Windsor Sounding

The Terms one learns when dealing with Government. Now we get "Soundings." I am not certain however if this is to replace community consultation or dialogue.

One dictionary meaning of sounding I read was:

• "A probe of the environment for scientific observation."

That sounded pretty good to me until I read another definition:

• "Noisy but with little significance."

Pretty much like what has taken place with the DRIC up to now. Let the people speak, pretend to listen, talk about the hundreds of meetings with the Community and stakeholders and then ignore all of it and do what you were going to do anyway.

I doubt I am going to attend the session errrr Sounding but thought I might contribute this to all those people who think that we are really going to get a P3 road in this area.

• Drivers steered clear of Greenway in 2008
  Loudoun Times-Mirror, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9 2009
  
  As the nation's economy continues to sink, some consumers are not only avoiding pricey stores and restaurants, but also toll roads.
  
  Dulles Greenway officials told the Times-Mirror that the number of vehicles that accessed the privately owned highway in 2008 declined 4.4 percent from the previous year.
  
  Opened since 1995, the 14-mile-long Greenway is owned by Toll Road Investors Partnership II, a subsidiary of the Australia-based Macquarie Group.
  
  Toll Road News recently reported that traffic on Macquarie's Indiana Toll Road was down 16.4 percent the last quarter of 2008 compared to 2007, while traffic on its Chicago Skyway dropped 9.2 percent. This month, Macquarie reported that because of challenging economic conditions, it is forecasting its 2009 profits to be half of its 2008 profits.
  
  Over the past two years, Macquarie has been widely criticized for raising tolls. U.S. Rep. Frank Wolf (R-10th) has been one of the harshest critics of the Greenway's owners, urging state lawmakers on several occasions to limit toll increases on the Greenway. On Jan. 1, tolls went up by 40 cents to $3.40 for most vehicles. By 2012, a one-way trip will run nearly $5.
  
  One reason for the toll hikes, Greenway owners have said, is that the road has not been a money-making venture. The increase was needed to fund road improvements and future expansion.
  
  When asked if the drop in motorists has Greenway owners worried about revenues, Greenway spokeswoman Ann Huggins-Lawler said, "I don't think there is reason for concern." She said roads across the country saw fewer drivers last year.
  
  According to the Federal Highway Administration, 112 billion fewer miles were driven on the nation's highways from the beginning of November 2007 through the end of November 2008 than during the previous 13 months.
  
  John Townsend is manager of public and government affairs for AAA Mid-Atlantic, which opposed the Greenway's recent toll hike. He blamed high gas prices in the summer and the deepening recession for causing motorists to steer clear of the Greenway and of driving in general in 2008.
  
  "People pared back on everything," he said, "including discretionary driving and paying expensive tolls."