Greater Washington Board of Trade and Greater Washington Partnership Host 2023 Capital Region Transportation Forum focused on Future of Transportation and WMATA

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Greater Washington Board of Trade and Greater Washington Partnership Host 2023 Capital Region Transportation Forum focused on Future of Transportation and WMATA

Posted on by codeadmin

On November 30th, the Greater Washington Board of Trade (the Board of Trade) and the Greater Washington Partnership (the Partnership) hosted the 6th annual Capital Region Transportation Forum. This annual event brings together the Capital Region’s transportation leaders – from Washington D.C., Maryland, and Virginia – to discuss shared challenges and opportunities that require multi-jurisdiction collaboration. This year, the discussion centered around the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) fiscal challenges and regional efforts to overcome them. 

The Partnership and the Board of Trade work together to ensure the region is advancing comprehensive and strategic transportation investments that will keep our economy moving. An efficient, accessible, and reliable transportation system is essential to ensuring businesses and residents can thrive.   

We kicked off the morning by celebrating many of the region’s transportation wins from the past year, including the relaunch of the Baltimore Red Line, Metro’s post-pandemic ridership recovery and historic levels of service, as well as record-breaking ridership on Virginia’s passenger trains. Most notably, WMATA’s $750 million operating budget deficit for the upcoming fiscal year, remains a major challenge facing the region and we urged leaders and elected officials to work together toward a sustainable solution.  

Charting the Path to Sustainable Mobility 

The event opened with Dr. Cinzia Cirillo, who is a professor and the interim director of the Maryland Transportation Institute at the University of Maryland. Dr. Cirillo discussed recent research from the Maryland Transportation Institute regarding persistent traffic and congestion in the Greater Washington region despite the prevalence of remote work. She also shared the data science behind those insights, and how such models can be invaluable tools for decision makers going forward to forecast usage, expected impacts, and externalities of future infrastructure projects. “[Monitoring congestion] is not enough, because in order to make investments, we need to be able to predict the consequences of our actions, or no action,” Cirillo said. 

SEE MORE PICUTURES FROM OUR EVENT HERE

Randy Clarke: State of the Metro Address  

Randy Clarke, the General Manager and CEO of WMATA, updated the audience on WMATA’s current financial crisis. The transit agency, which is facing a $750 million operating budget deficit, has been working toward reforms, cost savings, and service cuts to help bridge its funding gap. Clarke outlined the major factors contributing to the agency’s deficit, including decreased ridership post-pandemic, inflation, and the depletion of COVID subsidies. If a funding agreement is not defined in the coming weeks, the immediate consequences could include significant service cuts and layoffs. “The state of Metro is strong but highly uncertain. We need to choose as a region what we want Metro to be,” Clarke said.  

Clarke presented various budget scenarios with the worst-case scenario requiring drastic cuts to bus and rail services, longer waiting times for commuters, the shutdown of numerous bus lines, and early shutdowns of the Metrorail system. Equally concerning is the huge number of WMATA employees that will face the prospect of layoffs and hiring freezes if funding is not secured. Layoff notifications and the hiring freeze could begin in January 2025, with impacts to service starting to show during DC’s busy cherry blossom season next spring. 

Panel: Regional Transportation Leaders Panel 

A panel discussion, moderated by WUSA9 anchor Lesli Foster, brought together the transportation leaders from DC, Maryland, and Virginia to discuss recent progress and collaboration on regional transportation initiatives. The panelists, Virginia Secretary of Transportation W. Sheppard Miller III, Maryland Transportation Secretary Paul Wiedefeld, and Interim Director of the District Department of Transportation Sharon Kershbaum, shared insights on their administrations’ respective visions and shared regional priorities. Safety was stressed as a top priority across the region. All three secretaries emphasized their shared focus on reducing roadway injuries and fatalities.  “We lost over 1,000 people last year on our roadways. The problem is that we’ve gotten used to that fact,” said Sheppard Miller III.  

WMATA was another key concern and topic of discussion. The uncertain future of WMATA services, escalating costs, and impacts on service are creating instability across the region. “The importance of WMATA to Maryland and to the region cannot be overstated. It’s what makes us competitive nationally and internationally. We cannot let it fail, but we also have to work with our financial realities. We’re going to have to make some hard choices,” said Paul Wiedefeld. The panel explored how each administration is working to ensure stability for WMATA, its funding partners, and the broader community that relies on its services “WMATA’s survival is the District’s survival. The District is really trying to drive demand [for transit] because that is a lever that we have. Priority bus lanes have been key to that.” said Sharon Kershbaum. 

