Tim supports improvements to our nation’s infrastructure that create jobs and improve daily life for families across Virginia. In the Senate, he has successfully pushed to pass the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which makes a significant federal investment to improve roads, bridges, rail (including Metro), water, and broadband. Tim has pushed for federal funding for transportation projects across the Commonwealth and has helped secure grants for major projects like the I-95 Atlantic Gateway multimodal project, a new interstate connector at Norfolk International Terminal, the long-overdue replacement of the traffic-clogged Chesapeake Deep Creek Bridge, and rehabilitation of the I-64 Delta Frame Bridges.
Tim recognizes how vital Metro is to Northern Virginia, and he has played a critical role in helping unleash its full potential—including by helping to broker the deal between the Washington Metro Area Transit Authority (WMATA), Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA), the Commonwealth of Virginia, and local governments to construct the Silver Line while he was Governor. Tim built on that work in Congress by leading efforts to secure $900 million in federal funds for the Silver Line’s expansion to Dulles International Airport, which was officially completed on November 15, 2022. Tim has also pushed for reforms to improve Metro safety and service. Tim has worked to strengthen federal safety oversight authority over Metro, leading bipartisan legislation to enact the Metro Safety Commission, a tough new safety oversight body with the legal authority to mandate long overdue safety and operational changes at WMATA.
In 2017, Tim played a key role in fixing the aging Arlington Memorial Bridge, a critical investment for Northern Virginia commuters and visitors to Virginia and Washington, D.C. that saved the bridge from closing.
Many states would consider themselves fortunate to have either a major international airport or a major international seaport, but Virginia is blessed with both. Making the Port of Virginia and Dulles International Airport all that they can be has been a top priority of Tim’s. He has worked to advance transformative projects at the Port like the Craney Island Eastward Expansion, which will nearly double its cargo capacity, and the dredging of Norfolk Harbor to depths that will attract the largest post-Panamax container ships to help reduce supply chain bottlenecks. He has also worked to secure federal funds through HUD and the Army Corps of Engineers for flood-resilient infrastructure to protect the Port, Naval Station Norfolk, and Hampton Roads from sea level rise and recurrent flooding. He has also teamed up with the Virginia delegation to secure funds for more Customs and Border Protection officers at Dulles that will reduce long lines at customs and security, and he has pushed back against changes to the Reagan National slot and perimeter rule policies that would negatively impact Dulles and could increase airplane noise in the neighborhoods surrounding Reagan National.
As Governor of Virginia, Tim made infrastructure investment a top priority. In addition to playing a key role in laying the foundation to make Metro’s Silver Line to Dulles a reality, he advanced critical projects like the Norfolk Tide light-rail system and Amtrak service to Lynchburg, which in 2017 was extended to Roanoke. Tim understands that these are the kinds of smart investments that help our economy grow and thrive. He will continue being a strong advocate for fixing our roads, bridges, and rail systems to create jobs, improve the daily lives of commuters, and fuel economic growth in the Commonwealth.