Transit Successes and Challenges in Fairfax County

Transcription

1 Transit Successes and Challenges in Fairfax County Virginia Association of Counties 2012 Annual Conference November 12, 2012 Jeffery C. McKay Supervisor, Lee District Fairfax County Board of Supervisors

2 Fairfax County Characteristics Population: ~ 1,096,000 Households: ~ 394,000 Jobs: ~ 572,000 Land Area: 396 square miles VMT: 25.7 million miles Transit Trips: 49.3 million

3 Transit in Fairfax County Fairfax County is served by several interconnected transit systems. Fairfax Connector primarily provides service within the County. Feeder service to Metrorail Stations Cross-County Service Circulator Service Metrobus primarily provides service between jurisdictions MetroAccess is a shared-ride, door-to-door, paratransit service for people whose disability prevents them from using bus or rail. Transportation Association of Greater Springfield (TAGS) - shuttle service that circulates throughout Springfield s business district.

4 Transit in Fairfax County Metrorail provides rail service throughout Northern Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C. The Virginia Railway Express provides commuter rail service from Manassas and Fredericksburg through Fairfax County and into Washington, D.C. Services share a common fare structure, fare media, telephone information number and on-line trip planning.

5 Fairfax Connector Owned and operated by Fairfax County. Began Service in FY 1986 In FY 1986, average weekday ridership was 3,550. FY 2013 Operating and Capital Budget: $99.8 million In FY 2012: Average weekday ridership: 38,053 Average weekend ridership: 21, million total passenger trips 253 buses; 475 employees; service provided by contractor

6 Other Transit Service Metro including Metrobus, Metrorail, and MetroAccess Regional service provider (VA, DC, MD) Number of rail stations in Fairfax County: 5.5 June 2012 Average Weekday Ridership (system-wide): Bus: 434,191 Rail: 787,128 MetroAccess: 7,083 FY 2012 Operating and Capital Budget: $2.6 billion Fairfax County s Subsidy: $108.7 million Virginia Railway Express Service from Fredericksburg and Manassas to Washington Number of daily trains operated: 29 trains Number of rail stations in Fairfax County: 5 (18 stations in system) September 2012 Average Weekday Ridership (system-wide): Approx. 19,000 FY 2012 Operating and Capital Budget: $87.7 million Fairfax County s Subsidy: $4.9 million

7 Regional Transportation Agencies Northern Virginia Transportation Authority Prepares the unconstrained list of Northern Virginia regional transportation needs. TransAction 2040 estimates $950 million in annual unfunded transportation needs. Sets priorities for Northern Virginia's transportation projects and regional funding. Transportation Planning Board Serves as the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for the region, including localities within Northern Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia. Responsible for the region s Federally-required Six-Year Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) and the Constrained Long Range Plan Northern Virginia Transportation Commission Collects and manages regional gas tax dedicated to WMATA. Appoints members of WMATA s Board of Directors Coordinates transit services (Alexandria, Arlington, Fairfax City, Fairfax County, Falls Church and Loudoun) Co-owns and oversees the Virginia Railway Express (VRE)

8 Transportation Agencies In Northern Virginia, transportation spending priorities are developed in a collaborative manner and transit services are effectively and closely coordinated. FCDOT VRE NVTA VDOT Transportation in Fairfax County DRPT NVTC WMATA TPB While the interrelationships of these agencies are complex, each has well-defined and unique responsibilities. The agencies have evolved into complementary and effective organizations. Little overlap between agency responsibilities.

9 Richmond Highway (Route 1) Corridor Most heavily transit dependent area; very congested; economically disadvantaged populations; Ft. Belvoir located at end of corridor. Although transit is heavily used, service would be even better utilized if pedestrian and transit facilities were upgraded. Increased ridership will reduce roadway congestion and promote improved economic vitality in the corridor. The County developed a $55 million Richmond Highway Public Transportation Initiative to enhance transit in the corridor. Since 2004, the initiative has upgraded bus stops, improved pedestrian facilities at various intersections, and filled in missing sidewalks. Work on this effort continues, including the search for a location for a new transit center.

