At long last, it looks like we may be getting some serious leadership on the Metro to Dulles project. The only problem is, it's not from a Virginia elected official, but from Minnesota's U.S. Rep. James Oberstar (D), chairman of the House Transportation Committee.
...Oberstar was also effusive in his support for the Tysons tunnel, whose advocates have been viewed as an obstacle to Dulles rail ever since the FTA's threatened rejection of the project in January."We should have a tunnel!" said Oberstar, adding that, with political will, the FTA could be forced to consider both the aerial option and tunnel option for Dulles rail on a double track.
The transportation chairman's support could revive the tunnel advocacy group TysonsTunnel.org, which has been lacking in both funds and political allies in recent months.
"I wasn't expecting that. ... he's a leader where we have few leaders," said Scott Monett, president of TysonsTunnel.org.
"Few leaders" on this crucial, multi-billion-dollar infrastructure project is right. I mean, who springs to mind besides Chap Petersen, John Foust? Uh, uh, uh...
Fortunately, Jim Oberstar really "gets it." Check this out:
Most industrialized countries have made huge strides in mass transit in recent years. China has a train that travels at 220 miles per hour and can carry passengers from Beijing to Shanghai - approximately the same distance as from Boston to Richmond - in four hours, said Oberstar.He added that high-speed trains have allowed people in France to commute over 200 miles daily to and from Paris in a reasonable amount of time. Thirty percent of trips for any purpose in the Netherlands are made by bike.
"What is wrong with us? Are we a third world country?" said Oberstar.
Good questions. Here are a few answers.
1. What's wrong with us is that we've got a system of crony capitalism and "pay to play" politics, where a company like Bechtel can secure a no-bid sweetheart deal on a multi-billion-dollar public works project, then run roughshod over our elected officials. That's a disgrace. It's also reminiscent of the garbage that goes on in real Third World countries. That's got to stop, ASAP.
2. What's also wrong with us is that we have too many politicians who don't have a clue about smart growth, transit, infrastructure, energy, the environment...or anything else, really. That's in part why they don't understand the importance of building the Metro to Dulles project the right way, instead of Bechtel's way. Frankly, they're also far too concerned with taking credit for getting this project "done" than with doing it right. Lame, lame, lame.
3. Are we a third world country? Not quite yet, but we're going to get there pretty soon if we keep throwing hundreds of billions if not trillions of dollars down the Iraq rat hole. (it's called "imperial overreach," as discussed in Paul Kennedy's great book, The Rise and Fall of the Great Power) Instead, we should be investing that money here at home in our crumbling infrastructure (e.g., the Metro system) and in our people.
So, where are the leaders right here in Virginia who understand all this? Right now, it appears that the nearest one hails from Minnesota.
Both Moran and Oberstar were saying that we cannot build our way out of this by building roads. Both spoke not only of transit, but "Transit Oriented Development" (higher densities adjacent to transit), which makes it possible for people to live their lives without the use of a car.
Regarding the tunnel, there is a battle of wills taking place in DC. Oberstar says that we have an Executive Branch that is actively hostile towards all transit projects. Not just this project - virtually all over the country they are trying to throw wrenches into the works. Oberstar uses his position as committee chairman to try and force the administration to do certain things, and they work equally hard to try and find ways to evade the requirements. For example one trick the administration uses is that they keep changing the metrics that are used to determine cost-effectiveness.
Both Moran and Oberstar were saying that they favored the tunnel, but given the current administration it is tough to get anything through. Moran basically said that sometimes you don't get everything you want - he seemed resigned to accepting the overhead route. One concern that Oberstar raised was that the tunnel option would take an environmental impact statement, which would take at least a year. He seemed less concerned about the cost. More concerned about the possibility that considering a tunnel would allow opponents of the project to try and block the thing.
Gerry Connoly was supposed to be there, but he was a no-show. Moran seemed a little annoyed.