Spotsylvania County has agreed to join Virginia Railway Express commuter train service — but officials left an escape hatch that could turn the issue into a referendum in the November election.
The county Board of Supervisors voted on several measures related to the issue after more than 70 people spoke at a public hearing. The deciding vote was a narrow 4-3.
The board changed the start date of the arrangement from Jan. 1 to Feb. 15, creating a window for any newly elected board members who are sworn in Jan. 1 to raise the issue in time to back out within the agreement’s 30-day clause.
Three supervisor seats are up for election in November. Opponents to two incumbents have said they oppose joining VRE.
That means train riders and officials in the jurisdictions that make up the partnership are viewing Tuesday’s decision with caution.
Still, the train service welcomed the decision. “We can still be pleased with the fact [that for] the first time in 17 years they have garnered the votes we’ve been waiting for,” said VRE spokesman Mark Roeber.
Still, the train service welcomed the decision. “We can still be pleased with the fact [that for] the first time in 17 years they have garnered the votes we’ve been waiting for,” said VRE spokesman Mark Roeber.
At issue has been the fact that more than 900 of the system’s riders live in Spotsylvania, according to the system’s last rider survey, but the county has not been paying to subsidize the train service like other jurisdictions. Riders’ fares do not cover the cost of running the system.
Joining the system would mean the county would pay VRE a portion of what will be a 2.1 percent gasoline tax. The county could get a train station in two years, Roeber said. Each jurisdiction and several other boards still have to agree to Spotsylvania’s arrangement, although they are expected to approve it.
