State officials are backing off of a plan to announce this week whether to pursue building rail above or below Tysons Corner, and now say they no longer have a timeline for when the decision will take place.
An announcement by Gov. Tim Kaine on either option would bring the largest debate in the $4 billion, 23-mile Metrorail extension to a close. It now appears, however, that Virginia will be waiting a little longer to hear it.
Officials have said they planned to make an announcement by the end of the month. But both Deputy Virginia Transportation Secretary Scott Kasprowicz and a spokesman for Kaine told The Examiner on Tuesday that no decision will be reached this week or the next.
The commonwealth, Kasprowicz said, is “just making sure that we’ve consulted with all of our partners and stakeholders and have all the information in place to make the right decision.” He said no new issues have arisen since he said last week that the decision would be coming as planned by the end of August.
“Nothing has changed in the past week,” said Kaine spokesman Kevin Hall.
“We are still consulting with our congressional partners and talking with federal transit officials about some of the challenges, and are not in a position to announce any kind of decision at this time.”
The construction of either a tunnel or an elevated track through 4 miles in Tysons is expected to have dramatic ramifications on how the community reshapes itself in the coming years. The tunnel concept appears to be heavily favored, with proponents pointing to long-term sustainability and a comparative lack of disruption to heavily urbanized Tysons.
The tunnel, however, would cost $250 million more and take a year longer to build, according to a state-ordered study by the American Society of Civil Engineers. Northern Virginia congressmen have warned that new costs associated with the tunnel could jeopardize up to $900 million in potential federal funding.
