Prince William business leaders urge Arlington to drop HOT lanes suit

Two Prince William County business leaders on Wednesday urged Arlington to drop its lawsuit against High Occupancy Toll lanes on Interstates 95 and 395.

In a letter addressed to Arlington County Board Chairman Jay Fisette, the Northern Virginia Transportation Coalition stated "the primary obstacle to advancing this innovative, multi-modal improvement is the Arlington County Board's lawsuit that precludes the project from securing any private or public sector funding."

The letter was signed in part by Prince William County Greater Manassas Chamber of Commerce President Deborah L. Jones and Prince William Regional Chamber of Commerce President Laurie C. Wieder.

The project to convert HOV lanes from Dumfries to the Pentagon to toll lanes was halted last summer when the two companies vying to build the lanes, Texas-based Fluor and Australia's Transurban, couldn't find enough investors for the project.

In late August, Arlington filed a lawsuit against the federal government claiming that in the waning days of the Bush administration, Virginia was allowed a categorical exemption from conducting all the necessary environmental impact studies for the project. They also claimed the lanes would create more traffic and subsequently more pollution in that county, and would have an adverse effect on Arlington residents who live along I-395.

But with a lack of federal and state money to fix the transportation problem, NVTC says the time for HOT lanes is now.

"No federal or state dollars to improve this facility are currently available or likely for the foresee-able future. Absent major improvements, the impact on the hundreds of thousands of travelers that depend upon this corridor daily as well as those who live in adjacent Arlington communities will be severe," the letter stated.

Arlington officials also claimed the toll lanes would mostly benefit rich, white residents from Stafford and Spotsylvania counties. The letter called those allegations absurd.

"Charges that the Obama administration and Governor Tim Kaine's Secretary of Transporta-tion acted with the 'implicit intent' to harm minority and vulnerable populations and benefit predominantly Caucasian Virginians are not credible and frankly an embarrassment to this region," the letter stated.

Arlington leaders last year said Prince William County officials who oppose the lanes would support them in their lawsuit, but that didn't happen.

"Despite our continued opposition to the HOT Lanes on I-95, the board decided in October of last year that we simply can't join a lawsuit as a plaintiff that makes allegations of racism against the citizens of Stafford and Spotsylvania counties or against state transportation officials," said Prince William Chairman Corey A. Stewart.

If approved, the HOV lanes that are converted to toll lanes would be extended south of Dumfries to Spot-sylvania County, offering drivers along the 56-mile corridor the option of paying a yet to be determined fee to escape gridlock. Those fees would change depending upon how many drivers are using the lanes -- the more drivers, the higher the cost.

While buses and vehicles with three or more occupant, will still be allowed to use the lanes for free, the project does promise to bring with it new Bus Rapid Transit service to the corridor. Unlike commuter buses that already serve Prince William County, these buses would stop at stations that would be built along the highway, resembling the Metro stations in the median of I-66.

As in the case of the HOT lanes already under construction on the Virginia portion of the Capital Beltway, Fluor and Transurban could lease the lanes from the state and set the toll prices for at least 80 years.

Virginia Del. Luke Torian, D-52nd, says HOT lanes are wrong for his district and he still holds out hope the state's governor will increase funding to improve traffic flow on I-95.

"I think some public-private partnerships are better than others, and a long-term relationship with the company that wants to build these lanes could lead to commuters not knowing exactly how much they are going to pay to get to work, or cause some commuters to pay a few dollars in the morning and as much as $5 in the afternoon, depending upon traffic," said Torian.

Staff writer Uriah A. Kiser can be reached at 703-530-3905.