10 April 1998 Mr. F. C. Altizer, Jr., Administrator Salem District Office Virginia Department of Transportation Post Office Box 3071 Salem, Virginia 24153 Re: Commonwealth Transportation Board Improvement Program Dear Mr. Altizer: 1. Here are my comments to the Commonwealth Transportation Board. Please include my comments regarding the transportation system in the official transcript of the hearing of March 31. However, please exclude my telephone number from any publication freely distributed to the general public. These comments will be posted at . I'd appreciate answers to my questions. 2. Once again a transportation hearing has been held in a city with no active railroad station, no bus station, and no airport. While I would not want to draw unwarranted conclusions about the Board's priorities, I would urge members to examine the way its own concerns may be colored by the skewed transportation market in this part of the world. The Secretariat of Transportation has an immense responsibility to direct our use of resources on a daily basis. If these resources are squandered, we will all suffer the consequences to our prosperity, our health, our potential, and our happiness. Consider that the world will be a very different place in two or three generations, and that the decisions made now will have great bearing on whether our communities function efficiently and easily in the future, or whether we may find ourselves hampered by the cost of removing the remains of an obsolete transportation superstructure while trying to create one that is useful. 3. Where are the maps? It is difficult to understand the importance of many of these individual projects without seeing how they fit into regional plans. 4. Route numbers listed on allocation charts are ambiguous about whether route numbers refer to US or Virginia highways. How can one determine the amount of money assigned to each system? 5. According to VDOT, the possibility of routing Interstate 73 over Bent Mountain was scrapped because local residents called in state legislators. I agree with that decision. Moreover, I ask that all Virginians receive the same consideration, regardless of wealth, education, or political access. I'd like to see the Secretariat of Transportation adopt a policy requiring that every member of the public be treated the way members of the General Assembly are treated. What is the current policy? 6. Instead of the current allocation process, the bulk of capital planning and budgeting should take place at regional planning agencies, where the need for transportation improvements can be properly balanced against and coordinated with improvement of educational, safety, and recreational facilities. Most needs are local and should be treated as such. The long-haul truckers driving through the commonwealth want a fast, easy trip from origin to destination; a few miles one way or another will not matter to them. However, even a block or two can make an enormous difference to a neighborhood, to fire departments, and to urban commuters. Making any but the broadest decisions at the state level is a problematic process. Therefore, the Secretariat of Transportation, its departments, and the Commonwealth Transportation Board should allocate funds broadly, according to need, but leave specific decisions to the regional planning agencies. 7. The annual books of charts for the capital program mix US and Virginia highway numbers. Determining the status of a highway becomes unnecessarily confusing. It is difficult to compare investment in the US highway system, covering 48 states, and the Virginia highway system. Please chart the two systems separately instead of mixing apples with oranges. 8. Commercial development of land inconvenient to pedestrians necessitates road widening to increase motor traffic capacity. Taxpayers should not assume the cost of private retail development, especially that of an out-of-town business selling foreign-made products. Manufacturing brings in money from distant markets. Service industries recirculate money locally. National retailers soak up money and take it away; at least they should pay their own way. New retail operations should pay for the roads that fill their parking lots and cash registers. 9. Wherever roads are to be upgraded, transportation along and across the path of the highway should not be respected? Paths of travel should not be any longer or less convenient than they were. No difficulties or hazards should be created that might threaten bicycles or pedestrians, including hikers. 10. The Secretariat of Transportation maintains a limited local presence: the district and residency offices of the Department of Transportation, and the service offices of the Department of Motor Vehicles. Unfortunately, the other branches of the Secretariat tend to be removed from the local community. At least the district offices should provide representation of expertise on all forms of transportation, not just highways. 