The unexpected departure of a major pro-transit voice in the Virginia General Assembly has created a void that an Arlington legislator appears primed to fill.
Del. Adele McClure (D-2), who sits on the House Committee on Transportation, has provided a key voice in various recent discussions on transit. In the 2026 General Assembly session, she could step into the shoes left behind by former Del. Mark Sickles (D-17), who is leaving his elected post to become Virginia’s next Secretary of Finance.
Potential increases to towing fees and taxi rates are on the agenda as County Board members close out 2025.
Both matters will be considered at the Board meeting on Saturday, Dec. 13.
State Sen. Adam Ebbin has promised Arlington leaders that he will push to bring home more transit funding from the 2026 General Assembly session.
“That’ll probably be the most intense of the things I’m working on,” Ebbin (D-39) said during a Nov. 13 work session between County Board members and the community’s legislative delegation.
The Arlington County Board has requested more study on possible increases to towing rates before making a decision.
Board members unanimously rejected a staff and advisory-panel recommendation to hold a November public hearing and potentially increase maximum towing rates from the current $155 ($135 plus $20 surcharge) to as much as $210.
A second left-turn on Langston Blvd could help ease a major rush-hour traffic choke point in East Falls Church, county staff believe.
Later this month, County Board members will be asked to request $1.5 million from the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) for another turning lane from eastbound Langston Blvd onto westbound Washington Blvd adjacent to Interstate 66.
Construction work on the first traffic circle in Falls Church is gearing up.
Signs are in place for the project at S. Maple Avenue and Annandale Road, which will convert the existing four-way stop with traffic lights into what transportation planners hope will be a better travel experience.
A newly adopted vision statement affirms Arlington County’s commitment to supporting modes of transportation other than cars, but falls short of some advocates’ ambitions.
County Board members, who adopted the statement and associated goals at a Saturday meeting, defended the new language as aspirational while also being realistic about the current state of transit in Arlington.
The Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC) is considering various ideas to keep cars from blocking Arlington’s designated bus lanes.
Nearly a decade after the county and Alexandria inaugurated the region’s first dedicated bus-only travel lanes, ticketing motorists who get in the way remains decidedly low-tech.
Arlington officials say they’re aware of deficiencies affecting pedestrians and bicyclists along stretches of N. Glebe Road between I-66 and Langston Blvd.
“The sidewalks belong to a different era — terrible and definitely not adequate,” County Board Chair Takis Karantonis said on Saturday.
Falls Church officials next week are expected to authorize requests for regional funds in support of two key transportation upgrades.
The proposals for Haycock Road and Annandale Road were discussed at the July 7 City Council work session, with formal action slated for Monday, July 14.
A proposal to add a 10-foot-wide path for bicyclists along Haycock Road has won informal support from the Falls Church Planning Commission.
“It will be exciting if it happens,” commission chair Andrea Caumont said during a June 4 briefing on the plan.
Street upgrades in Bluemont, Claremont and Shirlington, plus a loan for renovating 73 affordable housing units, are scheduled for County Board consideration this weekend.
Board members have a total 52 items on their consent agenda this month, but no regular hearing items. All items pulled for further consideration will be heard at the Board’s recessed meeting, set for Wednesday, June 18.
