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McDonnell: Transportation Funding Reform Will Have To Wait

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By Jonathan Wilson

Virginia's Gov. Elect Bob McDonnell will be sworn in at noon on Saturday.

But despite making transportation the signature issue of his campaign, the Republican says the state's transportation problems will have to wait, at least until after this legislative session.

A spokesperson for the Gov.-Elect says McDonnell wants more time to build consensus on transportation and feels that dealing with job creation and budget cuts will leave little time for other issues during this session.

Arlington County Board Member Chris Zimmerman, a Democrat, says dealing with transportation later in the year may be a necessity.

"I dont think you can write off the whole year, but I don't think it would be unreasonable for the new governor to say we'll deal with in a special session after we have the budget dealt with," says Zimmerman.

A McDonnell spokesperson says the governor-elect still considers transportation a first-year priority.

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