11. Coordinating this process is easier for Northern Virginia, with its conterminous planning and construction district. Elsewhere, discrepancies between construction districts and planning districts are disturbing, particularly the isolation of Alleghany, Bedford, Carroll, Halifax, and Nelson counties. As Gloucester and Mathews counties join the Hampton Roads market, will they be placed in the Suffolk district? Will planning areas be made more consistent? 12. Charts. Please furnish the public with clear, tidy charts of projects. 13. The annual books of charts for the capital program mix US and Virginia highway numbers. Determining the status of a highway becomes unnecessarily confusing. It is difficult to compare investment in the US highway system, covering 48 states, and the Virginia highway system. Please chart the two systems on separate charts. How much does the Department of Transportation spend on each of the two systems? 14. In past years, ambiguities between city and county names have created uncertainties about which was getting allocations. It appeared that the cities of Bedford, Franklin, Richmond, and Roanoke might obtain some of Bedford, Franklin, Richmond, and Roanoke Counties' allocations. Repeatedly, the county charts have included an allocation for "Suffolk"; its placement ahead of Northampton on an alphabetical list implies that funding for Nansemond County has continued for the city of Suffolk. It is unclear whether funds for "Suffolk County" may be spent anywhere in the city of Suffolk; in the portion of that city that recently joined from Nansemond County; in Suffolk County, Massachusetts; or in Suffolk County, New York. 15. Call lists. In past years, Allocation Hearing Call Lists have established a questionable hierarchy of jurisdictions. This should be changed. 16. I believe that Alexandria should be placed under Arlington (formerly Alexandria) County, in observance of their common history, instead of Fairfax County. 17. I believe that the cities of Hampton Roads should be placed under the counties of their origin, considering the 1900 decision in Supervisors v. Cox (98 VA 270) that county boundaries are not altered by the incorporation of cities. Thus, Chesapeake, Norfolk, and Portsmouth should be under Norfolk County; Hampton under Elizabeth City County; Newport News under Warwick County; Suffolk under Nansemond County; and Virginia Beach under Princess Anne County. On past call lists, they all appear under James City County, which is neither their mother county nor even the closest county to them. (In contrast, the VDOT's 1994-95 map shows a boundary line separating Newport News from James City County but not from York County.) 18. The placement of Petersburg under Dinwiddie County rather than Prince George County and the placement of Galax under Carroll County rather than Grayson County mystify me. However, there may be a good reason. Am I overlooking something? 19. Map ambiguity. Has the commonwealth ever considered a policy that would prevent nearby intersections from bearing the same names? According to some local maps, Cove Road (Route 116/780) and Greenmill Road (Route 623/628/629) have as many as three intersections. It is difficult to avoid confusion in describing land surveys and route directions in such locations. How common is this problem? What can be done to reduce the incidence? Why do situations like this exist? They are easy to avoid, but rarely corrected. 20. Land acquisition. Acquisition of land for road work costs up to $18 million per mile, before ground is broken. Is there any limit to the price the commonwealth will pay for land? Does the earmarking of a specific sum of money for a project ever encourage landowners to raise asking prices? Why don't we acquire more of this land in advance, as is the practice in some other jurisdictions? Developers who build along the road and congest it with traffic should be donating land to help accommodate that traffic. We can require buildings to be set far back from roads in anticipation of widening. Where road work is anticipated in the future, we can buy cheap vacant land before it is developed. Why don't we do more of this? What can be done to keep land available for road construction, so we need not purchase it at the last minute at exorbitant prices? Can we develop a reasonable policy on this? Who, if anyone, is blocking reform of this practice? 