to defer until at least 2026 any further consideration of the Virginia Department of Transportation’s plan to extend express lanes on the south side of the Capital Beltway (I-495) across the Woodrow Wilson Bridge and into Maryland.

“The project is simply not ready,” said Eric Olson, a member of the Prince George’s County Council who sits on the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments’ Transportation Planning Board (TPB).

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Countywide

D.C. region leaders troubled by ‘elevated’ food insecurity levels found in report

By Scott McCaffrey
Food-pantry shelves (photo via Jacob McGowin/Unsplash)

More than one in four Fairfax County households meets the definition of “food-insecure,” and that figure is likely to rise in coming months as the full impacts of federal worker and funding cuts materialize.

“More challenging times are ahead,” Hilary Salmon, senior director of marketing and communications for Capital Area Food Bank, predicted when briefing board members of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) yesterday (Wednesday).

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News

Critics press their concerns as vote on I-495 Southside Express toll lanes plan looms

By Scott McCaffrey
Proposed route of I-495 Southside Express Lanes project (via VDOT)

Despite a full-court press from the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), the future of its plan to extend express lanes on the south side of the Capital Beltway (I-495) remains up in the air as the deadline for a decision looms.

The project to add 11 miles of toll roads connecting Springfield with Prince George’s County over the Woodrow Wilson Bridge is a “critical” piece of transportation planning, a top VDOT official told members of the D.C. region’s Transportation Planning Board (TPB) on July 16.

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News

New data suggests increased flooding risks for D.C. region’s roads and transit systems

By Scott McCaffrey
Vehicles drive through accumulating rainwater on Maple Avenue in Vienna in January 2024 (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

The D.C. region’s roads and other transportation infrastructure is more at risk from future flooding than previously thought, a new analysis found.

The National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB) outlined its findings to leaders of member jurisdictions, including Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn and Braddock District Supervisor James Walkinshaw representing Fairfax County, at a meeting last Wednesday (June 18).

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Countywide

Even members of Congress have no clear idea of unemployment related to Trump cuts

By Scott McCaffrey
Sen. Mark Warner speaks at a 2024 Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce event in Tysons on March 11, 2024 (staff photo by James Jarvis)

How many Northern Virginia residents have lost their jobs as part of federal cutbacks and their ripple effects on the economy? Nobody seems to know for sure — including members of the U.S. Senate.

“We’re still trying to get the right numbers,” Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) told the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments’ (COG) board of directors at a meeting last Wednesday (June 11).

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Countywide

D.C. region launches dashboard to deliver more detailed, timely crime data

By Scott McCaffrey
The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments has launched a Regional Crime Dashboard (via COG)

A new initiative reporting crime data from across the D.C. region in “near-real time” has won praise from local leaders and will provide new tools for policymakers, public safety agencies and the public.

“It’s the only one we’re aware of in the nation,” said Eli Russ, a senior public safety planner for the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG), who serves as project manager for the effort.

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