Reston Citizens Association
Reston 2020 Committee
April 19, 2012
Dulles Toll Road
Fact Sheet #4: Exorbitant Reston Toll Costs per
Mile
Put Dulles rail finances on the right track,
Not on the toll road
user’s back!
MWAA must install distance-based tolling on the Dulles Toll Road
to prevent the gross inequity in cost-per-mile for Reston and other
partial-length toll road users.
By virtue of the peculiar
current tolling arrangement on the Dulles Toll Road, Restonians end up paying
tolls disproportionate to their use of the tollway. As the graph below shows, Restonians and visitors to Reston will pay 15%
more per mile westbound than their full-length user counterparts ($1.49 vs. $1.30
per mile) while eastbound travelers will pay two-thirds again as much as
their full-length toll road using counterparts—Greenway to Beltway—($2.19 vs.
$1.30 per mile) in 2048 if toll forecasts are accurate.
This year, the cost for full-length use of the Dulles Toll Road is 16 cents/mile, which is less than the national average of 19 cents/mile for similar types of toll roads, according to 2011 FHWA data. Restonians headed west from the Reston Parkway get a slight break at $.13 per mile while those headed east pay a premium of $.26 per mile. These tolls would increase about two and one-half fold by 2048 with inflation at 2.5%. The added Metrorail debt will increase Restonians’ cost per mile nearly 8- to 11-fold over the forecast period, depending on the direction they drive. That means the cost per mile will increase more than four times the rate of inflation westbound and nearly six times the inflation rate eastbound.
Asking Reston users of the Dulles Toll
Road to absorb a disproportionate share of an already outrageous 75% cost toll
road users are to be forced to pay for completing rail to Dulles is a very bad
idea for all toll road users and local businesses, especially for those in
Reston. MWAA must switch to
distance-based tolling now.
Moreover, our leaders need to find
alternative funding sources for the bulk the $2.8 billion Phase 2 construction
cost. We believe toll road users should
absorb no more than 25% of the cost as planned in 2004. Until then, Phase 2 needs to be put on
hold. If you believe
these toll increases are excessive and the tolling process unfair—
- E-mail the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors at clerktothebos@fairfaxcounty.gov with your comments and concerns.
- Contact our local state legislators:
- Contact our state leaders:
- Contact our incoming and outgoing Congressional representatives using these forms—
- Contact our US Senators:
- Contact the White House using this form:
· If you would like
to help RCA’s Reston 2020 Committee share its concerns more broadly, contact us
at reston.2020@yahoo.com.
This post as does a few others does not display any content.. my problem or yours?
ReplyDeleteThanks for the heads up, Anon. I believe I have fixed the problem, although my solution was an unconventional one (copying vice embedding document).
ReplyDeletePlease let me know if there are any further problems.
The text downloads but not the graph. Regardless, the message is clear and on target. Thanks.
ReplyDelete