Dulles Rail Project: TIFIA Loan

Loudoun Closes on TIFIA Loan for Dulles Rail Project; Officials Praise Financial Benefits

In December 2014, Loudoun County closed on a low-interest loan of $195 million through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) to help finance the extension of Metrorail’s Silver Line into Loudoun. The associated $1.3 billion loan to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) will hold tolls at current levels through 2018 and limit future toll increases. Earlier, the U.S Secretary of Transportation approved Loudoun County’s application for credit assistance for a low-interest loan of up to $195.1 million for Loudoun’s portion of the Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project. Loudoun applied for the TIFIA loan in conjunction with its local partners on the Metrorail project, Fairfax County and MWAA.

The TIFIA loan offers a competitive interest rate and a delayed repayment schedule, which would allow the Metrorail Service Districts located in the areas surrounding the Loudoun County Metro stations to accrue revenue. The service districts were created to help pay for the construction of the Silver Line to Loudoun and for the ongoing costs of providing Metrorail service at those stations. An additional real property tax may be levied in the districts for these purposes, at a maximum rate of $0.20 per $100 of assessed property value.

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