Letter: Steep toll increases aren’t only option, Fairfax Times, August 24, 2012

To follow up on the letter John B. Townsend II, manager of Public and Government Affairs, AAA Mid-Atlantic, wrote in the Aug. 17-20 edition [“MWAA isn’t grasping impact of toll hikes”], I do not think most people understand how little the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority is contributing to the Rail to Dulles project.

Under the funding agreement, the Airports Authority only needs to contribute 4.1 percent of the project's cost from "non-DTR (toll road) funds," according to information on its website dated July 2007. So the entity and businesses and people, who will obtain so much benefit, are contributing the least.

Why can't the airlines, the businesses located at the airport — i.e. concessions, airlines, rental car companies, companies such a FedEx, which rent ground space — fund more of the cost . . . .

Click here for the rest of this thoughtful letter to the editor by Bruce Kirschenbaum of Reston.