21. Paying for road widening. Commercial development of land inconvenient to pedestrians necessitates road widening to increase motor traffic capacity. Taxpayers should not assume the cost of private retail development, especially that of an out-of-town business selling foreign-made products. Manufacturing brings in money from distant markets. Service industries recirculate money locally. National retailers soak up money and take it away; at least they should pay their own way. New retail operations should pay for the roads that fill their parking lots and cash registers. Salem District Interstate 73 (p. 9) (FO)0073-962-F01,PE100 (FO)0073-962- FO1,PE101 22. The state should consider and compare all routing options for the Interstate 73 corridor now known or presented by the public, including the following: 23. Mount Airy, Fancy Gap, Fort Chiswell, Glenvar, Poages Mill, Clearbrook, Roanoke, Staunton, Elkins, Morgantown, Pittsburgh; 24. Winston-Salem, Danville, Lynchburg, Bedford, Chamblissburg, Vinton, Roanoke, Clearbrook, Poages Mill, Glenvar, Wytheville, Bluefield; 25. Winston-Salem, Danville, South Boston, Lynchburg, Bedford, Chamblissburg, Vinton, Roanoke, Clearbrook, Poages Mill, Glenvar, Wytheville, Bluefield; 26. Winston-Salem, Danville, Lynchburg, Bedford, Chamblissburg, Vinton, Roanoke, Clearbrook, Poages Mill, Salem, Staunton, Elkins, Morgantown, Pittsburgh; 27. Winston-Salem, Danville, South Boston, Lynchburg, Bedford, Chamblissburg, Vinton, Roanoke, Clearbrook, Poages Mill, Salem, Staunton, Elkins, Morgantown, Pittsburgh; 28. Mount Airy, Fancy Gap, Fort Chiswell, Christiansburg, Adney Gap, Boones Mill, Clearbrook, Poages Mill, Salem, Staunton, Elkins, Morgantown, Pittsburgh; 29. Mount Airy, Fancy Gap, Fort Chiswell, Christiansburg, Adney Gap, Boones Mill, Clearbrook, Poages Mill, Salem, Vinton, Chamblissburg, Bedford, Lynchburg, Glasgow, Staunton, Elkins, Morgantown, Pittsburgh; 30. Rocky Mount, Burnt Chimney, Chamlissburg, Stewartsville, Vinton, Kimball, Clear Brook, Cave Spring, Salem; 31. Capacity and safety improvements to US 220; 32. Capacity and safety improvements to railroad tracks for passengers and freight; 33. Capacity and safety improvements to US 220 and railroad tracks; 34. No construction. 35. Construction should not interfere in any way with restoration of the railroad between Rocky Mount and Gretna. 36. Whenever there is a transportation hearing, business people from Martinsville ask for an interstate highway as if they need and deserve one. Martinsville is a city of 16,000 inhabitants located 51 miles from the nearest existing Interstate highway. Yet there are many larger, more remote cities. Brownsville, Texas has 99,000 inhabitants and is 148 miles from an Interstate highway. McAllen, Texas has 84,000 inhabitants and is 143 miles from an Interstate highway. San Angelo, Texas has 84,000 inhabitants and is 64 miles from an Interstate highway. Dubuque, Iowa has 57,000 inhabitants and is 71 miles from an Interstate highway. Victoria, Texas has 55,000 inhabitants and is 75 miles from an Interstate highway. 37. Those who propose routing I-73 through Martinsville and Rocky Mount foster an expensive hoax. Virginia's senior Senator must view this situation through the foggy lens used to photograph his ex-wife for her perfume commercials. It should be abundantly clear to anyone who can draw a straight line that no one traveling from Charleston, South Carolina to Michigan will go 50 miles out of the way. A direct route is available through Fort Chiswell. 38. If I-73 is built along this route, the designation will later have to be abandoned, as has happened elsewhere. For example, the Clearview Expressway was redesignated from I- 78 to I-295 after it was realized that trucks headed from Providence to Harrisburg were not crossing the East River on the Throggs Neck Bridge. 39. I have seen proposals that I-73 run to the east of Rocky Mount. There is already a good bypass road in that location. It would be more helpful to route the next highway to the west, so that traffic to Ferrum can avoid the perpendicular turns in the Rocky Mount business district. 40. Actually, there are better uses for one billion dollars. That works out to $14 million per mile, $2700 per foot, $225 per inch. Let's not build the road, or at least not the whole thing. Interstate System 41. Valley View Interchange (p. 12) (FO)0581-128- 108,PE101,C501. Commercial development of land inconvenient to pedestrians necessitates road widening to increase motor traffic capacity. Taxpayers should not assume the cost of private retail development, especially that of an out-of-town business selling foreign-made products. Wal-Mart puts small retailers out of business, then refuses to employ the displaced workers if they happen to be friends. Different types of economic activity affect the economy in specific ways. Manufacturing brings in money from distant markets. Service industries recirculate money locally. Retailers like Wal-Mart soak up money and take it away; at least they should pay their own way. If Wal-Mart needs an interchange on the Roy L. Webber Expressway (I-681) in Roanoke, Wal-Mart should build it. How can local citizens make sure no tax money is spent on the Wal-Mart interchange? 