The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority board voted 11-1 for an aboveground Metro station at Washington Dulles International Airport, reversing their original plan for a more traveler-friendly underground station after months of pressure from officials to cut costs on the project. Northern Virginia officials, whose constituents will bear the brunt of the project’s financial burden, said the underground station was a deal breaker because it would have increased overall costs by at least $330 million.

The compromises, proposed by U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood after a month of meetings with the stakeholders, would bring the cost of the project to about $2.8 billion, down from prior estimates closer to $3.8 billion. Loudoun and Fairfax counties would assume responsibility — with the near-promise of state and federal assistance — for millions of dollars in new construction spending.