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Fairfax committee cites SmartScale scoring and cost normalization as main reasons Northern Virginia won few state awards
Summary
County staff told the board that SmartScale’s cost‑benefit scoring and statewide weighting disadvantage Northern Virginia projects because higher local costs drive down scores; staff proposed operational and legislative strategies including regional submissions and advocating to normalize costs.
Fairfax County officials told the Board of Supervisors’ Transportation Committee on June 3 that the state’s SmartScale scoring process has left the Northern Virginia region with very limited recommended funding in the most recent cycle, and they offered possible short‑ and long‑term responses.
Noel Dominguez of the Fairfax County Department of Transportation told the committee that Northern Virginia received recommendations for only a small fraction of its SmartScale applications in the most recent round and that cost is the primary factor hurting the region. “Most of our projects have high benefit scores, but then you act factor in the cost and they all drop,” Dominguez said.
SmartScale evaluates projects on measures such as congestion mitigation, safety, accessibility, environmental quality and economic development. In line with state law, Northern Virginia (classified as a Category A region) has its…
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