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2004 SESSION

049196500
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 481
Offered March 8, 2004
Commending the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission on the occasion of its 40th anniversary.
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Patrons-- Scott, J.M., Albo, Amundson, Brink, Callahan, Dillard, Hugo, Hull, Petersen, Plum, Reese, Rust, Shannon, Sickles and Watts
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WHEREAS, the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC), created by the General Assembly in 1964, will commemorate its 40th anniversary at a celebration on April 1, 2004; and

WHEREAS, NVTC began with an initial district of five jurisdictions (Arlington and Fairfax Counties and the Cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, and Falls Church), with 11 elected officials from those jurisdictions serving as commissioners together with the chairman of the State Highway Commission; and

WHEREAS, NVTC has grown to include Loudoun County and now has 19 board members, including five members of the General Assembly and the designee of the Virginia Secretary of Transportation; and

WHEREAS, the NVTC district has a current population of more than 1.5 million in a territory covering 1,000 square miles; and

WHEREAS, NVTC serves the citizens of the Commonwealth by promoting and funding public transit and ride sharing, while managing financial resources from federal, state, regional, and local partners exceeding $100 million annually; and

WHEREAS, NVTC worked to create the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) and the resulting interstate compact requires WMATA's Virginia board members to be appointed from among NVTC's commissioners; and

WHEREAS, NVTC began to plan for commuter rail service at its first business meeting in 1964 and persevered until the Virginia Railway Express (VRE) began operations in 1992; and

WHEREAS, NVTC co-owns VRE, which has assets of approximately $170 million and a rapidly growing ridership of almost 15,000 per weekday; and

WHEREAS, NVTC has consistently promoted transit innovations leading to improved efficiency and customer service, including the highly successful Shirley Highway busway demonstration in the early 1970s in which NVTC purchased 90 new buses to double bus service in the corridor and generated more than 13,000 new daily transit trips; and

WHEREAS, NVTC actively continues planning for coordinated emergency responses by Northern Virginia's transit systems to facilitate faster transit reactions and better communication during emergencies with customers, police, fire, and other public safety personnel; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly commend the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission and its current and former board members and staff for 40 years of "thinking outside the car"; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare copies of this resolution for presentation to William D. Euille, chairman, and Richard K. Taube, executive director of the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission, as an expression of the General Assembly's congratulations on reaching this landmark in the Commission's history and appreciation for the work of the Commission in promoting and funding public transit and ride sharing in Northern Virginia.