The L’burg and D’ville Chambers want the C’ville MPO to be eliminated. And I say those Chambers should be eliminated. See? Any jerk can make demands of distant strangers. #
News and meta-news about Charlottesville, VA, since 2001.
Sideblog
Police announced this afternoon that their investigation into what was initially believed to be a fatal fire on Rugby Avenue is now a homicide investigation. #
The Virginia Supreme Court has denied George Huguely’s appeal. His second-degree murder conviction will stand, WRIC reports. #
In a carefully worded story, and not citing specific sources, WTVR reports that forensic evidence belonging to Jesse Matthew Jr., the main suspect in the disappearance of Hannah Graham, matches forensic evidence collected during the investigation of Morgan Harrington’s 2009 murder. #
In the wake of Hannah Graham’s disappearance, and the evidence that came from private security footage, city officials are revisiting the question of installing security cameras on the downtown mall. #
Both Charlottesville Registrar Sheri Iachetta and former Electoral Board member Stephanie Commander have turned themselves in to the police on
foursix and four felony counts of embezzlement, respectively. #Ten years ago, the National Institutes of Health budget doubled and schools like the University of Virginia built massive new research facilities. A decade later, those buildings remain largely underutilized. NPR visits UVA in this story on the effect of federal binge and spurge spending in the sciences. #
In 2012, Council approved a new student housing complex on West Main—now some council members are questioning whether what they were shown matches what was built. #
The Architectural Review Board has approved a bike-themed mural on West Market, below the McGuffey Art Center, although at least one member expressed concerns that it might look like the bicyclists were riding away from Charlottesville’s downtown. #
City Police Chief Tim Longo is meeting with city leaders to work on protocols regarding the use of military surplus police weapons in Charlottesville. #
A 100-year-old Colonnades resident received military honors for her service in the WWII Women’s Army Corps #
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My favorite part of their letter is where they charge Cville & Albemarle with “intentionally disregard[ing]…the will of the people, and any measure of common sense” by not building the $300 million Western Bypass — a road that was widely unpopular among local residents (i.e. “the people”) and was held up as a classic example of wasteful government spending by Taxpayers for…are you ready?…Common Sense.
Maybe it should be put up to a vote. Anybody can say that it is widely unpopular, but I think that a minority are vocally against it. Of course, if you set up some poll that says would you want a bypass if it destroys our entire freshwater source, you might find that a majority is against it.
The MPO’s assertion that only 1800 cars a day would use such a road is idiotic. Lastly, US 29 is a national highway and not just a local thruway; the federal government will eventually decide what is needed and any amount of whining by a bunch of stuffed shirts (that have nothing better to do than plan a pipe dream like the Ruckersville Parkway) will do little to change the end result. If our government begins a new drive to develop highway infrastructure, it wouldn’t surprise me if an alternate corridor following US 15 and Rt. 22 would be used to bypass the most overpriced real estate in central Virginia.
If gas prices stay high or rise and the state can get rolling on expanding the Amtrak service along the corridor, a lot of these discussions will fade.
The BS thing about this is that this letter isn’t from Danville or Lynchburg—it’s from some business groups there. If Danville or Lynchburg want our MPO impeached, they should have the balls to say so themselves. Either a) they lack the courage of their convictions or b) these letter writers speak only for themselves.
If these chambers are anything like most chambers, they’re politically conservative, very free-market. In which case they should put their money where their mouth is. If this road is such a good idea, why not get VDOT to give the permission to build a toll road? A road this totally awesome, so clearly brilliant should be an obvious financial winner. Go for it, Danville and Lynchburg businessmen! It’s a license to print money!
Right?
The MPO is nothing but an obstructionist organization. The bypass should have been built years ago when the cost was reasonable, same for the meadowcreek parkway. If the by pass is built now it will cost almost as much as the wall street/financial institution bail out.
If Norris and his crowd are so sure about how the people feel lets put it to a vote, but wait the wackos might not get the result they want.
I’ve thought for a long time that a western bypass makes no sense, but an Eastern one could be worthwhile.
Both the Meadowcreek Parkway and the Western Bypass faced a similar hurdle which was that they basically don’t serve a regional need very effectively. The proposed Western Bypass, as I understand it, basically wouldn’t have bypassed much of the new development on 29. It might have been worthwhile if it had been built long ago, and then better controls on growth had been put in place to prevent more clogging. Numerous analogies to heart disease and diet come to mind…
In a similar fashion, the Meadowcreek basically serves as a private bypass for developments that never should have been built in the first place. It sets a preceedent that when people build in areas with inadequate infrastructure, that taxpayers are going to come in and create a private freeway for them. The park Street issue has always had a much simplier solution… sever the road right in the middle, and put up a gate, only accessible to mass transit and emergency vehicles. That’s the ony way that area could ever be a safe residential area again.
