TC 07-27-09 Meeting AgendaCOUNTY of FREDERICK
Department of Planning and Development
540/665-5651
FAX: 540/665-6395
MEMORANDUM
TO: Frederick County Transportation Committee
FROM: John A. Bishop, AICP, Deputy Director - Transportations
RE: July 27, 2009 Transportation Committee Meeting
DATE: July 20, 2009
The Frederick County Transportation Committee will be meeting at 8:30 a.m. on Monday, July
27, 2009 in the first floor meeting room of the Frederick County Administration Building, 107
North Kent Street, Winchester, Virginia.
AGENDA
1. TIGER Grant Applications
2. Revenue Sharing Applications
3. Double Church Road Truck Restriction
4. Commercialization of Rest Areas
5. Article Review
6. Other
Please contact our department if you are unable to attend this meeting.
Attachments
- : UIT:1
107 North Dent Street, Suite 202 a Winchester, Virginia 22601-5000
Item 1: Tiger Grant Applications
Staff is working to prepare grant applications for the Department of Transportation TIGER
Grants. These are discretionary funds which will be awarded competitively on a nationwide
basis. Grants are considered for amounts from $20-300 Million. There are also waivers
available for smaller projects.
Staff is preparing applications for the following projects:
Route 37 from Exit 310 to Route 522
Phase I of the I-81 and Route 37 Interchange
Supplemental funding for the Russell 150 Road Improvements
Clearly, we have many transportation needs in Frederick County that could be considered;
however, given the highly competitive nature of these funds, it seems best to only promote our
most `shovel ready' projects at this time.
Staff remains open to directives on additional projects and is seeking a recommendation to the
Board of Supervisors to seek grant funds for these projects.
2
Item 2: Revenue Sharing Application
Staff and VDOT would like to discuss and seek direction from the Committee on a number of
revenue sharing options.
Staff recommends the following for the current application cycle:
Russell 150 - $700,000 ($1.4 M with match)
Route 11 North between Route 37 and I-81 - $250,000 ($500,000 with match)
Intersection of Route 11 South and Opequon Church - $50,000 ($100,000 with match)
Additionally, staff would recommend that the previous revenue sharing allocations to Inverle
Way be requested to be transferred to the Renaissance Drive revenue sharing project.
Should consensus be reached, it would be appropriate to make a recommendation to the Board.
3
Item 3: Double Church Road Truck Restriction
Staff has been working to gather the information requested at the previous meeting. All should
be available by the date of the meeting.
Traffic Counts:
Staff reviewed VDOT traffic counts from 2004-2008 for the roadway segment which connects to
Route 277. Counts range from 3,000 to 3,300 for that time period. Truck percentages for this
time period ranged from 1%-6%.
Accident Data: Pending
State Police Contact: Pending
County Police Contact: Spoke with Lt. Richardson who is the Traffic Safety Coordinator.
While he had not had numerous calls regarding trucks in that area, he did very clearly state that
is not a road that trucks should be using.
Inland Port Contact: Pending
Citizen Contacts: Since news coverage of this issue began, staff has been contacted by
approximately three residents. Two were in favor of truck restriction and one was against.
VDOT Discussions: Discussions that staff has had with VDOT continue to indicate that they
feel it would be best to move forward with the truck restriction process.
Staff's recommendation is that we move forward with the truck restriction process and consider
concurrently adding truck restriction to Reliance Road to offset undesired traffic shift to that
facility. Should the Committee agree, a recommendation should be made to the Board of
Supervisors that a resolution be passed requesting truck restriction on the roadway.
2
Item 4: Commercialization of Rest Areas
Attached please find news stories regarding efforts to commercialize Virginia's rest stops in
order to keep them open. As you know, our local rest stop has not been designated for closure.
Staff felt the Committee may want to consider recommending action to the Board in support of
Congressman Wolf's efforts.
5
Va. transportation secretary requesting law to commercialize rest areas Page 1 of 1
Published on HamptonRoads.com I PilotOnline.com (http.//hamptonroads.com)
a. tr=ansportation secretary requesting law to
commercialize rest areas
State Transportation Secretary Pierce Homer is asking Virginia's congressional delegation for a
change in federal law to commercialize the state's interstate rest areas.
The letter was sent this morning, said Gordon Hickey, spokesman for Gov. Timothy M. Kaine. The
request is being made a day after AAA Mid -Atlantic asked Kaine to rethink the closure of 19
interstate rest areas next week.
Federal law specifies that the rest areas must be run by the state, but some states have gotten
waivers or exemptions, Hickey said.
The request from the motorist assistance organization cited concerns about driver fatigue and
highway safety, the Associated Press reported Wednesday. The organization wants the state to find
other ways to trim the budget.
The decision to close the rest stops was made by the Commonwealth Transportation Board, which
is cutting $2.6 billion from its budget over the next six years, Hickey said.
"We have to deal with that and we simply can't keep spending $21 million a year to keep all the
rest areas open," Hickey said. "The Commonwealth Transportation Board decided to do it to save
money and the governor supports that decision."
The Virginia Department of Transportation also is laying off more than 1,000 employees because
of budget cuts, Hickey said.
"None of these steps are taken lightly, but they are necessary," Hickey said.
Source URL (retrieved on 07/16/2009 - 13:09): http://hamptonroads.com/2009/07/va-
transportation-secretary-requesting-law-commercialize-rest-areas
http://hamptonroads.com/print/516392 7/16/2009
Item 5: Other