The head of the Federal Transit Administration has issued a stern warning on the Tysons tunnel, telling local congressmen that changes in scope and uncertainties in costs could halt federal approval of the expansion of Metrorail to Dulles.
The letter is the latest rebuke by the federal government on the proposed underground rail through Tysons Corner, which tunnel proponents hope will be part of the larger 23-mile Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project. The concept was officially abandoned in September after the FTA warned that the more expensive plan would jeopardize $900 million in federal funding. A local movement has since emerged to bring the tunnel back, arguing the planned aerial rail would be a detriment to the urban center.
But in a memo to Reps. Jim Moran and Tom Davis dated Jan. 26, FTA Administrator James Simpson warns that uncertainty in the plan to burrow under Tysons Corner would not fit within the agency’s parameters for moving the project into final design, a key stage in its overall approval and a precursor to federal funding.
“When [Virginia] is still considering a significant variation of the project, with a different scope, unvalidated [sic] cost, and unknown financial plan, approval of the project into Final Design would be inappropriate,” Simpson wrote.
The statements were in response to a letter from the congressmen asking whether the FTA can consider a tunnel.
Simpson also criticized the management of the $4 billion rail project. He wrote that the project sponsor — the Commonwealth of Virginia — “is now over a month late in providing critical cost information.” Two private firms negotiating to design and build the rail have not yet delivered a final price tag for the first phase, which is expected by the end of February.
“I believe we can all agree that the Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project has encountered uncertainties and progress has been slow,” Simpson wrote.
The group backing the tunnel, called Tysonstunnel.org, recently released engineering documents it says proves that the underground rail is feasible. Tysonstunnel President Scott Monett pointed to the lack of an explicit warning in the letter that said funding would be jeopardized.
“This letter says that as long as we follow FTA rules, there is nothing that would preclude us from having a tunnel,” he said. “Of course there is risk; there is risk in everything. But they didn’t say they were going to lose the money.”
