Category: Press Releases

RELEASE: DC Bus Service gets a “D” on its Report Card

Posted on by Cheryl Cort

       

Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 10, 2019

CONTACT

Cheryl Cort, Coalition for Smarter Growth

202-675-0016

cheryl@smartergrowth.net

 

DC Bus Service gets a “D” on its Report Card

Groups highlight how DC buses can be faster and more reliable

D.C. – Today, Coalition for Smarter Growth and MetroHero released a first-ever performance-based DC Bus Report Card. Developed from real-time data collected in May 2019 by MetroHero, the report shows DC’s major bus routes suffer from poor reliability and sluggish speeds, factors that are likely major contributors to the system’s declining ridership. The analysis of the report card can be found here.

“Our analysis shows the challenges Metrobus riders encounter on a daily basis. On the city’s priority corridors with high-ridership routes, we found service to be generally unreliable and unpredictable, with speeds slower than 10 mph,” said Jennifer Hill, Ph.D., Lead Researcher at MetroHero.

“The slow speeds and lack of on-time reliability are contributing factors in declining ridership. But we know how to turn this around: give buses priority on the streets, speed up boarding, balance bus stop spacing, and provide customer-focused service,” said Cheryl Cort, Policy Director for the Coalition for Smarter Growth.

MetroHero analyzed bus performance for 34 routes in DC’s highest ridership corridors in May 2019, focusing on three key factors: adherence to designated headways, adherence to scheduled arrival times, and average travel speed. Bus speeds on these routes averaged just 9.5 mph over the entire month, confirming other data showing that Metrobus speeds across the entire system have been getting slower every year.

“We hope that this report will be a useful tool to inform decision-makers about where DC’s buses need the most help and what solutions will have the greatest impact for riders,” said Hill.

DC and Metro are stepping up to implement improvements to bus service. DC recently implemented pilot bus lanes on H and I Streets downtown, and is planning to run bus lanes on 16th Street and K Street in the near future. The city has also implemented traffic signal priority and queue jumps on several corridors.

On an average weekday, Metrobuses transport over 200,000 riders around the District of Columbia to and from work, school, doctor appointments, grocery stores, entertainment, and more. Buses offer transit service far beyond the reach of Metrorail.

“This is an important moment for DC’s bus service. Buses are the most efficient use of limited public street space for moving people, and critical if the city is to grow without choking on traffic. We are encouraged by recent city actions, but urge the Bowser administration to make moving buses truly a top priority on our city’s streets,” said Cort.

About the Coalition for Smarter Growth

The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the Washington DC region dedicated to making the case for smart growth. Our mission is to promote walkable, inclusive, and transit-oriented communities, and the land use and transportation policies and investments needed to make those communities flourish. Learn more at smartergrowth.net.

About MetroHero

MetroHero (www.dcmetrohero.com), which began as a simple app designed to visualize real-time train positions in the D.C. Metrorail system, has been monitoring and providing performance metrics on WMATA’s trains for over three years. The app has gained popularity with many area commuters, averaging roughly 15,000 unique users every month, largely due to its unique real-time visualizations of the current state of the Metrorail system, from train delays and service outages to user-driven reports of inconveniences such as station crowding and broken intercoms. In September 2018, the MetroHero team extended a number of their train performance tracking algorithms to the Metrobus system, which they used to gather performance data for the report card.

 

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The Fund It Fix It coalition of 22 non-profit organizations hailed the announcement today of the Metro Safety and Accountability Act of 2019 by the region’s Senate delegation

Posted on by Jane Lyons

PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release: May 23, 2019

Contact: Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director, CSG, 703-599-6437

Josh Tulkin, Director, Sierra Club – Maryland, 240-764-5307 (o), 650-722-3171 (c)

Fund it Fix it!

The Fund it Fix it coalition of 22 non-profit organizations hailed the announcement today of the Metro Safety and Accountability Act of 2019 by the region’s Senate delegation

The members of the Fund It Fix It non-profit coalition applauded the federal Metro funding bill announced today by Senators Warner, Kaine, Cardin and Van Hollen. The legislation would reauthorize federal (“PRIIA”) funding for an additional 10 years, FY 2020 – FY 2029, at an annual level of $150 million, and include an additional $50 million per year in federal funding that is not subject to local match, but requires specific safety, oversight and governance measures.

The $150 million matches $50 million each from DC, Maryland and Virginia. The additional $50 million would include $45 million for financing capital and preventative maintenance projects and $5 million for the Inspector General, contingent on nonfederal match of $5 million, for total of $10 million.

