Author: aschapp1

Gifford Weighs in on Maryland’s Proposed Purple Line

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The Washington Post quoted Center Director Jonathan Gifford in a March 12 article on the $5.6 billion 36-year contract that would create the Purple Line light rail system in Maryland. Aptly titled “Determining if the Purple Line contract is a good deal isn’t easy,” the article focuses on the proposal as the Maryland Board of Public Works prepares for a vote on April 6.

The Purple Line is designed to run two-car trains along primarily local streets between Bethesda in Montgomery County and New Carrollton in Prince George’s County, inside the Capital Beltway. Twenty-one station stops are planned. If approved, the public-private partnership would be one of the most expensive and longest-term contracts awarded in Maryland. The Purple Line would also be only the second U.S. transit project to rely on private financing.

Gifford’s comments included how hard it is to determine how well public-private partnerships work on U.S. transit projects because “we have a pretty short track record” with them. He says that the best ones allow the government to assume only the financial risks it can best handle.

To read the full article, click here.

GRA Analyzes Feasibility of Guatemalan P3 Projects

Center Graduate Research Associate Lisardo Bolaños, who previously worked with a think tank in Guatemala, was interviewed about ten P3 projects to be implemented in Guatamela, including highways, railroad, airports, ports and a gas pipeline. Guatemalan P3 Agency, ANADIE, is evaluating the feasibility of these projects.

Different analysts and local government organizations mentioned concerns due to insufficient information on the projects and insufficient information given to the public on what P3s are and what their advantages are, as well as insufficient information on how local governments may take advantage of P3s. Bolaños, based on the research done at the Center, mentioned that it’s important that Guatemala: (i) enacts a Chapter 11-like legislation to guarantee the continuous operation of the projects in case of problems; (ii) enacts legal reforms to favor the buy-out of these projects as an alternative to bankruptcy and renegotiations; and (iii) promotes the use of mechanisms to prevent renegotiations, such as Dispute Review Boards.

To read the full article (in Spanish) in Plaza Pública by Julie López and Miguel González Moraga, click here.

Center Director Briefs International Visitors

On February 9, 2016, Dr. Jonathan Gifford gave a briefing to guests of the State Department’s International Visitors Leadership Program (IVLP). The program focuses on the role of public-private partnerships in restructuring economies. Click to view Gifford’s presentation, U.S. Transportation Public Private Partnerships: Governance and Institutional Arrangements.

Mason Fellowship Awarded to Center GRA

Center Graduate Research Associate Jeong Yun (“JK”) Kweun is a 2016 recipient of George Mason University’s Summer Research Fellowship. The Fellowship provides funding for masters and doctoral level students to spend concentrated time on thesis or dissertation research over the summer break without the distraction of securing and carrying out other employment. JK was selected from dozens of highly-qualified applicants conducting cutting-edge, innovative research at the University.

TRB 95th Annual Meeting

On January 13, Center Director Jonathan Gifford participated in a panel entitled “National U.S. Department of Transportation Act at Age 50: Consequences and Lessons” at the TRB 95th Annual Meeting. The panel included Rolf Schmitt, Deputy Associate Administrator and Deputy Director at the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, and was moderated by Alan Pisarski.

This year begins the 50th anniversary period of the U.S. Department of Transportation. The legislation creating the Department was passed in 1966 and took effect in 1967. The panel of historians and department veterans discussed where the Department has been more than the sum of its parts, and lessons we can draw from the DOT Act to help us move forward today. For example, why was the Department created? Has U.S. DOT served those original purposes? How has the DOT Act affected states and other transportation stakeholders?

Packed 2016 TRB reception celebrates Center progress

School and Center leaders welcomed 80 guests to the Center’s 2016 TRB reception the evening of January 12. Overlooking the soaring lobby of D.C.’s Walter Washington Convention Center, attendees took a break from the conference action to network and compare notes on P3 projects and event highlights, while Mason alumni took advantage of a rare chance to catch up and reconnect.

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