The Partnership and the Board of Trade were honored to host 200 leaders to discuss foundational issues for our region’s ability to grow and thrive. Thank you to Lesli Foster for serving as our moderator, all our panelists and presenters, and a special thanks to this year’s sponsors: Georgetown University, EXP, HDR, HNTB, Transurban, Aon, EY, and Lyft. We will continue to convene and look for opportunities to partner with the leaders who joined us at the 2023 Capital Region Transportation Forum to ensure the region continues to make the long-term investments needed to ensure this region remains one of the best places to live, work, and build a business. 

Watch the full 2023 Capital Region Transportation Forum here.

To watch and share clips from the 2023 Capital Region Transportation Forum, check out the below videos from our YouTube page:

WMATA (Metro) General Manager Randy Clarke discusses transit system’s $750 million funding gap

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2JQdLMXgV4&t=217s

Capital Region transportation leaders discuss Metro funding and traffic congestion in DC, MD, and VA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGoIJqYfPOg&t=2s

Maryland Transportation Institute shares traffic research for the Greater Washington region

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpJgO63Ac2Q

October policy dicussions engage Board of Trade members with regional labor leaders and state senators

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GWBOT’s Regional Policy Leadership Series (RPLS) events bring together key policymakers and officials to discuss some of the most important issues facing the region’s business community. Last month, the Board of Trade and our partners held two policy conversations, one with regional labor leaders and another with Virginia and Maryland’s Senate Presidents. In each of these discussions, topics ranged from workforce, education, disruptive technology, and the future of both economic and environmental sustainability.

The first event was a labor-focused discussion expertly moderated by Mac Tisdale, President Mid-Atlantic Region at First National Bank. It brough together Sec. Portia Wu, Dr. Unique N. Morris-Hughes, and Sec. George Slater to discuss topics across the labor and workforce landscape, including workforce development and retention, labor environment, intraregional cooperation, and preparing the region for the future impacts of emerging technologies like AI before taking questions about the potential impacts of a government shutdown on the region’s labor market and economy. Fundamentally, the discussion centered around the notion that the Greater Washington region has one of the most educated workforces in the world and should be in a position to capitalize on the new disruptive technologies changing the national and global economic landscapes and what the region can do to maintain and expand the edge that it currently has in that sector.  

LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR IN-PERSON EVENT

Our though-provoking moderator Steve Proctor, President and CEO of G.S. Proctor & Associates, led our next discussion, which engaged Senate Presidents Lucas and Ferguson on a broad range of topics spanning workforce and education, transit, economic and environmental sustainability, health and wellness, technology, and legislative priorities for Maryland and Virginia in the coming cycle, giving attendees a high-level view into what the upcoming legislative cycle is likely to bring for the region.  

Perhaps the biggest take-away, though, was the common theme through the two sessions of collaboration between jurisdictions. Leaders in both sessions have expressed an understanding of the importance of interjurisdictional intraregional collaboration and signaled a desire to work with one another more closely. Connecting regional leaders and the business community is, in large part, the goal of this series and the opportunity to see, in real time, the beginnings of those conversations and for business leaders to take part in the discussion during Q and A time to shape the conversation is a huge step toward this goal.  

If you were able to attend last month’s sessions, thank you for being a part of the conversations and helping to advance collaboration and cooperation within the region, and if you weren’t, make sure that you are able to attend future events so that you can be a party to the conversation going forward and as informed as possible about changes coming to the region’s policy landscape. 

Want to learn more abou these RPLS discussions?

Learn more here: Regional Senate Presidents

Learn more here: Regional Labor Leaders

Board of Trade holds 30th Fall Business Classic at National Museum of Women in the Arts

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The Greater Washington Board of Trade gathered more than 400 regional leaders and business professionals for our 30th Fall Business Classic on Oct. 26 at the National Museum of Women in the Arts. This annual gathering celebrates the importance of working together to connect our business community. 

The evening was highlighted by a spectacular and newly renovated venue, fascinating museum exhibits, and engaging conversations on regional business topics, which created a high-energy event. 

Regional collaboration is at the core of the Board of Trade’s mission, which makes convening the region’s leading business executives, community partners, and elected and appointed officials for meaningful conversations a valuable part of enhancing our region and its communities. 