I can understand Lynchburg’s frustration that we’ve turned what should have been a main artery of transportation, into a dumping ground for unattractive commercial and residential development. That said, I think neither the parkway, nor the Western Bypass would really provide an adequate solution. It may even make things worse, by causing a greater glut of development further up the corridor. Strong political will and cooperation among several counties are necessary to coming up with real viable solutions, which will have to be more comprehensive in nature.
In all seriousness, I would truly hope that should the federal government start addressing infrastructure needs, they would first go for infrastructure that is crumbling and hazardous. That seems far more worthy of tax dollars than addressing a situation that is fully functional and safe, yet inconvenient.
So would this hypothetical bypass be sort of like an extension of the current bypass, with exits for locations such as Rio, Forest Lakes, Hollymead? In other words, would I, and other locals, be able to get on on the bypass from Fontaine and take it to north of Rio Road and avoid the traffic lights in between?
If so, then I would think we’d have far more than 1,800 cars on it a day. It would be a great benefit to area residents, particularly those commuting to the city from Greene, as well as to people driving from DC to Lynchburg and points south.
If not, I don’t understand why we’re expected to pay for something that will allow travelers to bypass all our businesses.
“In all seriousness, I would truly hope that should the federal government start addressing infrastructure needs, they would first go for infrastructure that is crumbling and hazardous. That seems far more worthy of tax dollars than addressing a situation that is fully functional and safe, yet inconvenient.”
Come on, Big Al! Since when has the government really done something worthy of tax dollars? What can be expected of a federal government that funds a new interstate (I-73,74) from Detroit to Charleston, SC/Myrtle Beach for the sake of convenience? By the way, the US 29 corridor from Greensboro to D.C. is on the same priority level as I-73/74 on the Nat’l Highway Corridor list..
“Of course, if you set up some poll that says would you want a bypass if it destroys our entire freshwater source…” What on earth does this mean?
Meg, I think the terminus will be U.S.-250W.
The down southers claim they need the road for truckers. I wonder if they know that the feds are looking into funding efforts to combine trucking and rail using container cars. Why would they do that if they’re going to sabotage the effort by spending the money on truck routes?
Obviously, polls can get any answer you want them to, based on how your question is asked. The grammar was a bit screwed up. The only argument that carried any weight with the state was the proximity of the proposed road to Cville’s fresh water source. The northern terminus, as proposed, doesn’t make much sense considering the traffic and development already in that area.
Thanks for clarifying. If you look at the Albemarle’s and Greene’s growth areas, the road would have to go from U.S.-250W well past Stanardsville if they do not want trucks slowed down by commercial districts. I’m sure that by the time the feds have money enough for a bypass, there will be a massive reassessment of needs, which the feds will realize when they look at the new growth proposals along that corridor.
I see very few places between Cville and Gainesville that are NOT going to need stoplights in the next 10 years. Currently, the Warrenton to I-66 section has some of the worst traffic that US 29 has ever experienced, particularly that last 2 miles in Gainesville. That section can bring back some memories of times when 29 was only 4 lanes in Cville… with an accident blocking a lane.
Three new Rt 29 traffic lights are going up now. One in Greene and the other two in Albermarle. The real fault in all this is that Albermarle and much later Greene have been filling a national artery with local commercial growth instead of doing their own planning.
Most of the cars on 29 n are local. Let’s first limit new connections to 29n and stop putting new stop lights up, which slow things further. Building more roads has proven to be self-defeating, as it creates a development vacuum which leads to more sprawl and more traffic.
Instead, let’s have an express bus service between 29n and downtown using rt 250. How about a Meadowcreek Bikeway without the road? These are examples of improving traffic flow by making best use of the road space we have now, and by providing facilities attractive enough to turn full time drivers into part time bikers, thus taking cars off our roads. This approach has less financial, environmental and human costs, more benefits, and is ultimately more effective in combating congestion than trying to pave over our past poor land use decisions.
Meadowcreek parkway without the road? Um no, gas taxes, paid by cars, pay for roads. Bikes, which I like, don’t pay for the roads they travel on
I like the idea of a bus route from Downtown to 29N, using either the 250 Bypass or Rio Road. The present route 7 is ridiculous the way it is set up! Going to 29N by going up West Main Street and getting on 29 smackdab in the middle of the University. I have tested it and it takes at least 45 minutes, far longer than a drive to Fashion Square via Rio Road from Downtown, assuming normal traffic. Who wants their time wasted like that, something CTS is good at.
They say ridership on CTS has gone up. I have a theory. Its not because people who own cars are leaving them at home, its because we have more people living here without cars. Immigrants and low-income people in general.People who work low pay service jobs, not professionals.
Its demographics and economics that have increased bus ridership, not “green” rhetoric. That being said, it is commendable that the community has this service for those who need it, inefficient as it may be sometimes.
Two weeks ago, I rode Route 7 from the downtown transit to Barracks road. It took 9 nimutes.