42. Valley View Road. Plans for the extension of Valley View Road show the existing (Sears side) access to the Wal- Mart parking lot being closed. This makes no sense. It would clog a new bypass road with internal shopping center traffic. Primary System 43. Smart Highway (p. 20: SMRT-060- 101,PE103;FO1,PE102;SMRT-060-101,PE105,RW205). I urge the board to find a different location for the Smart Road. If it goes through the Ellet Valley, I fear we will be smarting far into the future. Acres of pavement of roads and parking lots in a river valley are certain to aggravate flooding in Roanoke. Blacksburg needs a good road to Dublin and Radford. Why not make that road smart? The route from Blacksburg to Roanoke can be adequately served by the half-built Christiansburg bypass. Running a shortcut further north will not significantly reduce travel time. 44. Guard rail (p. 21). Virgil H. Goode Highway (US 220) has several danger spots, particularly near the county lines, where trucks have run off the road. Some of these can be remedied with addition of strong guard rails, adding shoulders, and other improvements. Specifically, on May 17, 1996, a tanker overturned on a curve in Fork Mountain, spilling paint thinner into a creek. The previous October, a tanker truck carrying toluene exploded near the same location. On Photographs of the 1996 crash published in the Roanoke Times show that there was no guard rail blocking the median at the spot where the truck left the road. The barrier along the curve should be extended and strengthened, if necessary, to insure that any wayward trucks will be kept upright on the pavement. Please do not delay in making small but necessary safety improvements where they are needed on the Virgil H. Goode Highway (US 220). 45. Visibility. Billboards block the view of drivers waiting to turn from Boones Mill Road (Route 684) onto the Virgil H. Goode Highway (US 220) in Boones Mill. Two lanes of cars speeding northbound down the hill cannot be seen until they are uncomfortably close to the intersection. Can these billboards be removed or relocated? Will they be? 46. Windy Gap. At Windy Gap, Jubal Anderson Early Highway (VA 116) has a number of twisting hairpin turns, making maneuvering quite difficult, especially on ice. What can the commonwealth do to make this road safer? When will it happen? 47. Corridor capacity. East Orange Avenue/Challenger Avenue/Lynchburg-Salem Turnpike is congested at rush hour. Administrators of VDOT have indicated that it could be decades before any significant work is done to alleviate this problem. It would be foolish to allow this problem to get any worse. Until the Roanoke-Lynchburg corridor is improved to meet the current capacity, there should be a moratorium on any development that might increase congestion. What that would involve is blocking all building permits within four miles of the road in Roanoke city, Roanoke County, Botetourt County, and Bedford County, with the exception of lots that can be served by the railroad. Developers could make themselves eligible for permits by simply improving the road to carry the traffic they would add. 48. Hardy Road. Please take over Hardy Road as a primary highway. People have died there. Residents along the road have asked for improvement. Not much is being done. Not much will be done as long as the priority for safety improvements is left to the county level rather than the regional level. 49. Signs. At the entrance to Franklin Road (US 220) southbound from Electric Road (VA 419), there is a sign prohibiting bicycles. A bicyclist does not come upon the sign until already on the ramp. To comply with the sign, the bicyclist would have to stop and wait for the sign to be removed. Going ahead would be a violation. Turning around and heading the wrong way back to Electric Road would be a violation. It appears that a cyclist would have to stay there until the sign is removed. 50. Short distance transportation can be unnecessarily difficult. Someone may wish to drive from the Best Western Inn at Valley View to the nearby Virginia Employment Commission. These driveways are adjacent on the same road. However, upon exiting the Inn, one comes upon a one-way arrow pointing to the right, precluding the left turn toward the VEC. Thus, the trip is made much more complex than it has to be. Can something be done about this problem sign? 51. Airport safety. It is usually advisable to reduce the human cost of an airplane crash by keeping high-density uses far away from the path airplanes follow when approaching or leaving an airport. Generally, this involves zoning the land beyond the end of the runway for agriculture or warehouses rather than housing or commerce. The land southeast of Roanoke airport, across Hershberger Road, should be zoned for low-density industry, such as warehouses. The current use, Valley View Mall, should be phased out as soon as practical. 