Click here to view more pictures from FBC here 

Since our establishment in 1889, the Board of Trade has a history of bringing our region together for meaningful dialogues that lead to action. Over the decades this has included initiating D.C.’s subway development in the 1930s, helping form parks along our beautiful rivers, pushing for the development of the region’s airports, and helping bring organizations together to build entertainment and sporting venues in our region. 

We’d like to extend our thanks to all the sponsors, participants, and staff who put in tremendous effort to make this event a success. We look forward to continuing to build a brighter future for the Greater Washington region, one meaningful connection at a time. 

Our next featured event this fall with be the annual Capital Region Transportation Forum at Georgetown University. Click here to check out more and consider registering. 

This 2023 Fall Business Classic was presented by M&T Bank. Supporting Sponsors of this event are Bank of America, Bechtel, Capital One, Giant Food LLP, Miles & Stockbridge P.C., National Museum of Women in the Arts, Pepco, Ridgewells, Washingtonian Magazine, Wells Fargo, Western Transportation Group. 

Stay up to date on Board of Trade events here: https://www.bot.org/events 

Maryland and Virginia senate leadership discuss legislation and policies impacting the Greater Washington region

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The Greater Washington Board of Trade’s Regional Policy Leadership Series brought Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson and Virginia Senate President pro-tempore Luis Lucas together to discuss a broad range of topics spanning workforce and education, Transit, Economic and environmental sustainability, health and wellness, technology, the threat of government shutdown for the region, and legislative priorities for Maryland and Virginia in the coming cycle. The event, presented by G.S. Proctor and Associates, highlighted the importance of collaboration between jurisdictions in our region and the vital role that the Board of Trade plays in bringing decision makers together.  

From a workforce and talent development standpoint, both states are working to reevaluate and rework their education systems to function in the new economic landscape into which young students are graduating. As the cost of higher education continues to soar, Virginia’s focus on connecting higher education institutions with major jobs providers in the region in conjunction with a renewed focus and reinvestment into apprenticeship programs which provide a look into alternative paths not including higher education, ensure that Virginian’s are fully aware of the universe of educational paths before them. In Maryland, the blueprint for Maryland’s future is underway and focusing on every stage of education, investing in early childhood education by ensuring the availability of free or low cost child care for all four year olds and low income three year olds and working to ensure that no children make it through high school without having completed certificate or apprenticeship programs providing a clear career path forward.  

WMATA, the connective sinew of the region, was a big discussion point. Both legislatures are committed to solving the funding problems currently plaguing the body and are fully aware of the degree to which public transit in the region provides enormous potential for economic prosperity. Connecting MD, VA, and DC and creating seamless transitions between jurisdictions in the region is a fundamental bedrock of the local economy and as each jurisdiction moves toward electrification and fulfillment of environmental goals, is likely to become more and more important as public transportation must necessarily take a front seat in reaching those ends.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_eJyxb7JzDs

Both states have made historic gains in tax revenue and are being cautious when looking at their budgets in the near future. As federal COVID relief dollars begin to dry up, Ensuring that state budgets are not careening toward a funding cliff is vital for the long term sustainability of the region, leading the states to invest heavily in shorter term projects without substantial long term budgets which were designed to jump start movement toward equity in concert with many of the plans already mentioned in this discussion.  

Both senate presidents discussed what their respective states are doing to combat and ameliorate the effects of climate change. With Virginia’s senate resisting Youngkin’s calls for an exit from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, and Maryland focusing on a comprehensive set of fairly aggressive climate goals. Both jurisdictions are committed to the sustainability of these efforts and ensuring that the business interests throughout the region are on board and a part of ongoing discussions. Both presidents further concluded that the entire region would need to collaborate on many of these initiatives to ensure viability as both states are on “parallel paths”. 

Crime emerged as a discussion topic for both jurisdictions. Both legislatures are committed to addressing the root causes of violence through comprehensive programs including the expansion of mental health providers in the school system in an attempt to head off violent crime with prophylaxis rather than punishment. These efforts are also part of a broader focus on provision of mental health services to residents as we continue to see prolonged impacts of the COVID-19 epidemic especially on the youth of the region.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejCj-jusWR8

Technology is taking a leading position in the development of the region as it undergoes an explosion in cutting-edge high-tech positions while struggling to contend with data privacy and potential job loss concerns associated with many of these new disruptive technologies. The entire region is working to utilize new technologies and reap as many benefits as possible from innovators in the region while remaining vigilant about protecting residents who are potentially vulnerable to some of the technologies’ negative externalities.  

