Political Strong-Arming

Anyone who knows anything about the long-in-coming Tysons Metro project knows that if one thing has been constant in it's construction, it's been delays and questions regarding funding. For years there was debate over whether it would be an above ground or below ground system, whether it would reach Dulles or only about halfway or whether it would even be built to begin with. Now, so many many years later, work is underway, traffic is suffering because of it yet it seems that our political leaders in Richmond feel that it's the perfect time to try some political plotting in an attempt to Shanghai Metro and its Board of Directors.

It seems that recently, Republican Governor Bob McDonnell recently threatened to withhold the matching funds which the state had previously promised the Metro Transit Authority for the project. The argument being put forward by the Governor and his supporters is that Metro has long been known to have problems with regard to their regulation and upkeep. Evidence of this is the recent spate of problems that have plagued Washington's only subway system such as the Red Line accident of a year ago and continued safety problems. Now while I agree that this is a problem, I don't agree that this is the means by which McDonnell can get what he and his supporters want which is two seats on Metro's Board. If he believes that by attempting to hold the transit company hostage in this manner, I'm afraid he's going to be sadly mistaken.

It isn't the first time that Metro has dealt with such cases (i.e., funding being withheld) so why would they deal with it any differently than they have any other time, which is basically to shrug and wish the State well? It's not a very big thing for the state to demand from Metro, after all, perhaps the Metro extension is what's needed to boost ridership again. After all, the Tysons corridor is where a great deal of business is done and if they actually finish the Metro up to Dulles, I think there will be a great deal more business. I mean I think the saddest thing is that Washington is practically the only capital city in the world (the world!!) that doesn't have direct train access from the city to the international airport. Isn't that pathetic? I think so.

Now McDonnell can argue that he wants to add a bit of governmental control to Metro and that will help the beleaguered agency but I don't really buy it. I can see Metro simply walking away from the work and leaving the mess for Virginia (and specifically Fairfax) to deal with. And what mess would that be? How about incomplete Metro pylons dotting the landscape? An incomplete tunnel linking Route 123 and Route 7? What about all the land that's been torn up and dug up in preparation for various stations? What's going to happen with that? I suppose McDonnell would argue that Metro would be held accountable. Perhaps, but Virginia was the state that promised to match funds to begin the project. Sure, McDonnell (or his party) may not have been the ones to make that promise, but just like Obama, McDonnell is inheriting a project that he didn't start; now he's got to deal with it, not threaten a mess that will be worse.