Fairfax, Arlington County voters asked to approve millions of dollars for Metro
Voters in Fairfax and Arlington counties will decide on ballot measures asking if those counties should borrow millions of dollars to help fund WMATA, more commonly known as Metro.
In Fairfax County, voters are being asked whether the county should borrow money and issue bonds for up to $180 million to pay for Metro.
Metro uses money in the Capital Improvement Program to pay for several different things including:
Arlington County voters are being asked to consider a ballot measure that is similar, but has a few key differences.
The Arlington County questions ask if voters want to approve the county issuing bonds worth $72.4 million. But, in Arlington County's case, only some of the money would go to help pay Arlington County's share of the funding for Metro's Capital Improvement Plan.
An Arlington County spokesperson broke the numbers down in an email.
About $44.3 million would go to Metro, $22 million would go for paving streets and roads, $1.5 million would go for maintenance on sidewalks, curbs, and gutters, and $1.3 million for street lighting and other transportation projects. Arlington County said some of the money would go for what are considered, "pedestrian enhancement projects."
Although ballot measures like the ones in Fairfax and Arlington counties are usually passed by voters, 7News asked what would happen if one or both failed to pass.
A Metro spokesperson said the money has already been pledged by the counties to Metro.
"These are routine ballot measures that are done to help jurisdictions pay their funding obligations for Metro," wrote Metro spokesperson Kristie Benson in an email. "They have done this over the years and this is not unique. Virginia jurisdictions pay their subsidy in many ways and this is one of many ways this fulfills their funding obligation. If the measures were to fail, they would find funding alternatives."
There is also a measure on the ballot in Prince George's County asking voters to approve the borrowing of up to $311.9 million for public works and transportation facilities. However, that money does not include funding for Metro's capital program. Most of the money would go to projects related to roads, pedestrians, and lighting, but a portion of it would go for "transit-oriented development infrastructure."
