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By Marc, January 28, 2010 9:09 pm

Sens. Webb and Warner announced today that Virginia has been awarded $75 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARAA) stimulus funds to add a third track segment between Arkendale in Stafford County and Powell’s Creek in Price William County.

This will provide a huge benefit in providing more reliable performance for high-speed Amtrak passenger trains and Virginia Railway Express (VRE) commuter trains by allowing passenger trains and freight trains to share the same rail corridor in a more efficient manner. Based on topography, this new 11.4 miles of track will allow trains to increase their maximum speed to around 100 mph. The current maximum operating speed is 70 mph.

…Being a regular VRE rider, this is a great news…I’ve been quite happy with the improvements that VRE has made in their overall on-time performance over the last two years and the addition of this third track will provide for even further improvement…Many thanks to Sens. Webb and Warner…

This project is slated to be completed in 2 years and is actually part of a larger effort to build a Southeast High Speed Rail Corridor in Virginia.

The benefits of this project reach well beyond increased rail performance and extend to job creation in the region. As Sen. Warner explains,

this project will create construction jobs and spur economic activity at the local level, and eventually it will be part of the larger effort to provide congestion relief and help reduce our nation’s dependence on fossil fuels.

Sen. Webb adds that that he is a

strong proponent of rail systems nationwide and also in Virginia, which reduce traffic on our highways in a cost effective way.

He had hoped for additional funding, but adds that

today’s $75 million commitment of stimulus funds will both [help] to spur job creation and economic growth, while making meaningful investments in Virginia’s high-speed rail.

To learn more about this project, you can click here (pdf): http://bit.ly/adWWFy.

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By Marc, December 16, 2009 7:41 pm

Gov. Kaine announced today that Stafford County Schools will receive $462,860 to help expand the Early Head Start (EHS) program, thanks to funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment (ARAA). This will likely mean more jobs in Stafford for teachers and family service staff, due to increased enrollment thanks to these funds.

EHS is a federally funded program for low-income families with children under the age of three and pregnant women. The program’s mission is to promote healthy prenatal outcomes for pregnant women; enhance the development of very young children; and to promote healthy family functioning. The mainstay of the program is a unique home visitation program that provides families with parental education and parent-child activities, comprehensive health and mental health services and access to high quality child care.

Gov. Kaine:

“Virginia has made great strides in our early childhood learning programs, including pre-kindergarten Head Start”

[…]

“Creating the healthy habits and nurturing environments that support learning and development start very early, so access to prenatal care and parent education can’t begin soon enough. It’s excellent news that more families will be helped through an increase in Early Head Start funding.”

Secretary of Health and Human Resources Marilyn B. Tavenner:

“Information shared in a home visit can address a family’s immediate needs – nutrition assistance, for example”

[…]

“In addition, family service staff reinforce the parenting skills that help moms and dads create and maintain an environment that supports early learning and healthy development.”

For more information or to learn more about the Early Head Start Program, visit the Early Head Start National Resource Center.