The Washington Post reports that some political leaders in Northern Virginia are blaming a bad plan by the General Assembly in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision declaring the NVTA unconstitutional:
RICHMOND, Feb. 29 — Northern Virginia officials reacted to the state Supreme Court’s decision Friday by condemning lawmakers for approving what they said was a flawed solution to the region’s transportation problems.
(….)
“The ruling clearly throws back into the court of the General Assembly what the Supreme Court says is its responsibility: If you think these sources of revenue are worthy then you impose them. That’s certainly [the position] that many of us shared when [the bill] was working its way through the General Assembly,” said Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Gerald E. Connolly (D).
Connolly and other local officials urged the General Assembly to act immediately so Northern Virginia governments can move forward with dozens of much-needed projects already in the planning stages, from Battlefield Parkway in Prince William and Metrorail stations in Fairfax County to pedestrian walkways in Arlington.
“I think there’s a strong consensus across Northern Virginia, from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, inside and out, from governments to businesses, that we need to move forward on these projects,” said Chris Zimmerman, chairman of the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority and member of the Arlington Board. “We need to act now.”
Connolly added, “You cannot leave Northern Virginia hanging with no net transportation investment. The problems haven’t gone away. Only the jerry-rigged solution formulated by the General Assembly has gone away.”
Only this time, they’ll actually have to take responsibility for it.
