by-right development place burden on taxpayers

The recently released VDOT report, "Traffic Impact Analysis of Adding 28,000 Households in Southern Loudoun County, is seriously flawed and incomplete according to the Dulles South Transportation Alliance.

A review of the VDOT study conducted by Wells & Associates, LLC, a nationally recognized traffic engineering and transportation planning firm based in McLean, Virginia, concludes that the methodology used by VDOT is flawed and the study contains numerous inaccuracies in its conclusions.

Large portions of road improvements and expansions {see map for detail}, that are part of the DSTA's proffered road network were not included in the VDOT report. DSTA proposes to construct 210 lane-miles of regional roads, including improvements to Route 50, Relocated Route 659 and the Tri-County Parkway.

According to Wells and Associates, these improvements would more than satisfy local traffic impact concerns and would significantly address regional needs.

In addition to omitting major road segment improvements, the VDOT report fails to evaluate and compare the traffic impact on the Dulles South area under currently zoned by-right development. Understanding that in this scenario there is no funding for the improvement of any key roads included in the VDOT study, it is clear that responsibility for road improvements will fall on the general public through new taxes and bond issues.