FABB is encouraging Fairfax County riders to offer their ideas on making better bicycling part of Virginia Department of Transportation projects in person and on line.
The in-person opportunity is on Wednesday, May 4, at the VDOT spring transportation and Commonwealth Transportation Board meeting. The meeting will be at the Northern Virginia District Office Potomac Conference Room, 4975 Alliance Drive, Fairfax. There will be an open house to review projects from 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm, followed by a listening session for public comments. Commonwealth Secretary of Transportation Shep Miller in tentatively scheduled to attend, so this is a great chance to impress on a senior transportation official the importance of and need for more bike/pedestrian infrastructure in our area.
Attendees will have an opportunity to learn and share feedback about the Draft Fiscal Year (FY) 2023-2028 Six-Year Improvement Program (SYIP), which allocates public funds to highway, road, bridge, rail, bicycle, pedestrian, public transportation, and transportation demand management projects.
The Draft FY 2023-2028 SYIP includes projects recommended for funding in the following programs:
- State of Good Repair, a program that provides funding for deteriorated pavements and structurally deficient bridges owned or maintained by the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) or localities.
- Innovation and Technology Transportation Fund, a program that funds initiatives pertaining to high-tech infrastructure improvements.
- Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside, provides funding for a variety of generally smaller-scale transportation projects such as pedestrian and bicycle facilities; construction of turnouts, overlooks, and viewing areas; community improvements such as historic preservation and vegetation management; environmental mitigation related to stormwater and habitat connectivity; recreational trails; safe routes to school projects; and vulnerable road user safety assessments.`
- Revenue Sharing, a program that is a dollar-for-dollar, cash match funding program available to counties, cities, or towns to construct, improve, or maintain primary, secondary, or urban roadways, with statutory limitations on the amount of state funds authorized per locality.
- Bridge Formula, a new program in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act for replacing rehabilitating, preserving, protecting, and constructing bridges on public roads.
Online, you can submit your comments here by May 23, 2022.
Please mark your calendar and join us in asking VDOT to devote more money to needed protected bicycling infrastructure and the inclusion of bike facilities in all appropriate major projects.
