Impasse in Virginia

I suppose it was too much to expect that the Virginia General Assembly could accomplish something for the state's travelers in a few days that it couldn't achieve in six months this year.

Today's Post story by Amy Gardner and Tim Craig describes a pattern of failure for which Virginians should hold state leaders accountable. The latest is that the legislators failed to reach agreement on any substantial plan to improve Virginia's transportation system and went home. Hope they traveled off-peak.

Letter writers to the Dr. Gridlock column who want to talk about transportation issues in Northern Virginia often fall into one of two categories: They look to their fellow motorists or passengers to solve problems, or they look to government to solve problems. They can both be right. Getting around this region would be a lot more sane if people would show more commonsense and courtesy.

But all the courtesy in the world isn't going to put more trains in service on the Virginia Railway Express or widen the I-66 interchange at Gainesville. That's government's job. Many of you will have a say on that in next year's General Assembly elections. We've always found in our poll at The Post and in the letters to Dr. Gridlock that transportation issues really matter to people in this region. This would be a good time to vote your interests.

What's your take on this? Did you like any of the ideas the legislature rejected? How do you see the region's future in light of this failure in Richmond? I'd like to hear from you either here at Get There or by e-mail to drgridlock@washpost.com. (Please tell me your name and home community when you send e-mails to the column.)