FY2026-27 Two-Year Transportation Program

Dear Mayor, Council and Staff -

While Fairfax City residents appreciate and want high-quality services, I think it is fair to say we don’t want taxpayer money used for frivolous projects.

As has been the case with many transportation projects, these are not really needed. In particular the bike project is an exceptional waste of time and money. People drive. They don’t bike. Yet the city continues to put more and more resources into creating bike lanes and related projects that do nothing but frustrate drivers and check some sort of box.

I encourage you all to work on economic redevelopment of vacant spaces, investing in transportation projects that actually benefit drivers, and look for more efficient ways to spend hard-earned taxpayer dollars - no matter their sources.

Thank you.

Dan Drummond

To be blunt: Most of this is "make work" recommendations; nice but not needed. My comments by project:

Fairfax Circle Intersection Evaluation: It appears to be recommending the removal of the circle. Much more information is needed. There is no mention of how much the “open space” costs would be since it appears you are recommending the removal of a couple of gas stations that would also have clean-up costs associated with them. Initial evaluation appears expensive with little return.

Bicycle Route Wayfinding Plan: This is entirely unnecessary and I'm guessing (as a resident who bikes) has little demand signal. Persons biking in Fairfax City would most likely be residents familiar with the area (or can use Google maps), most “routes” are established roads, and a “wag-of-the-finger” for deceptively calling shopping centers “Activity Centers.” Cyclists aren’t doing much (if any) shopping due to the difficulty of transporting purchases via bicycle. It is HIGHLY UNLIKELY anyone is carrying a gallon of paint from Home Depot or their family's groceries on their bike. If people need something from an "Activity Center" they will most likely drive or take the CUE bus. For example, I went to the big craft show at FHS, the parking lot was full and parking was overflowing into the adjacent neighborhood and there were two bikes at FHS (if I count my own bike).

Main St/Lyndhurst Dr/Trapp Rd: This intersection has been this way for at least 30 years with no concern other than the addition of the enhanced crosswalk. Why is this now an issue? If you’re suddenly concerned, the solution is simple (and cheap); install “No Left Turn” signs on Main St going to Trapp Rd (since there is no left turn lane) and on Trapp Rd going to Main St (which should already be illegal since it is a diagonal turn). Any west bound traffic wanting to access housing on Trapp Rd or Apple Federal Credit Union (AFCU) may do so from Whitacre where a light is already present. Same goes for pedestrians; if they cannot navigate the existing crosswalk, then they should go down Main St one block to Whitacre and cross at the light. I bank at AFCU and from the east I access Trapp Rd via Whitacre, and when I want to go west after leaving AFCU, I exit from the AFCU Main St entrance [not Trapp Rd] and make a U-turn at Lynhurst Dr.; so I am speaking from experience, not as someone unfamiliar with the intersection who wants to get paid for a study finding.

Vienna Metro Improvements: This should be paid for by Washington Metropolitan Area Transportation Authority (WMATA). Fairfax City gasoline taxes are (eventually) handled by the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC) which funds WMATA and the Commuter Rail Operating and Capital Fund (CROC). As far as I am concerned, Fairfax City residents pay WMATA (via NVTA) and WMATA should upgrade the shelter located on their property [it isn't Fairfax City land], and which if we are being honest, this is a “nice to have” project at best since the current shelter does what is needed, although it is not as fancy as what you’re proposing. There are better ways to spend money.

Rust/Westmore Sidewalk study: No comment since I am not familiar with the area.

General: What I see is that someone funded a Road Safety Audit (RSA), and the group being paid came up with ideas just to say they came up with something. These are not “needed” projects. A better project would be bus turn-out lanes at bus stops on Main St so the flow of traffic is not impeded. That's a freebie. Maybe you should ask residents BEFORE funding expensive studies by people who don't know the daily issues of driving in Fairfax City.

One problem I don't know about is the level of through traffic our city gets, but I feel like my point still stands when I say we should expand the CUE bus program. This is in respect to convenience and reliability as the 2 things I think are key are adding another bus to each route to reduce wait times and to remove the weekend schedule altogether in favor of just using the weekday schedule(at least as a study to measure pedestrian activity).

If this has a tangible decrease in car traffic, I'm hoping zoning can change to cut down on excess parking spaces to make room for more (ideally mixed use) building space.

I bicycle a lot to places in the City and maybe it's just because I've lived here so long and have worked out my routes -- but personally I don't see much need for a bicycle wayfinding plan. It just seems like the benefits are nebulous and wouldn't be worth the time and expense. Do we need a separate study for this? I would think it would be more worthwhile to focus on filling gaps in the bike network with trails and bike lanes. We could add signs in key areas where you want to point bicyclists toward the safest routes or toward trails that might be hard to spot from the street, like the trail between Main Street and Breckinridge Drive. But I don't see a compelling need for a stand-alone plan.

I think developing plans for improving Fairfax Circle should be a high priority. I like the ideas in the Small Area Plan for redesigning this area and removing the circle. It's currently confusing and dangerous for everyone in all modes of transportation. I assume it would take a long time and have to go through a lot of different plans to change the traffic pattern in this way, though. That makes me wonder if there are ways to make improvements in the shorter term without making it even more confusing, so that it's easier to walk and bike through the Circle.

I live along Main Street, and the traffic is backed up in the morning and evening. When I look at the traffic analysis, the analysis is always done by a contractor paid by the proposing company. Yet,we have a premier university VT that has experience in traffic management. When will the city do a comprehensive study, by an independent party to get, what to me, is the problem.

I have no idea what "Main Street/Lyndhurst Dr/Trapp Road Intersection Concept Development" is about, and I can't find any markings on your map, but I walk by there with my dog almost every day, and see no need for development of any sort. Would you explain? (I also suggest that you hyperlink each project to a highlighted spot on the map.)

In addition need to provide sidewalks in locations where missing along roads. Also more bike lanes

LYNDHURST DESPARATELY NEEDS A TRAFFIC LIGHT: TO AND FROM MAIN STREET. IT IS VERY DANGEROUS TO MAKE A LEFT TURN FROM LYNDHURST IN TO MAIN STREET! ARE WE WAITING TILL SOMEONE GETS HURT? THIS IS WHAT THE MOST IMPORTANT PROBLEM NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED ASAP.

I like all five of the proposed project except for the North side of the Metrorail station. I do not think that is in the City of Fairfax. I would suggest that Metro pay for that. Of course, we should advocate for that, but not spend our transportation dollars on it.