52. Roanoke River Parkway (RRPO-962- V01,PE101,RW201,C501,RW202,C502). What is being done to provide access to Explore Park from Franklin County and Smith Mountain Lake? 53. Unmarked ramp. The two lanes of the exit ramp at exit 5 of the Roy L. Webber Expressway split apart. The left fork is correctly marked with a sign mentioning Williamson Road and Downtown. The mystery road to the right is unmarked. I fear that a confused driver could cause a collision. 54. Blue Ridge Crossing. We need a nonstop highway traveling from Roanoke through Vinton and Stewartsville to Bedford. When will we be able to travel such a road? 55. Direct route. I can find no direct route between Raleigh Court and Tanglewood. Most of the roads in between seem to run in oblique directions. Has this always been true? Can travel between these neighborhoods be more readily served? 56. Bypass Connector (6460-060- F19,PE101,RW201,C501,B610,;6460-154-F04,PE101). The connection of the Christiansburg Bypass to the Blacksburg Bypass is overdue. This is a case where the government has gone to the trouble of creating a good road and allowing it to be destroyed by commercial driveways and traffic lights. According to the "Dead End" publication , the cost of the Blacksburg-Christiansburg bypass connection can be substantially reduced if it is built west of Route 460 rather than east of it. I have not been able to establish the accuracy of this claim. Please don't spend more on this project than is needed. We have many other locations where work is needed. 57. Moneta. The road relocation project in Moneta (0122-009-V06,PE101,RW201,C501,B605) is supposed to improve emergency response time. Although the fire department owns land stretching from the firehouse clear across the path of the proposed bypass, they are not provided direct access to the road. The fire fighters need a road along the north side of the railroad tracks to travel to and from the firehouse. Instead, the plans show a recharge basin blocking the way. The current design of the bypass defeats its purpose. It makes no sense to spend good money to build it this way. The project should include access from the firehouse to the bypass. In addition, the proposal to close the existing crossing will destroy the business district without improving safety. The crossing is currently considered a hazard because of the high volume of traffic anxious to cross the tracks. When the bypass is open, through traffic will use it. If people don't want to wait to cross the tracks safely, they won't bother going through the business district. Can the grade crossing remain? 58. Cave Spring Bypass. We need a good nonstop road between Franklin County and the Salem-Glenvar area. When will we be able to travel that road? Can we at least get turning lanes through Clearbrook? 59. Pell Avenue. Wal-Mart should pay its share of the widening of Pell Avenue (Route 40) east of Rocky Mount. Considering that a wide road will help fill and empty their parking lot, what is Wal-Mart's contribution to this project? 60. Highway to Bedford County. A number of existing transportation problems could be addressed by construction of a grade-separated highway originating near exit 5 of the Roy L. Webber Expressway (I-581, US 220) south of the Roanoke Civic Center, running east to serve the industrial area near the railroad shops, passing around Vinton, running roughly east-by-southeast along the low, rolling land that forms a break in the Blue Ridge, and passing south of Stewartsville. Near Goodview, it would branch into three roads: a high-speed (no traffic lights) highway carrying trucks to Bedford, a short spur to the south side of Moneta, and a bridge across the Roanoke River to Burnt Chimney. To my knowledge, it would eliminate much of the difficulty of getting trucks and commuters in and out of Roanoke. It would reduce the traffic on some overburdened roads to Smith Mountain Lake. Has such a road ever been studied? Secondary System 61. Sharp curve. There is a sharp curve on Ridge Mountain Road at the first house. The road is too narrow for two vehicles to pass easily, especially large ones. Urban System 62. West 10th Street (p. 28; U000-128- V12,PE102,RW202,C503; U00-128-V12,PE102,RW203,C504). West 10th Street should be paired with West 11th Street for several blocks on either side of Orange Avenue, with each carrying one-way traffic. That way, dozens of houses can be saved. 