As chairman of the Arlington County Board, I want to address some misperceptions about Arlington's lawsuit against the state and federal governments over the proposed High Occupancy Toll lanes for
Some have wrongly characterized Arlington's lawsuit as a move to block an effort
Nothing could be further from the truth. Our concern is that this project, as currently conceived, is likely to make congestion worse.
Arlington is acting to prevent the abandonment of this highly effective transit and high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) corridor to private profiteers and those who are wealthy enough to pay the proposed HOT lane tolls.
We seek a system designed to maximize the movement of people, not just cars with single drivers.
We are acting to protect the interests of the commonwealth, the region, commuters, and Arlingtonians.
The proposed project threatens to impede the efficient flow of transit and HOV commuter traffic in the I-95 and I-395 corridors.
It is expected to lengthen transit and HOV times, to increase congestion in current HOV lanes, to create safety and enforcement issues, and to increase traffic on local streets.
The project can be expected to worsen already poor air quality. Arlington and others in the region have expressed these concerns.
The categorical exclusion that the Federal Highway Administration granted this project in January 2009 was based on a deficient NEPA analysis by VDOT that seriously understated the project's many adverse impacts.
Once a categorical exclusion is issued, the only avenue for appeal and the only way to obtain a legally binding agreement to address the concerns is a lawsuit.
Taxpayer dollars built the Shirley Highway HOV facility to move more people
Arlington has long been committed to policies aimed at encouraging transit and taking cars off the road. We filed suit only after trying for years, together with others
Barbara Favola
Arlington
The writer is chairman,