Virginia certainly faces its fair portion of political issues, but none surpass the transportation congestion plaguing much of Northern Virginia, coupled with numerous disputes regarding construction and statewide division and disagreement. Following unprecedented industrial growth in the past decade, the Washington DC area is now designated the second most congested urban area in the nation, most likely following the infamous Los Angeles. In response, man running state delegates have touted transportation restructuring as a primary issue, which is quite understandable given the state's unequal population distribution.
State delegation in Virginia has always faced a fervently ant-tax Republican majority, and thus many Northern Virginians who would gladly provide financial compensation for transportation construction have been deprived the opportunity.IN 2009, Creigh Deeds agreed to signing a bipartisan compromise that would ad transportation funding through a 5% gasoline tax and other individual expenditures that a vast majority of Northern Virginians appear to support. Facing deterioration of highways and much-needed bridge construction, metro projects simply won't provide enough compensation for Northern Virginia's dire transportation issue.
"Democratic and Republican leaders agree there is a need for about $1 billion a year in new money for transportation, Pethtel writes. But they can’t agree on whether to raise taxes, create new taxes, take money from the general fund to use for transportation purposes, sell some state facilities and put the profits into transportation, or any other alternatives."
Current proposals include setting gasoline taxes proportionally to quantity, extending sales taxes, the creation of a statewide transportation district, and creating numerous local transportation districts extending throughout Virginia.
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