Airport Authority Assumes Dulles Toll Road Operations
Today the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) finalized the long-expected transfer of Dulles Toll Road operations to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA). Although MWAA anticipates no immediate service changes, the authority has proposed raising the facility’s mainline tolls from 75 cents to $1.50 by 2012 in support of a $5 billion extension of Metro rail service to Dulles Airport. The 14-mile highway, which connects Dulles and I-66, is expected to yield $66 million of toll revenues in 2009.
After receiving an unsolicited proposal for a 50-year concession to operate and maintain the toll road in July 2005, VDOT had obtained four competing bids in October 2005 under the state’s Public-Private Transportation Act. Elements of the various proposals included transferring an up-front concession fee to VDOT, widening the eight-lane facility, and/or helping fund the Metrorail expansion to Dulles Airport. VDOT suspended evaluation of these proposals in February 2006 to consider MWAA’s December 2005 offer to assume facility operations in the context of a Metrorail extension plan, to which Governor Tim Kaine agreed in March 2006.
(Washington Post 10/1/09, VDOT)