In today's report by The Washington Times' Tom Ramstack, we learn the latest bad news about the proposed Metrorail to Dulles project.

Ramstack explains: "The federal government is hesitating to contribute to the project, saying the proposal is too costly and lacks an adequate management structure. The Federal Transit Administration also cited Metro's large backlog of needed maintenance and the airport authority's limited experience in running a transit system."

Ouch.

Virginia is seeking $900 million in federal funds to begin the first $2.5 billion phase of the project. It also has asked for a $580.4 million government loan.

In delivering the bad news, James S. Simpson, FTA administrator, told reporters, "We fund projects that are an A, B, or C. This project is a D or an F."

Ugh.

Here are a couple of reactions to the news from some popular Virginia blogs.

Over at Bacon's Rebellion, Jim Bacon writes: "Let us hope the Kaine administration has enough sense not to try to revivify the corpse of the Rail-to-Dulles project. Time's awasting. Traffic congestion in Tysons Corner and the Dulles corridor are only getting worse. It's time to focus the conversation on what comes next."

Lowell Field at www.Raisingkaine.com shares a copy of the FTA letter and chimes in: "In other words, the Metro to Dulles project is REJECTED ... at least for now, and for many of the reasons TysonsTunnel.org and others have been arguing for over a year now. Amazing."

Now, Gov. Tim Kaine has asked for more time to revise the plan.

While we wait to see how this all pans out, here is a Dulles Rail theme song suggestion, courtesy of singer/ songwriter Limahl.

— Seth McLaughlin, Virginia political reporter, The Washington Times