Both Senate Presidents concluded with discussion of their legislative priorities which focused primarily on environmental sustainability and educational equity for Virginia, and addressing youth violence, creation of affordable housing, and prioritizing transportation investment in Maryland; both further concluding that they look forward to connecting with one another to discuss their plans and how the region can work more closely together on all of these goals. 

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE FULL DISCUSSION

The Board of Trade will continue to connect the business community to information directly from policy makers through our Regional Policy Leadership Series (RPLS), ensuring that our members have the best up-to-date knowledge impacting regional policies. Stay tuned for our upcoming sessions with regional Senate Presidents, Attorneys General, Comptrollers, and more.  

This Regional Policy Leadership Series  webinar was presented by G.S. Proctor @ Associates. Supporting Sponsors of the event series are Comcast, Fox Rothschild LLP, Giant Food LLC, G.S. Proctor & Associates Inc., Holland & Knight LLP, McGuireWoods Consulting LLC, McGuireWoods LLP, MGM National Harbor, First National Bank and Uber. Thank you for supporting the Greater Washington Board of Trade and our region’s business community.    

Stay up-to-date on Board of Trade events here: https://www.bot.org/events 

Let’s Collaborate: How to rebrand math for the future sucess of business in our region

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Math is not just about equations but a vital skill for daily problem-solving, business success, and even landing on Mars. And in the Greater Washington region, it will help our communities grow, helping younger generations tackle issues facing transportation, economics, healthcare, and so much more.

Board of Trade President & CEO Jack McDougle joined WTOP and the Collaborative for Student Success in a discussion about why math matters for community success, why we need to help rebrand it to make it more popular to younger generations, and how we can help support its growth and necessity.

Below is the view interview from our discussion with WTOP. Read the full readout of the interview here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lf_FsUyTTYs&t=1s

Check out more content from our partnership with WTOP to showcase how businesses in our region are helping grow and create stronger communities in Greater Washington here.

Want to learn more about upcoming events that help you engage in the Greater Washington business community? Stay up-to-date on Board of Trade events here: https://www.bot.org/events 

 

How research and evidence can chart the path to educational equity | WTOP Partnership

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Originally posted by WTOP on behalf of the American Institues of Research (AIR) and the Board of Trade here.

In 1954, the landmark Supreme Court ruling in Brown v. Board of Education found that a “separate, but equal” education was unconstitutional and ordered U.S. public schools to desegregate. However, as we approach the 70th anniversary of this ruling, U.S. schools are far from integrated. In fact, a 2022 federal report shows that many U.S. schools remain deeply divided along racial, ethnic and economic lines, despite increasing diversity in the student population.

“This deepening segregation has serious and lasting effects on students, families and communities,” said Jessica Heppen, president of the American Institutes for Research (AIR), a nonpartisan, not-for-profit institution headquartered in Arlington, Virginia that conducts behavioral and social science research and delivers technical assistance domestically and globally. “Educational inequity is a self-perpetuating ecosystem that needs to be systematically examined and dismantled,” said Heppen, a researcher and expert in education policy and practice.

Improving education is core to AIR’s work with its clients and communities, as well as a key area of focus for the AIR Equity Initiative, the institution’s five-year, $105 million investment in addressing the effects of segregation by race and place through research, grant-making, partnerships and other activities.

“Increasing opportunities and improving outcomes will take collaboration among all facets of our communities—schools, housing, public safety, social services and more,” said Rashawn Ray, vice president and executive director of the AIR Equity Initiative. “We are working to actively build structures and systems that forge integration and create educational equity.”

Segregation results in disparate academic outcomes, opportunities and experiences for many students. For instance, data from the National Center for Education Statistics Equity in Education Dashboard shows that schools where more than 75 percent of the attendees were students of color were more likely to take disciplinary actions than other schools. This is a concern because research shows that discipline measures such as suspensions and expulsions have negative effects on students’ academic outcomes and attendance, and do little to change future behavior.

With Equity Initiative funding, AIR researchers are conducting a study of the Bridges Collaborative, which connects school districts, housing organizations and other groups to collaborate and learn from each other on strategies to integrate schools. (See what AIR has learned so far.)

Academic gaps and a road to recovery

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated long-standing inequities in U.S. schools. This was seen vividly in the most recent mathematics and reading scores from the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a federally administered test given to a nationally representative sample of students across the U.S. Scores fell or stagnated, and gaps among different racial and ethnic subgroups widened.

