The once-doomed Dulles rail project arose from the ashes yesterday when federal officials announced they changed their minds about funding the passenger rail system between Tysons Corner and Washington Dulles International Airport.
The project can qualify for $900 million in federal funds if local transit managers meet budget and quality conditions, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) said.
In January, the U.S. Department of Transportation declined the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority’s application to fund the 23-mile Metrorail extension to Dulles Airport.
MWAA plans to oversee the $5 billion project, while Metro has agreed to operate the system.
The Transportation Department said that until now MWAA provided too few assurances that local management, finances and technical expertise were adequate to get the job done on time and within budget.
Yesterday, the FTA said MWAA “has substantially improved its proposal to extend Metrorail.”
The changes included cutting $210 million from the original cost estimate for the $2.6 billion first phase of the project. The rail system would be built in two phases.
“We’ve been able to tackle many issues that can make this project move forward,” said FTA Administrator James S. Simpson.
With the announcement yesterday, the FTA is releasing $158.7 million to MWAA to complete engineering work on the project before construction starts.
If MWAA, Virginia and Metro meet schedules and arrange financing required by the federal government, the project will qualify for the rest of the $900 million.
The first phase of the project is scheduled for completion by late 2012 or early 2013. It would run from Metro’s East Falls Church Station to Wiehle Avenue in Reston. The second phase would cover the rest of the route to Dulles airport.
Money-saving design changes include installing smaller canopies around transit stations, using less electricity to power trains and pouring concrete instead of using prefabricated concrete panels.
The FTA demanded assurances that chronic repair problems with the current Metrorail system would be resolved within nine months.
“What good is it to add 22 percent to a system if the system is not working?” Mr. Simpson asked.
The FTA also expressed concerns about MWAA’s lack of experience in building heavy rail systems and a lack of coordinated efforts with Metro, Mr. Simpson said. The agencies have cooperated since January to address those issues, which are conditions for full funding, Mr. Simpson said.
“I think those conditions will be met and, in fact, that was the core of the negotiations,” said Bill Lecos, president of the Fairfax County Chamber of Commerce.
The Greater Washington Board of Trade, which helped organize corporate support for the project after the FTA declined federal funding in January, hailed yesterday’s breakthrough as vital to the region’s economy.
“In the downturn of the economy, this is an economic stimulus package,” Board of Trade President and CEO Jim Dinegar said. “It’s $5 billion that will be spent in the back yard.”
The rail project is critical to relieve Northern Virginia’s traffic congestion, which is hurting the region’s economic growth, he said.
Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine, a Democrat, said getting the rail system funded and ready to be built has been “a very challenging project but a very important one.”
He plans to ask state lawmakers to approve funding for the rail system soon.
The federal government has agreed to provide 43 percent of the funds for the first phase while Virginia would pay 28 percent from toll-road revenue, according to the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation. Fairfax County, the home of Dulles Airport, would contribute about 28 percent of the money for the first phase with revenues from a special commercial tax district.
MWAA, along with Fairfax and Loudoun counties, would help fund the second phase.
State and local agencies agreed to keep $200 million in a capital reserve account to ensure work could continue if one of the revenue sources fails to deliver adequate funds.
“We felt as through we’ve been dealt with in a very fair way,” Mr. Kaine said about negotiations with the FTA.
• Barbara L. Salisbury contributed to this report.
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