63. Bridge "Replacement" (p. 28; U000-128- 116,PE101,RW201,C501,B610). Although labeled a "bridge replacement", the Second Street bridge has actually replaced a grade crossing. The project was not properly planned. The alteration of traffic patterns will inconvenience motorists on First Street, which carries mostly southbound traffic across the railroad. A wide boulevard will cut through the residential neighborhood of Gainsboro. City officials have not adequately addressed the concern of local residents that the bridge and its access route will carry trucks past their homes and through streets where their children play. Although there are already sufficient truck routes available and recommended by the city, there is no intention to restrict commercial traffic through the residential area. This is only the latest in a long history of indignities borne by this neighborhood. In Gainsboro: The Destruction of a Historic Community (1995), Mary Campagna-Hamlin describes the piecemeal but steady razing of about 70% of the oldest neighborhood in Roanoke through various urban renewal projects. Careless disruption can turn good, nurturing communities into hopeless, violent slums. American society is gradually being destroyed this way, house by house, block by block. I cannot imagine that any white neighborhood would be so shabbily treated. (However, ethnic composition provides no guarantee against blight.) The commonwealth, the city, and planning agencies should examine projects like this one to prevent inequitable and destructive treatment of long-established neighborhoods. 64. Pedestrian Bridge (p. 28; U000-128- V20,PE101,RW201,C501,B615). Spending seven million dollars to build a single pedestrian bridge seems outrageous. This money could have built dozens of houses or put hundreds of students through college. 65. Salem Turnpike. It was once easy to travel the length of Salem Turnpike. Now, the pavement is interrupted. This makes finding addresses difficult. Can the integrity of Salem Turnpike be restored? Culpeper District 66. Charlottesville. In Albemarle County, the Seminole Trail (US 29) has been consumed by retail development that should have been directed into the Charlottesville business district. Instead, cheap land and low taxes have lured development to the outskirts of the community, where they have cost $147 million in road construction and the through use of the existing road. This has occurred despite the presence of 1900 faculty members at the commonwealth's most prestigious university. Why can't our society translate its intellectual resources into a community that functions efficiently? 67. Maybe a trolley can help. Maybe the commonwealth should widen the right-of-way and channel all driveways onto a marginal road. Maybe there should be overpasses at all major crossroads. Northern Virginia District 68. Dulles Airport. Dull, duller, Dulles airport is the only one I have seen with signs prohibiting access to sightseers. Isn't it public property, like Union Station? On my last trip to Dulles, I would not have been allowed to drive in had I not had business in the airport (in this case, inquiring about hotel accommodations). I consider myself fortunate not to have encountered the difficulties with airport security experienced by our former Governor. However, I wonder what goes on that requires barring the public from public areas of an airport. Does restricting access discourage mobsters from leaving corpses in trunks? Is luggage less likely to disappear? Suffolk District 69. Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel 3rd Crossing (0064-114- F12,PE101,PE102). If another crossing of Hampton Roads is constructed, it may become the most heavily used. I suggest that you consider a route between Newport News and the Norfolk International Terminal, with the possibility of a tie-in to Suffolk via the causeway of the Monitor-Merrimac Memorial Bridge-Tunnel. It should be based on railroad tracks for freight, Amtrak, and commuter trains. Bus lanes will also be helpful. If there is enough money left over, lanes for private automobiles can be considered. 70. Chesapeake Bay. Are there plans to build road and rail crossings connecting Kiptopeke with Hampton? They would make it more convenient to visit the Eastern Shore. They would also allow the bridge to Virginia Beach to be closed for repairs. When can we expect to see these projects? 71. Knotted highway. Although double-digit interstate highways are supposed to go directly across the country, I-64 doubles back on itself. The current numbering in Hampton Roads implies that a direct trip from Bowers Hill to Willliamsburg, Richmond, Charlottesville, Louisville, and St. Louis will go through Kempsville, Norfolk, and Phoebus. Why not change it so the routes are straighter? 72. Hampton Roads. If another crossing of Hampton Roads is constructed, it may become the most heavily used. I suggest that you consider a route between Newport News and the Norfolk International Terminal, with the possibility of a tie-in to Suffolk via the causeway of the Monitor-Merrimac Memorial Bridge-Tunnel. It should be based on railroad tracks for freight, Amtrak, and commuter trains. Bus lanes will also be helpful. If there is enough money left over, lanes for private automobiles can be considered. 