10 Richmond Highway (Route 1) Corridor Fairfax Connector serves more than 8,600 daily passengers in the corridor - approximately 25% of the typical Connector system-wide weekday boardings. Richmond Highway Express (REX), shortens the time it takes to travel from Fort Belvoir to Metrorail Stations at the north end f the corridor. REX stops only at 19 specifically designated bus stops. In contrast, the Connector has over 40 stops and its routes are designed to directly serve residential communities and facilities not reasonably accessible from the major roadways. In response to the relocation of 21,300 personnel to Fairfax County, because of the 2005 BRAC realignments the County has: Created New Transit Lines Eagle Express Realigned Routes and Timetables of Existing Lines

11 Economic Impacts of Transit Transit boosts property values WMATA has found that property becomes more valuable as it gets closer to Metrorail stations - adding 6.8% more value to residential, 9.4% to multi-family, and 8.9% to commercial office properties within a half-mile of a rail station. Businesses locate near transit because it expands access to their pool of employees and customers. The Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) has estimated that the region s past investments in transit have saved $726 million annually in reduced fuel use and delay in traffic. TTI ranks our region #1 in delays due to congestion, with our drivers wasting 74 hours and 37 gallons of fuel per year. Without regional transit, the region would need to add over 1,000 lane-miles of arterials and highways to maintain current travel speeds, assuming people kept choosing the same destinations. Many bridges would require 2 or 3 additional lanes in each direction. The U.S. Census found that of the 568,000 Fairfax residents that commuted to work, over 50,000 used transit and another 61,000 carpooled.

12 Dulles Rail New Transit Opportunities 23-mile extension of the existing Orange Line Total Project Cost = $5.6B to $6B Fairfax County Funding = over $900M Constructed in 2 Phases Phase 1 East Falls Church to Wiehle Avenue/Reston, (5 Stations, 1 Parking Garage) Opens December 2013 Phase 2 Wiehle Avenue/Reston to Dulles Airport and stations 2 stations in Loudoun County, (6 Stations, 5 Parking Garages) Opens 2017 Tysons circulator service - A frequent internal bus circulator system will provide a connection between the Metrorail stations in Tysons and activities beyond reasonable walking distance. Reconfiguration of existing Connector routes

13 New Transit Opportunities I-495 Express Lanes open November 17 Effective transit on Beltway for first time New Connector service from Burke Centre, Springfield and Lorton Initial route begins January 14 I-95 Express Lanes Under construction Expected to open in ,000 new park-and-ride spaces included $195 million for transit operating and capital costs deleted from project.

14 New Transit Opportunities Countywide Transit Network Study Establish most effective way to serve the County s needs to accommodate planned growth over the long term by improving public transit usage. Comprehensive Plan includes 9 Enhance Public Transit Corridors Estimate service demand Identify specific modes as part of a countywide transit network Identify station and support facilities Estimate costs Investigate revenue sources

15 Countywide Dialogue on Transportation This year, Fairfax County Board of Supervisors conducted a countywide dialogue on transportation, including: 9 public meetings Survey started 9/24/12 and concluded 10/18/12 1,725 survey responses Survey Questions Included: What impact does traffic congestion have on your daily commute? Moderate, Significant or Very Significant Impact 82% Little or No Impact 18% Would you be supportive of a countywide effort to find a source of revenue to address transportation needs? Yes: 85% No: 15%

16 Current DRPT Transit Assistance Currently, DRPT allocates $269 million in state transit operating and capital assistance funds annually. Total capital funding is divided by total capital requests to determine match ratio. Some capital (bus replacement funded at 80%). Total previous year operating costs are divided by total available operating funds to determine match ratio. State funding provides a fraction of total funding needed for transit service. For the Fairfax Connector, the state provided $32 million in 2012 or 24.9% of operating and capital expenses.

17 Proposal Related to SJ 297 General Assembly approved SJ 297 in It requires DRPT to study transit related issues, including: - performance, - prioritization of capital projects, - stability of state match ratios, and - allocation of transit subsidies. The SJ 297 Report is recommending a new approach to allocating 75% of state transit funding. Systems divided into peer groups. System performance compared between peers Operating funding allocations based on performance compared to peers.

18 Proposal Related to SJ 297 While the state funding is only a portion of the service s needs, it is still important. Having 75% of operating funds open to fluctuations based on annual variations will bring significant uncertainty into what individual systems can expect to receive from the state, Service decisions will be affected. The peer groups are problematic in three ways: - they pit transit providers against each other - they do not take into account the inherent differences between transit agencies. - significant change in one system will affect peers, even if peers have not made any changes at all.

19 Proposal Related to SJ 297 There are benefits to considering performance measures. However, the proposed approach drastically changes the current transit formula without increasing funding, thereby just reallocating current limited funding among transit agencies. Fairfax County is opposed to changes to the transit formula that will reduce the stability of statewide funds and reduce funding to the region, unless new revenues are added to the Mass Transit Fund. Efforts to change the formula for spending current transit funds take time from efforts to identify new transit funding.

20 Questions?