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Dear Committee of 100 Members,
Allow me to share this note of thanks to everyone who helped to create, as well as those who attended, last week’s Transportation Program: “Removing Roadblocks”. Your continued support of the efforts of Prince William Committee of 100 is appreciated. We owe a large debt of gratitude to our panelists for a comprehensive update on the planning and construction status of every ongoing project in the county from sidewalk/cross walk improvements to major interchanges and everything in between. Here are some notable takeaways plus topics discussed during the presentation and Q&A that followed:
- Funding and the Smart Scale process of how VDOT prioritizes project funding is based on congestion relief, not safety.
- Projects such as the I-95 and Route 123 interchange belong to VDOT, so your input can be provided to the appropriate authority.
- Constraints of widening Route 15 and Loudoun County’s position - preferring the Bi-county Parkway over widening Route 15 were discussed. Route 15 has been declared a historical highway.
- Regarding the specter of the Bi-county Parkway, we were told that VDOT and the NVTA do not typically fund projects that are not requested by the county. Since construction of the Bi-county Parkway is not on the Comprehensive Plan for PWC, it is highly unlikely that it will be constructed.
- Signalization timing and sequencing is controlled by VDOT in a facility on Balls Ford Road that is currently under construction.
- Suggestions were made to add Local and Express Lane trip time guidance information to the Express Lane toll signs so drivers can decide if taking the express lanes is worthwhile for their situation. This comment was particularly well-received. Our panelist agreed to present the suggestion to VDOT through the County.
- We learned that the Kline Property interfaces with both the county controlled PW Parkway and the City of Manassas controlled intersection of PW Parkway and Liberia Avenue. Discussion of the proposed interchange at this intersection was differed to the City of Manassas.
Unfortunately, we did not have time to incorporate panelist Charlie Grimes into the program after the county’s presentation. We are very sorry for this, and I apologized to Mr. Grimes personally after the program. The presentation ran long due to the broad number of projects covered and subsequent discussions as we proceeded. He was very understanding. I am intrigued by his statement on how his overall approach to transportation differs from the current planning staff. We will keep a Transportation 2.0 program on our radar for a future presentation.
Many people deserve applause for their hard work developing, organizing and producing the program; Mike Artson, Mike Beaty, Tony Guiffre, Bel O’Neill, Rebekah Perkins and many, many others. It was nice to have a nominee for BOCS, Deshundra Jefferson, attend and renew her membership. Another member presented us with a very generous donation to purchase a personalized stretch tablecloth with our logo on it to use at future programs. We have such incredible giving members, it is truly humbling to see how they continually step up to meet the needs of our organization to enable us to better serve our community.
Looking forward, we will host a Special Election Candidate Forum in mid-February. We are in need of one more co-chair for the Questions Committee and some Republican or Independent volunteers to provide balance.
Please let me or our Program Committee Chair, Rebekah Perkins, know if you’re interested and plan to attend the next Program Committee meeting. The League of Women Voters will cosponsor the Special Election Candidate Forum and has provided several members to assist with both the Program and Questions Committees, as they did with the overwhelmingly successful 10th Congressional Candidate Forum that was held in October. I am thankful to have their assistance and respect the many members that are active in both organizations.
We encourage you, our C100 community, to participate in the next program meeting as we narrow the date and venue to accommodate both candidates. It is a monumental effort to get all necessary schedules to align and we will discuss this further during the meeting. Together, we will also determine how to adjust our schedule of programs to accommodate this Special Election Candidate Forum. Members who attend will put forward a schedule recommendation for the Executive Committee to approve. This is your chance to provide input and make a difference!
Please find the an invitation to participate in the upcoming Program Meeting via Zoom is included. I look forward to seeing you on Zoom:“Stay Tuned!!”
Warmest regards,
Ray Mizener, PE
PWC100.org President
Topic: Program Meeting for Special Election and Program Schedule
Time: Jan 26, 2023 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
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