73. Virginia Beach. The Southeastern Expressway--Oak Grove Connector is supposed to handle some of the increase in traffic to Virginia Beach. It is astonishing how many people will flock to a community with no fresh water to drink. How far would the anticipated cost of $269 million go if redirected toward creating pleasant neighborhoods near the Elizabeth River, closer to jobs and cultural resources? Unfortunately, people prefer to flee crowded cities to find landscapes to turn into cities like the ones they left. Multiple Districts 74. Traffic lights. Traffic lights have appeared along the Seminole Trail (US 29) in growing communities such as Gainesville and Madison Heights. There are several along the route between Richmond and Lynchburg. Must through travel be compromised in this way before it is relieved? Might there be some method of preventing the appearance of traffic lights as a transitional phase in the improvement of a highway? Transportation Enhancement Program 75. Control and removal of outdoor advertising. Why are there so many billboards along highways? I thought our junior Senator's mother-in-law got rid of them. Nevertheless, they are sprouting up like weeds all over Western Virginia. There's a new one on Franklin Road (US 220) telling drivers what they should do with their lighters. Going north, they become sparser. Is this purely a local matter, or is there some governing policy? Only a few of these are regionally specific enough to provide any benefit to travelers or the general economy (e.g. lodging and tourist attractions). Most seem to be for mass-marketed products that people have no trouble finding. They distract drivers and block the view of our gorgeous mountainsides. A recent bill in the General Assembly provides a guide: allow any unsightly billboard blocking the view of trees to be chopped down. 76. School zones. The Clearbrook school in Roanoke County is one of many elementary schools that interfere with the speed of traffic on major highways. There should be a policy in place that locates schools away from highways. It would protect children. It would help drivers. What would it take to do this? 77. Snow. VDOT or regional agencies should plow all US highways, instead of relying on cities to do it. Cities, notably Roanoke, are motivated to open local streets early, leaving highways barely passable for days. Why even involve cities in the process? 78. Huckleberry Trail (EN93-060- V28,PE101,PE102,RW201,C501). This project will be beneficial, although I would prefer to see the train back in operation for commuting to Virginia Tech. College students need their time to study, not to drive. 79. Rocky Mount Railway Station (p. 53; EN93-157- V30,PE101,PE102,RW201,C501). There is a proposal to turn the Rocky Mount Railway Station into a museum. While Rocky Mount may benefit from a museum, it should not get in the way of railroad passengers. The railway station should be returned to active duty, with trains to Roanoke, Martinsville, and Gretna. What will it take to do this? Does the commonwealth have any plans, or not? 80. U-turn surprises. On several divided highways around Roanoke, U-turns are prohibited at most intersections. When entering or leaving a business on the left side of the road, one must travel up to two extra miles to make a legal U- turn. The signs are too small to be seen until one approaches the intersection, after one has entered the turning lane, forcing one to reenter a through lane. This confusing situation cannot be safe. Moreover, it costs time and fuel. It also increases through traffic at major intersections. Can anything be done? 81. Trails. A system of trails has been proposed in and around the Roanoke Valley. However, the system will not provide enough access to Franklin County. Bike routes are needed to Boones Mill, Rocky Mount, and Smith Mountain Lake. There should be a trail along the top of the Blue Ridge, connecting Murray Knob, Crowell Gap, and Windy Gap. Safety Improvement Program 82. Highway Marker Replacement Program. Many highway historic markers stand near the traffic lanes of narrow roads, providing no place to stop a vehicle so the marker can be read. These can be safety hazards. 83. Hidden signal. A traffic light at Braeburn Drive in Salem is not visible to drivers approaching from the south on Electric Road (VA 419) until they round a curve. There should be a light on a pole in a direct line from the straight section of Electric Road, so that drivers will be able to see a red light from a block away. Can such a light be provided? 84. Sidewalk. Going to the Roanoke airport, I have had to walk in the road for the lack of sidewalks. Cars drive fast along there, making it dangerous. Some people may not be as comfortable taking the risk. What can be done to get a sidewalk there? 