Dulles rail

Dulles Rail Union Giveaway to Increase Costs

by Ivan Osorio on April 15, 2011

in Deregulate to Stimulate, Economy, Employment, Labor, Regulation

An expensive rail line for passengers traveling in and out of the Washington, D.C. region’s Dulles International Airport never struck me as a good use of taxpayer dollars. As a resident of northern Virginia, I’ve found the Washington Flyer bus service reliable and affordable. However, now that the Metro rail line is being built, its costs should be  kept as much under control as possible.

Unfortunately, the Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority (MWAA) — which oversees both Dulles and Reagan National — threw caution to the wind recently, by imposing a project labor agreement (PLA) on the second phase of the line’s construction. PLAs impose onerous conditions on contractors who wish to bid on government projects.

Under PLA, employers can be required to hire workers through union hiring halls and apprentices through union apprentice programs. In addition, workers — whether previously unionized or not — can be required to pay union dues. The Washington Examiner reports:

The MWAA board’s 11-2 decision last week to mandate a project labor agreement, or PLA, for the second phase of Dulles Rail construction, will not preclude nonunionized contractors from bidding on the multibillion-dollar project. If they win the bid, however, it will require they follow specific wage guidelines, offer union benefits, and hire union workers. The move comes on the heels of the board’s decision to spend $330 million more on the Dulles International Airport train station, against the wishes of state and local officials.

“Basically, this mandates unions,” said Fairfax County Supervisor Pat Herrity, R-Springfield.

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Bus Drivers Drive as Politicians Dither (and Spend)

by Ivan Osorio on January 12, 2009 · 2 comments

in Economy

The American economy’s current vulnerable state has prompted many people and businsses to trim expenses, but governments seem to be doing precisely the opposite. In today’s Washington Examiner, columnist Barbara Hollingsworth notes the cost ineffectiveness of extending Metro rail service out to Dulles Airport.

A study by the Washington Council of Governments determined that just one in 200 air passengers will ride Dulles Rail to its final destination, with the airport station projected to have the lowest head count of all 75 Metro stations — including the all-but-deserted one at Arlington Cemetery.

And yet the project refuses to die, propped up by state and local government officials, as well as private parties with government connections. Yet while politicians have been debating how to push this boondoggle, private enterprise has been providing affordable, comfortable mass transit to Dulles passengers for years.  I’ve used the Washington Flyer bus service many times, and have found it quite satisfactory. Best of all, it is paid for only by those who ride it.