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Digging into VRE details

March 8, 2009 12:36 am

BY DAN TELVOCK

As the Spotsylvania County Board of Supervisors gets closer to a vote on Virginia Railway Express, some members are doing their own research to determine whether now is the time to join.

The seven-member county board is divided on whether to join the commuter rail service, but Supervisor Gary Skinner has been pushing the issue this year.

County supervisors have debated the merits of VRE since the 1980s. Fredericksburg and Stafford County support the system, and about 1,000 Spotsylvania riders board D.C.-bound trains on weekdays in those localities.

Skinner released a study paid for by the Fredericksburg Area Association of Realtors showing that motorists won't see gas prices rise if the county votes to join VRE.

One chief reason Spotsylvania supervisors have resisted supporting commuter rail is that the local government must enact a 2 percent gas tax to help pay for VRE.

FAAR analyzed two months of gas-price data from local stations collected by GasBuddy.com. The 47-page report shows that Spotsylvania residents do not pay less for gas than in neighboring counties that are members of VRE. In fact, the information shows that Spotsylvania gas stations already are charging the equivalent of the 2 percent gasoline tax.

"We are still paying the same gas prices, if not more, and we get nothing for it," Skinner said.

The study also shows that Fredericksburg and Stafford have accumulated about $25 million in excess funds from the gas tax over an eight-year period beginning in 2001.

For example, after paying its share of the VRE subsidy, Stafford spent millions in excess gas-tax revenue for the county's share of the construction of Centreport Parkway, an Interstate 95 interchange that serves Stafford Regional Airport.

But Spotsylvania Supervisor Jerry Logan, who is a swing vote on the VRE issue, said he is concerned that Spotsylvania may end up having to use general-fund tax dollars to subsidize VRE, and that it could take years before anyone can board a train in Spotsylvania.

"That is a major concern of mine. That's not a good deal for Spotsylvania County," said Logan, who recently met with VRE chief executive officer Dale Zehner for three hours.

GAS-TAX REVENUE DOWN

Logan said the FAAR study doesn't show that for the past two fiscal years the money Fredericksburg and Stafford have generated from the gasoline tax is declining. He said gas prices have dropped by half and consumption is declining, which affects how much the gas tax generates.

Paul Milde, a Stafford supervisor who also serves on the VRE Operations Board, refuted Logan's suggestion that Stafford is going to use general-fund dollars to fund VRE. He said the county has excess gas-tax funds available to make up any shortfall for now.

"The economy will improve, and along with that we will see increased revenue from the 2 percent fuel tax," he said.

Logan said Stafford's five-year projections from the Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission show that the gas tax will not generate enough revenue to pay for VRE in four of the next five years.

"These projections are coming from PRTC. These are not my conclusions. I am just reading their numbers. Anyone can go in with a calculator and add them up," he said.

STATION TOO FAR OFF?

Logan's other concern is that it could take years before a third rail track is built at Crossroads Business Park, where VRE now stores its trains in Spotsylvania. That area, near the U.S. 17 Bypass, has been eyed as the location for a Spotsylvania VRE station. The third track is necessary to bypass CSX trains for an 8-mile stretch from Crossroads to Fredericksburg.

Zehner said VRE is required to build the track because of an agreement with CSX. He said the bypass track will improve train on-time performance. CSX will not let passengers board at the Crossroads location until the third track is finished.

"That being the case, if that is where the new station has to go, if we sign the agreement tomorrow, when would we ever expect to see passenger service in Spotsylvania County?" Logan asked. "[VRE] did not know. With these things considered, I think you've got to think really hard about it."

Zehner said half of the third track is under construction. He hopes to find matching funds for the other half. He estimated the total remaining cost at $8 million.

"If it was matched, we could construct it in one year," Zehner said. "The reason the third track is one of the last projects is because there was no immediate need to get it because Spotsylvania [isn't] a member. Now they are interested, and they want it right away."

Skinner, who campaigned as a VRE supporter, said the excess money from the 2 percent gas tax is one of the chief reasons the county should become a member.

Zehner said the gas-tax revenue has declined for localities, but Spotsylvania would see a major financial benefit if it joins VRE by July 1. Estimates done last month show that the county would receive more than $1.5 million in revenue after it paid its VRE subsidy.

"What would [revenue] be like in five years? Heck, I don't know. I don't know what the gas tax will be and I don't even know what my budget will be," he said.

Spotsylvania supervisors are expected to vote before this summer on whether to join VRE.

Dan Telvock: 540/374-5438
Email: dtelvock@freelancestar.com