85. Driveway conflict. Every point of access to a road increases the risk of collision. What can be done to prevent the proliferation of commercial driveways congesting our main highways? I have seen shopping centers in other states sitting along the highway with access only to side roads. Why not here? Why do developers seem able to do just about anything they want and impose the costs on the rest of us? Why not require easements to jointly serve roadside commercial lots so cars don't have to enter the road to get from one shopping center to the next? 86. Narrow pedestrian passage. The Virgil H. Goode Highway (US 220) in Boones Mill lacks adequate room for pedestrian passage on the east side of the road where it crosses a creek just south of Boones Mill Road (Route 684) to connect the downtown business district with the Cannaday store. The road is too narrow and traffic too heavy to walk in the road at that bridge. Can a walkway be installed along the road where it crosses the creek? 87. Flooding on highway. The failure of the Timberlake Dam caused two deaths at a highway bridge. If the dam had never existed, the victims would still be alive. As long as the lake stays dry, no one else will be washed off the road. Vegetation growing in the lake bed will soak up some water and transpire it into the atmosphere. Yet some people want to rebuild this dam and endanger us again. What can we do to keep the roads safe from the collapse of flimsy dams, especially in Timberlake? 88. Crossing mountains. Unfortunately, interstate highways have been routed over Fancy Gap and Afton Gap, ignoring the wide, low passage just north of the Roanoke River. This would be a safe place to direct the truck traffic between Appalachia and the Piedmont that cannot travel by rail. 89. Regarding the safety of foggy mountain passes, I wholeheartedly endorse Gary Henderson's suggestion that appeared in the Roanoke Times on March 23, 1997, to employ a system used on the German autobahn. A series of passive reflective markers are spaced at a fixed distance apart. "If the driver can see three or more markers, the posted speed limit applies. If the driver can see only two markers, the speed limit is reduced to 50 mph. If the driver can see one marker, the speed limit is reduced to 35 mph." U.S. Route 58 - Corridor Development Program (p. 128) 90. The U.S. Route 58 corridor development program is an idea without a realistic foundation. I can't imagine that many vehicles use this road to travel between Virginia Beach and Cumberland Gap, especially between Galax and Abingdon. Although much of the road is important to local traffic, it is not really convenient for long-distance travel. Will this program make it convenient? Is it not more important to connect communities to roads that can be easily traveled? Rail and Public Transportation Program 91. Allocation (pp. 135-177). Why doesn't mass transit funding last for the full six-year cycle? 92. Skewing market. Why does the commonwealth feel it is appropriate to support trucking by providing and operating its routes without doing the same for railroads? Such a subsidy artificially encourages shippers to choose trucking over railroads, thus running the cost to society even higher. Railroads consume less land. They are safer and more efficient. In general, trains do not congest highways. If the commonwealth promotes any form of transportation, it should assist railroads. 93. Western Virginia railroads. Despite the need for passenger trains in southwestern Virginia, the Roanoke and New River valleys are shortchanged in the allocation of railway money. Although tracks radiate from Roanoke in five directions, a person can't buy a ticket on any of them. We need passenger trains from Roanoke to Waynesboro, Harrisonburg, Front Royal, Harpers Ferry, Bedford, Lynchburg, Farmville, Moneta, Altavista, Boones Mill, Rocky Mount, Ferrum, Martinsville, Greensboro, Winston-Salem Bristol, Knoxville, Blacksburg, Bluefield, and Norton. 94. Mode preference. Several months ago, an airplane crashed into a home in Roanoke, destroying it. Potentially, any home is at risk. On the other hand, most homes have little forseeable risk of being destroyed by a car or train. Air travel is expensive, inefficient, and dependent on favorable weather. Many of the people who fly would rather take the train, if they could. We need it now, for safety, for convenience, for tourism. The Norfolk Southern Railroad has publicly said they would cooperate with passenger rail operation. Instead of talking and studying for the next few years, I'd like the state to by a train and run it back and forth through Roanoke: to Lynchburg, to Winston-Salem, to Waynesboro, to Bristol. 95. Eastern Shore. What study has there been concerning restoration of passenger service on the Eastern Shore Railroad? This track provides the most direct route between Newport News and Philadelphia. Stations along the way could benefit ocean resorts. When can we expect to be able to ride the Eastern Shore Railroad? 96. Chesapeake Bay. A rail crossing connecting Kiptopeke with Hampton would make it more convenient to visit the Eastern Shore. It would also allow the bridge to Virginia Beach to be closed for repairs. 97. Hampton Roads. Plans for the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel 3rd Crossing should include railroad tracks for freight, Amtrak, and commuter trains. Peace,