As D.C.-Dulles Rail Plans Stumble, BRT Advocates Jump In

"For some, the possible denial of federal funding for a proposed Metrorail extension to Dulles International Airport is not a setback, but an opportunity."

"Most in this group acknowledge that they represent a small but vocal minority in a sea of broad business support for the 23-mile, $5 billion extension, which would bring transit to Tysons Corner and the booming Dulles jobs corridor beyond. But these critics are nonetheless firm in their belief that the project is fatally flawed: too expensive, poorly managed and lacking competitive bidding. If the Federal Transit Administration follows through on its threat to deny $900 million in funding, they say, Virginia and the region would be getting a gift, not a slap in the face: a chance to start over and make the project right."

"Howell and other critics of the project believe the solution for the Dulles corridor is in a type of service known as bus rapid transit, an express bus service with dedicated lanes and stations, allowing commuters to move as quickly as they would on a rail line without getting stuck in traffic."

"This type of bus service was ruled out by local officials and business leaders because of the difficulty of building dedicated lanes through Tysons Corner and because of the increased number of riders that a true rail line would draw. But it is so much cheaper that it should be revisited, boosters say."