Academic recovery efforts, such as extended learning time and tutoring, have made some headway, but not enough, according to research from AIR’s Center for Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Education Research, NWEA and Harvard University. While research shows such programs are working, most schools and districts have not been able to implement interventions at the scale needed to counter widespread learning losses.

Two complementary AIR projects are helping researchers and practitioners understand and address the effects of the pandemic.

The RESTART Network aims to collect evidence about practices that can promote student academic recovery, particularly among students from marginalized groups and those who experienced learning challenges prior to the pandemic. AIR leads the network, which is funded by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) at the U.S. Department of Education.

AIR is also studying how states, districts and communities responded to the pandemic through the COVID-19 and Equity in Education: Longitudinal Deep Dive project, funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the AIR Equity Initiative. The COVID-19 and Equity in Education Enrollment Explorer, an interactive data tool AIR designed as part of the project, helps policymakers and educators analyze pre- and post-pandemic student enrollment trends by locality.

“These projects aim to bring together the research communities, so that we can speak with a clear voice about how to interpret the research and share evidence-informed recommendations that can help guide policymakers,” said Susan Therriault, an AIR Institute Fellow who is leading this work.

Putting evidence into action

While data can provide decisionmakers with some insight into where they should focus or how they may tackle educational inequities, help may be needed to put that evidence into action.

Through the Regional Educational Laboratories (REL), funded by IES, AIR collaborates with states, school districts and communities in two U.S. regions to identify and ameliorate challenges. For instance, in Chicago, a team from REL Midwest is working with educators from Jonathan Burr Elementary School to implement evidence-based math engagement strategies and better prepare students for success in advanced math. And a team at REL Southwest is working with the Arkansas Department of Education to see how different communications strategies can encourage families to access literacy resources. These are just a couple of examples of how AIR is working with states and communities to improve educational opportunities.

“We not only want to generate high-quality evidence about what works to improve educational equity, we also want to help schools, districts and communities put that evidence to work,” Heppen said. “That is how we can achieve our mission and improve people’s lives today and in the future.”

Regional Labor Leaders Gather for Workforce and Labor Discussion

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Top labor officials from Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia came together to discuss the future of labor markets and workforce development as part of the Board of Trade’s Regional Policy Leadership Series on Oct. 19. Sec. Portia Wu, Dr. Unique N. Morris-Hughes, and Sec. Bryan Slater discussed topics across the labor and workforce landscape including workforce development and retention, labor environment, intraregional cooperation, and preparing the region for the future impacts of emerging technologies like AI (Artificial Intelligence) before addressing the potential impacts of a government shutdown on the region’s labor market and economy as well and more detailed discussion of what intraregional collaboration should look like going forward.    

https://youtu.be/EXekjAV_XTc?si=CQUUmGIfkjKdTQh0
Sec. Portia Wu, Dr. Unique N. Morris-Hughes, and Sec. Bryan Slater each give an overview regarding labor and employment for their respective jurisdictions.

Across the region, all three jurisdictions are experiencing record low unemployment rates and are bouncing back from lower labor participation rates experienced throughout and in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Bolstered by concerted efforts on the part of each jurisdiction to shore up existing and create new pipelines from education to the workforce, these employment numbers paint a picture of a region which is recovering rapidly from the malaise of the pandemic and working to engage young residents in the labor market to ensure that this rate of growth is stable and sustainable over time. 

Expansion of efforts to create labor pipelines from local resident students to the IT (Information Technology), Professional Services Management, and Hospitality and Tourism sectors promises to ensure that the region’s economy can be supplied with the local labor market, reinvesting in the current population. Job training programs like Virginia’s workforce innovation act, Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, and DC’s infrastructure academy represent an enormous investment in young residents and in ensuring that departments of labor and employment are able to connect students with the workforce through internship programs, apprenticeships, and signing days, offering tax credits for training programs in critical and growing industries and incentivization of youth involvement in job training programs.  

Continued investment into workforce retention programs like FAMLI and provision of mental health services at all points along the lifetime of an individual’s career promise to further improve the region’s bounce back from pandemic workforce participation levels and keep groups frequently at risk of dropping temporarily or permanently from the labor market engaged. Expanding the mental health care capacity through universal licensing recognition, telehealth services, and demand side subsidization will help to combat the burnout and provide much needed wrap around services to those working on the front lines of the economy.   

https://youtu.be/j_Z1Crqe3y4?si=VSMZG0vnoYR4hUgy
Sec. Portia Wu, Dr. Unique N. Morris-Hughes, and Sec. Bryan Slater discussed how regional jurisdictions are also preparing for the expansion of AI in the workplace.

