A full-scale circulator system that will carry Tysons Corner commuters from Metro to their jobs won’t be in place by 2013, Fairfax County officials acknowledge.
The large-scale bus or shuttle system is a key ingredient in lofty plans to remodel Tysons as a pedestrian-friendly cityscape. But officials and county staff are publicly curbing expectations for the transit system, which remains unfunded, instead pitching a scaled-back bus network to coincide with the opening of four new rail stations in 2013.
The stations are part of the 23-mile extension of Metro to Washington Dulles International Airport.
By the rail’s opening, “We need to make sure we have the beginnings of a system of buses to serve the stations,” said Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Sharon Bulova. “The redevelopment of Tysons Corner is a long-range plan, and we’ll see redevelopment over the next 10, 20, 30 years, and a circulator system will evolve as development happens.”
Fairfax County supervisors plan to allow dense, urban development in Tysons around the new Metro stops, and less-intense growth in the path of the circulator.
Clark Tyler, who headed the years-long planning effort for remodeling Tysons, said: “If you’re going to have something to serve the areas that are not within walking distance of Metro, it better be free, frequent and visible and starting the day that Metro starts.”
That doesn’t mean the whole system will be in place then, he said, “but if you’re going to change people’s habits in terms of using their [car] to get to the cleaner or lunch or whatever, you better have an alternative for them, and it better be in sync with their major transit.”
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on Monday approved a feasibility study for the circulator that will likely roughly one year to complete.
Tysons will have an internal bus system in place when the Metrorail opens, said Leonard Wolfenstein, who manages long-range transportation planning for Fairfax County. He said the final vision of a circulator would “evolve over time” as the new grid of streets and development takes shape.
Among the potential stumbling blocks is securing land in the path of the circulator, which will be one subject of the feasibility study.
“Right of way is going to be a significant issue,” Wolfenstein said.
