Politics & Government

Burke Centre VRE at Hub of Transportation Plans

Three major growth projects outlined at Town Hall meeting

"There are a few different things going on in transportation planning and they all converge at Burke Centre VRE," said Braddock District Supervisor John Cook Monday night.  Cook facilitated a Town Hall meeting abut the future of transit service in Burke Centre.

"Our challenge is growth and how we accomplish it," he said.  Cook said this was the beginning of a dialogue to take place "over many months and many years."  "As we go into VRE's strategic review, I wanted to get your thoughts," he said.  VRE's board meets Friday in a planning retreat.

Cook outlined three plans, two centered at Burke Centre VRE.

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Growing the VRE System

Virginia Railway Express CEO Dale Zehner said the current system is at capacity, with average daily ridership of 19,500.  With projections of continued population increases in Fairfax and adjacent counties, Zehner said finances are needed to maintain and expand the system. 

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"We can't let the system degrade," he said.  "We must maintain the service levels we have today in cleanliness, customer care and mechanical maintenance, while at the same time working toward adding more cars to the trains and more trains to the system."

VRE's board will discuss funding options at their retreat.

Express Bus from Burke Centre VRE to Tysons

Beginning December 2012, Fairfax County will begin express bus service from the Burke Centre VRE parking lot to Tysons.  "We're not sure at this point if the express bus will itself circulate through Tysons, or if it will connect riders to a Tysons circulating bus system," said Paul Mounier, Senior Operations Planner for Fairfax County Department of Transportation. 

When the metro is completed in December 2013, the express bus will connect there, with full circulation through Tysons via a Tysons circulator system.

Supervisor Cook, also a member of VRE's operations board, said the Burke Centre VRE to Tysons express bus would use the Hot Lanes on 495 to avoid congestion.  In addition, the county's strategic plan for transportation includes the addition of Hot Lanes on Braddock Road, which would ultimately enable a 30-minute rush hour service between Burke Centre and Tysons, according to Cook.  He said the addition of an HOV or bus lane on Braddock Road is "way down the line."

Shuttle to Connect VRE and GMU

"We grew up as a commuter school, but we're no longer that," said Tom Calhoun, vice president of facilities at George Mason University.

Calhoun outlined a plan to use the VRE as a means of reducing the number of cars coming onto the campus and providing better public transportation access to the university.

"We want to run a shuttle between the Burke Centre VRE station and GMU's Fairfax campus," said Calhoun. 

"One of the things we have to do as a region is to pool our financial resources and our assets," he said.  "We can use George Mason as a public transportation hub," he said.

The school already provides shuttle bus service for students and faculty between its Fairfax and Prince William campuses.  In addtion, a partnership with Fairfax City provides Que bus service between the University and the Vienna metro. 

"We don't have good access with public transportation, especially with the south and the west," said Calhoun.  He said a shuttle to the Burke Centre VRE would broaden the public transportation options for accessing GMU.

"My transportation philosophy is that to resolve the challenges we need a mosaic of solutions," said Cook.  "We can't keep widening roads.  We must provide easy and more convenient access to other modes of transportation."

"We are in the beginning stages of a number of discussions," said Cook.  "What different options do we have for transportation, and how do we go about paying for it," he said.  He invited residents to contact him and Board Chairman Sharon Bulova with their recommendations.

 

 

 

 



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