Electric Fairfax Connector Buses In Regional Authority's 6-Year Plan

FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA — Funding to support the purchase of eight battery electric buses that will be used on a Fairfax Connector express route connecting Tysons to Franconia-Springfield was approved Thursday as part of the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority's latest six-year program.

The corridor for the buses will extend from the Tysons Corner Metro on the north side of Fairfax County to the Franconia-Springfield Metro on the south side of the county. The buses will operate on Backlick Rd. and Gallows Rd., serving Springfield, Annandale, Merrifield and Tysons.

NVTA's Fiscal Years 2022-2027 Six Year Program funds regional multimodal transportation projects in Northern Virginia through regional revenues. The program provides nearly $625 million in funding to 20 projects.

This was the sixth time the authority has updated its six-year plan to prioritize and fund regional transportation projects. For the latest plan update, nine localities in Northern Virginia submitted 26 proposed projects totaling over $1.2 billion. Committees recommended 20 of these projects for the 2022-2027 six-year funding plan, and over 1,600 public comments were received from April 15 to May 22. The six-year program is updated every two years.

On Thursday, Phyllis Randall, chair of the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority and the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors, noted that the use of electric and hybrid vehicles is becoming more prevalent around the world.

"One of our things we look at at NVTA, when we're deciding how we're going to do funding programs or funding a project, is the environment," Randall said. "We know that our children's children's children really will enter vehicles that one, drive themselves, and two, may not use the same resource that we're using right now. And if we're going to be ready for that time, we have got to invest in transportation technology right now."

Fairfax County hopes to shorten the trip from Tysons to Franconia with the use of the electric buses on the express route. Gallows Rd. and Backlick Rd. are currently served by Fairfax Connector Routes 401 and 402, routes that provide more localized service and frequent stops than the proposed express route, according to Tysons Reporter.

While the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority's main goal in prioritizing projects is addressing traffic congestion, part of that strategy is through funding multimodal projects. The six-year plan includes funding for transit, bike and pedestrian, and transportation technology projects, while most roadway projects also have a pedestrian and bicyclist component.

Through its latest six-year plan and five previous ones, the authority is helping Northern Virginia localities advance 122 regional multimodal transportation projects, totaling nearly $3.12 billion, for congestion reduction throughout the region.

The 20 projects included in the six-year plan are:

• Arlington County: Ballston-MU Metrorail Station West Entrance: $80,000,000
• Fairfax County: Fairfax County Parkway Widening: Nomes Court to Route 123: $108,000,000
• Fairfax County: 8 New Battery Electric Buses - Fairfax Connector Buses for Tysons to Franconia Service: $10,000,000
• Fairfax County: Richmond Highway Widening From Mt. Vernon Memorial Highway/Jeff Todd Way to Sherwood Hall Lane: $60,207,038
• Fairfax County: Richmond Highway (Route 1) BRT: $80,000,000
• Fairfax County: Soapstone Drive Extension: Sunset Hills Road to Sunrise Valley Drive: $73,793,037
• Fairfax County: Seven Corners Ring Road Improvements: Arlington Boulevard (Route 50)Westbound Ramp to Castle Place/Sleepy Hollow Road: $4,200,000 (request partially funded)
• Loudoun County: Route 7 Corridor ITS Implementation Program: $2,500,000
• Loudoun County: Route 7 Improvements: Route 9 to Dulles Greenway: $20,000,000
• Loudoun County: Ryan Road Widening (Phase 2): Evergreen Mills Road to Beaverdam Drive: $16,000,000
• Loudoun County: Loudoun County Parkway Interchange at US 50: $35,250,000
• Prince William County: University Boulevard Extension: Devlin Road to Wellington Road: $53,000,000
• Prince William County: Old Bridge Road Widening: Colby Drive to Minnieville Road: $25,000,000
• Prince William County: Van Buren Road North Extension: Route 234 to Cardinal Drive: $8,000,000 (request partially funded)
• Prince William County: Route 1 at Route 123 Interchange: $3,000,000 (request partially funded)
• City of Alexandria: West End Transitway Phase 1b: South Van Dorn Street and Bridge Design: $5,000,000
• City of Alexandria: Alexandria Bike and Pedestrian Trails Construction and Reconstruction: Holmes Run Trail - Dora Kelly Fair-weather Crossing Bridge: $5,000,000
• City of Falls Church: North Washington Street Multimodal Improvements Project: Great Falls Street to Gresham Place: $22,500,000
• City of Manassas: Liberia Avenue 3rd Lane Eastbound: Route 28 to Euclid Avenue: $8,851,639
• Town of Herndon: Herndon Parkway Improvements at Worldgate Drive Extension: $4,581,000