According to the Coalition for Smarter Growth, “It would be reading too much into Arlington voters’ intentions to ascribe the election of John Vihstadt to a full term on the Arlington Board over Alan Howze primarily to the debate over the Columbia Pike streetcar.” Streetcar opponents linked the price tag of the streetcar to general concerns over government spending and the state of the economy.

But a hard look at the streetcar and the record of transit and transit-oriented development in the region demonstrates that new transit investments are a critical economic development tool for Northern Virginia, according to the coalition. A 2013 study for the U.S. calculated that the economic value of transit for a jurisdiction could be up to $1.5 to $1.8 billion.