April 22, 2025

 Neighbors, 

 

Happy Earth Day! I hope you’ll join me for my 5th annual Earth Day Town Hall on Thursday, April 24 — I have included more information about the town hall below as well as the following updates:

  • Town Hall

    • Earth Day Town Hall on 4/24

    • Legislative Town Hall

  • Emergency Committee on Federal Workforce and Funding Reductions

  • Community Updates

    • George Mason University Social Work Class

  • Transportation Update

    • 2025 Roadway Paving and Restriping Plan

    • Newington Road And Cinder Bed Road Intersection Construction

    • Metro Updates

As always, let me know if you have questions or need assistance by calling my office at (804) 698-1018 or emailing me at DelKTran@house.virginia.gov. 

 

Best, Kathy

 

Kathy KL Tran

Delegate

 

Town Hall

 

Earth Day Town Hall

Delegate Kathy Tran’s 

5th Annual Earth Day Town Hall

Thursday, April 24 at 7pm

Register here!

I hope to see you at my 5th annual Earth Day Town Hall on Thursday, April 24 at 7pm – This is a virtual session and we will be joined by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Northern Virginia Conservation Trust, and Virginia League of Conservation Voters. We will be discussing the latest environmental news from Richmond and how we can continue making a difference. See you soon!

 

Legislative Town Hall

Thank you to everyone who attended my recent Legislative Town Hall! I appreciated the opportunity to share updates from the Reconvened Session and answer constituent questions.

Emergency Committee on Federal Workforce and Funding Reductions

On Tuesday, April 8, I attended the Northern Virginia meeting of the House of Delegates’ Emergency Committee on Federal Workforce and Funding Reductions. This Committee was established by the Speaker of the House of Delegates to address the impacts of federal workforce and funding reductions. 

At the meeting, the Committee heard from a range of subject matter experts, including:

  • The Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service on defining the scope of Virginia's federal workforce and associated economic impacts;

  • The Northern Virginia Regional Commission, Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce, Northern Virginia Economic Development Alliance,  NoVA Labor Federation’s Federal Labor Caucus, and Fairfax County Board of Supervisors for regional perspectives on workforce impacts;

  • Crossroads Strategies with an overview of the federal budget process;

  • The Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities on how federal policy will higher education research; and

  • Northern Virginia Community College highlighting their NOVAnext Partnership.

Stakeholders shared key data points, indicating that a significant reduction in the federal workforce will directly impact Virginia:

  • Overall, more than 16 percent of Virginia’s workforce are federal employees or contractors. 

  • Virginia is the state with the second largest population of federal employees, with 321,516 full-time federal civilian jobs and 130,751 military personnel. 

  • Federal contracts in the state total $109 billion and are directly tied to over 441,000 jobs. If the federal government reduces its force by 75 percent in the region, then Virginia is expected to experience an unemployment rate of 9.8 percent.

The Committee is actively engaging stakeholders across Virginia, and I look forward to its legislative and budgetary recommendations to support affected workers and communities, maintain essential services, and protect Virginia’s economy.

 

If you would like to view the materials from the latest committee meeting, you can do so here. The next meeting of the committee is scheduled for May 12 in Wytheville. To provide written comments to the committee, click here.

 

If you or someone you know has been impacted by the workforce reductions, my team and I compiled a Resource Page that identifies resources from our state government and Fairfax County as well as nonprofit organizations that serve our area. You can view this Resource Page here.


Community Updates


George Mason University Social Work Class

Many thanks to my constituent, Professor Tomaszewski, for inviting me to speak with social work students at George Mason University. I enjoyed sharing how my background as a social worker has shaped my work in the House of Delegates and to hear from the next generation of social workers!

Transportation Updates


2025 Roadway Paving and Restriping Plan

The Fairfax County Department of Transportation (FCDOT) and Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) are seeking input to its 2025 Roadway Paving and Restriping plan. 

You can learn more about this effort and see instructions for submitting public comment at the 2025 Paving and Restriping Program webpage.

Newington Road And Cinder Bed Road Intersection Construction

VDOT has begun construction on improvements to the intersection of Newington Road and Cinder Bed Road in Newington, with an expected completion later this year.

The changes include upgrading the intersection to enhance driver and pedestrian safety and improve traffic flow, including:

  • A new traffic signal with flashing yellow arrows for northbound Newington Road to the Gunston Industrial Park and southbound Newington Road to Cinder Bed Road.

  • Three new crosswalks with Accessible Pedestrian Signals (APS) and APS upgrades to the existing crosswalk.

  • Upgraded ADA curb ramps for improved accessibility.

Please be alert to new traffic patterns in the area. During construction:

  • Weekday and overnight lane closures may occur outside of peak travel hours near the intersection.

  • Pedestrian access will be maintained on existing crosswalks throughout construction.

To learn more about the project, click here.


Metro Updates 

 

Metrorail Service Changes Begin June 22

Metro announced the following changes expanding weekend hours and adjustments the Silver and Red lines effective Sunday, June 22:

  • Longer weekend hours: The rail system will open one hour earlier at 6 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. The system will close one hour later on Fridays and Saturdays at 2 a.m.

  • Split Silver Line service: The Silver Line will run in two service patterns, with half of trains operating between Ashburn and Downtown Largo, and half operating between Ashburn and New Carrollton.

  • More Silver Line service during peak times: Additional trains will operate during peak rush hour on weekdays, with trains running from Wiehle-Reston East to New Carrollton in the morning and from Stadium-Armory to Wiehle-Reston East in the afternoon.

  • More Red Line service during peak times: Additional Red Line trains will be scheduled to run at least 4 minutes (up from every 5 minutes) during the busiest portions of weekday rush hours.

Better Bus Network Changes Begin June 29 

The Better Bus Network, Metro’s first redesign of their entire bus system in 50 years, will go into effect on June 29, 2025. 

The new network includes changes to every bus route, with adjustments such as routing, increased frequency on select lines, and a new naming system. The redesign also aims to improve connections to transit stations and expand service during midday, evening, and weekend hours.

For more details, click here.