Regional jurisdictions are also preparing for the expansion of AI in the workplace and setting out guardrails for where and how AI can be used to prevent unfair labor practices while actively utilizing artificial intelligences to ensure that every resident has the ability to start on equal ground in the labor market when searching for employment.   

Finally, panelists discussed their concerns regarding a potential government shutdown and the relative risks of a longer or shorter period as well as some loan programs designed to bridge unpaid working periods along with their desire to build a more robust model to protect the region’s largely federally reliant economy.   

Click here to watch the full interview. 

The Board of Trade will continue to connect the business community to information directly from policy makers through our Regional Policy Leadership Series (RPLS), ensuring that our members have the best up-to-date knowledge impacting regional policies. Stay tuned for our upcoming sessions with regional Senate Presidents, Attorneys General, Comptrollers, and more.  

This Regional Policy Leadership Series  webinar was presented by First National Bank. Supporting Sponsors of the event series are Comcast, Fox Rothschild LLP, Giant Food LLC, G.S. Proctor & Associates Inc., Holland & Knight LLP, McGuireWoods Consulting LLC, McGuireWoods LLP, MGM National Harbor, and Uber. Thank you for supporting the Greater Washington Board of Trade and our region’s business community.    

Stay up-to-date on Board of Trade events here: https://www.bot.org/events 

WMATA Provides Updates on FY25 Budget Deficit

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At our Board meeting in May, WMATA’s General Manager and CEO, Randy Clarke, presented an overview of Metro’s operating and financial situation. At that time, reliability and services were improving and ridership was increasing though not yet to pre-pandemic levels. The General Manager also indicated the agency was forecasting a significant funding gap of $750 million for FY25 due to a variety of factors.  

Last week, management presented an updated financial picture along with potential remedies to help reduce the FY25 budget deficit. 

We are encouraged by management’s commitment to realizing internal cost savings and efficiencies. The nearly $100 million in one-time savings plus roughly $600 million in other reductions over the next 10 years is a good start and we expect that WMATA’s management and Board will continue working to identify additional improvements. 

However, a proposal to utilize capital funds to reduce the operating deficit is not desirable though might unfortunately be necessary. The structural problems that have impaired WMATA since its inception must be addressed to find a sustainable long-term solution. 

The Board of Trade will continue to work alongside the region’s elected and appointed officials, the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, the MetroNow Coalition, and other business and regional organizations to ensure WMATA is able to meet the region’s transit needs while operating effectively, efficiently, and safely. 

Metro services are critical to our region’s economy and quality of life; even more so as the region continues to change and grow. We must consider this an opportunity to think longer-term to create an integrated mobility system for all residents, businesses, and communities. 

Board of Trade joins WTOP for Small Business Septmember

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What’s the current landscape for small businesses in our region?

Our President & CEO, Jack McDougle, joined WTOP and the Prince George’s Chamber of Commerce as part of supporting Small Business September. Throughout the month on WTOP, see, hear, and interact with information and advice from regional business leaders.

Watch Jack’s full discussion with WTOP below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsJ95RDOOIs&t=4s

Transurban and VDOT open Fredericksburg I-95 Express Lanes

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New Board of Trade member, Transurban, community leaders, along with state and local officials in Northern Virginia, commemorated the opening of a new 10-mile extension to the I-95 Express Lanes in Stafford County that will provide quicker transportation to and from the Greater Washington region.

These additional express lanes on I-95 heading to Fredericksburg officially opened, Thursday, Aug. 18, just in time for Labor Day Weekend and the remainder of peak summer travel season. The $670 million project, a public-private partnership between the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and Transurban, broke ground in 2019 and is part of a more extensive network of express lanes already servicing and providing congestion relief to Northern Virginia.

Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin cut the ceremonial ribbon and stated, “The 95 Express Lanes provide faster, more reliable transportation along one of the Commonwealth’s busiest stretches of highway.”

With the opening of these additional lanes, the 95 Express Lanes have become the longest reversible road in the nation. Additional entry points will open later in 2023 adding more access to this much-needed transportation project that is reducing travel times in Northern Virginia.

Transurban currently operates the 495, 95, and 395 Express Lanes in our region bringing quicker travel times, reduced traffic, and more efficient operations to the region’s highways. These additional lanes are part of a two-phase system and when completed, are expected to bring more access to Marine Corps Base Quantico, the FBI Academy, and other facilities in the area.

Click to watch a full report on this project from NBC4 Washington

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