Transportation

Traffic accidents cause more injuries than anything else in our society.  And they’re the leading cause of death for people between the ages of three and 33.

Driver distraction is the most common cause of traffic accidents.  And because vehicles are moving at relatively high speeds, what happens in one, affects many others.

The director of Virginia Tech’s Transportation Institute, Professor Tom Dingus, says one solution coming down the pike, is something called ‘vehicle connectivity.’

While Virginians wait for the dust to settle and lawmakers breathe a sigh of relief that the transportation funding battle is over, the nonprofit Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis has combed through the rubble to examine its effects. 

The Virginia Department of Transportation has cleared another speed bump in its drive to build a bypass to Route 29 through Albemarle County. 

Those who oppose the 29 bypass have made many arguments.  Some think the project, which VDOT predicts will cost about $240 million is too expensive for the limited time drivers would save.  Others worry about the impact on health from a six-mile road that would pass by six schools, while a third group feared trucks with hazardous cargo could pass too close to the city’s water supply. 

Governor McDonnell has proposed amendments to the transportation-funding package that was hammered out by conferees and passed by the General Assembly last month. 

The Virginia Senate has voted for a transportation-funding bill that increases the gas tax, removes most of Governor McDonnell’s proposals, and allows Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads to raise extra revenue.