NVTA Update

We hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving with friends and family. During this holiday season, we reflect on how thankful we are for our Authority members and their staff, member localities, agencies and stakeholders for ongoing collaboration, as well as to all the citizens who take the time to offer feedback and attend our meetings.

Speaking of meeting participation, it’s almost time to officially kick off the next TransAction update! During a time when transportation is evolving at a faster pace than ever before and the region’s population is rapidly growing, you will soon have the opportunity to weigh in on the future of transportation and provide feedback and suggestions on long-range multimodal transportation planning. On Thursday, January 9, 2020, we will host an Open House and Listening Session focused on the update of Northern Virginia's long-range transportation plan, TransAction. The adopted TransAction update will be used as a guide for future funding programming decisions.

Please note, the Open House and Public Hearing for the project list and evaluation summary on the FY2020-2025 Six Year Program, will occur spring 2020. 

To view the full TransAction 2040 Plan adopted in October 2017, visit NVTATransAction.org or click here.

**If interested in providing feedback on TransAction, please sign up in advance at TheAuthority@thenovaauthority.org with the subject line: TA Listening Session: Public Comment.
 
What: TransAction Open House and Listening Session
When: Thursday, January 9, 2020
                Open House: 6 p.m. – 7 p.m.
                Listening Session as part of the annual Organizational Meeting: 7 p.m.
                Commencement of the Authority's Business Meeting: Immediately
                following the Listening Session
Where: NVTA’s Offices, 3040 Williams Drive, Suite 200, Fairfax, VA 22031


Did you know you can view each of the FY2020-2025 Six Year Program development phases on our website? Everything from application, to evaluation, to public engagement is covered, and will be updated as each phase develops. In fact, stay tuned next week for a Six Year Program Video Series update with our Executive Director, Monica Backmon, who will discuss the Six Year Program list of eligible applications. 

On November 18^th, Monica Backmon and David Meyer, Mayor, City of Fairfax, and Authority member, participated in the Schar School of Policy and Government's Second Annual NOVA Elected Leaders Regional Policy Seminar at George Mason University's Arlington Campus. Ms. Backmon and Mayor Meyer joined Nick Donahue, Deputy Secretary of Transportation for the Commonwealth; Rob Staltzer, City Manager, and Wendy Sanford, Director of Transportation, City of Fairfax; and Kate Mattice, Executive Director, Northern Virginia Transportation Commission, to discuss regional transportation planning, programming and policy with newly elected officials.

Following the seminar, elected officials throughout the region, gathered at a NOVA Elected Leaders Dinner celebrating regionalism and honoring three long-time leaders with significant regional contributions - Marty Nohe, Chairman of the Authority and Prince William County Coles District Supervisor; Sharon Bulova, Chair of Fairfax County and member of the Authority; and Cathy Hudgins, Fairfax County Hunter Mill District Supervisor. Each honoree was presented with the inaugural Schar School Regional Leadership Award. We thank these leaders for their dedicated service to the region!

A special thanks to Mary Hynes, Commonwealth Transportation Board and Authority member, and Jay Fisette, former Authority member, for coordinating both events. 
 

On December 3^rd, Monica Backmon also participated in the Northern Virginia Transportation Alliance's Policymakers Breakfast Series: Transforming Transit, at JBG Smith located by the Crystal City Metro Station. Ms. Backmon joined fellow panelists Jennifer Mitchell, Director DRPT and Authority member; Regina Sullivan, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority; and Andrei Greenawalt, Via. Robert McCartney, senior regional correspondent for the Washington Post, moderated the discussion which focused on an array of transit topics, including Bus Rapid Transit and bus networks for the region, Long Bridge funding, the study of capacity constraints on the Metro's Blue/Orange/Silver lines between Virginia and D.C., and future technologies.