“In 2017 and 2018, the Fund it Fix it coalition campaigned hard, and teamed with the business community (MetroNow) and other stakeholders, including labor, to win the $500 million in dedicated funding for WMATA, and we will be urging Congress to approve the critical federal contribution to restoring our Metro system to world-class status,” said Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth. 

“Metro is the critical transportation backbone for the region’s economy and the federal workforce. The PRIIA investment not only leverages billions in state and local funding, it leverages economic development, accessibility to jobs, and environmental sustainability more than any other investment the federal government could make in this region,” said Schwartz.

“We have just 10 years to make major cuts in our greenhouse gas emissions so investing in high-capacity transit that supports compact walkable development must be the top transportation priority of our federal government,” said Josh Tulkin, Director, Sierra Club – Maryland. “We applaud this dedicated federal funding and urge Congress to make transit funding the top priority of the nation’s entire transportation program.”

The Fund it Fix it coalition will be reaching out to partners across the country to urge their support for this federal funding for WMATA.

“Metro has long been known as the ‘nation’s subway’ and one that Americans from across the country take pride in,” said Schwartz. “We are proud to be part of this nonprofit coalition and are committed to winning the funding WMATA needs.”

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The Fund It Fix It coalition includes 22 non-profit groups working in Virginia, DC, and Maryland for dedicated funding for Metro: Coalition for Smarter Growth, League of Women Voters chapters, Sierra Club state chapters and local groups, Action Committee for Transit, Central Maryland Transportation Alliance, Virginia Conservation Network, Piedmont Environmental Council, Clean Water Action, Northern Virginia Affordable Housing Alliance, Friends of White Flint, Smart Growth Maryland, Maryland Center on Economic Policy, Southern Environmental Law Center, and Greater Greater Washington.

CSG partnering with MetroHero on “Report card” to determine if D.C. Metrobus service makes the grade

Posted on by Cheryl Cort

“Report card” will determine if D.C. Metrobus service makes the grade

May 9, 2019 — The Coalition for Smarter Growth (CSG) is partnering with MetroHero to release a report card on Metrobus service in D.C. The report card will grade bus service on speed and reliability.

The MetroHero team will be monitoring activity on 34 major bus routes in D.C.’s priority corridor network throughout the month of May, evaluating each route based on metrics such as average travel speed, spacing between buses, and how closely the buses keep to their scheduled arrival times. The results will be publicized in a digital “report card” which will assign grades to each of the routes based on their performance in each of these different areas, inspired by a similar project by the Bus Turnaround Coalition in New York City. The resulting analysis will form the basis of a public report written by CSG and MetroHero that will identify the greatest problems faced by D.C.’s priority bus routes today and make recommendations for how to improve their performance in the future.

The reports will be made available to the public in June.

MetroHero (www.dcmetrohero.com), which began as a simple app designed to visualize real-time train positions in the D.C. Metrorail system, has been monitoring and providing performance metrics on WMATA’s trains for over three years. The app has gained popularity with many area commuters, averaging roughly 15,000 unique users every month, largely due to its unique real-time visualizations of the current state of the Metrorail system, from train delays and service outages to user-driven reports of inconveniences such as station crowding and broken intercoms. In September 2018, the MetroHero team extended a number of their train performance tracking algorithms to the Metrobus system, which will be used to gather performance data for the report card.

CSG (www.smartergrowth.net) is the leading organization in the Washington, D.C. region dedicated to making the case for smart growth — promoting walkable, inclusive, and transit-oriented communities, and the land use and transportation policies to make those communities flourish. In 2017 and 2018, CSG organized non-profits and partnered with the business community in the MetroNow campaign to win $500 million per year in dedicated funding for Metro. CSG serves on the Bus Transformation Study executive committee, previously led and won an 81-mile bus rapid transit plan for Montgomery County, Maryland, and has led other campaigns for improved transit.

RELEASE: Coalition for Smarter Growth praises proposed WMATA budget, and calls for increased frequency

Posted on by Alex Baca

Press Statement
For Immediate Release
October 28, 2018

Contact:
Stewart Schwartz, (703) 599-6437
Aimee Custis, (202) 431-7185

WASHINGTON, D.C. — As reported in the Washington Post, proposed changes to WMATA’s upcoming budget, released this morning, Mon., Oct. 29, include “a flat $2 fare for subway trips taken on weekends, expanding the rush-hour window to include later times on weekday mornings and evenings and increase all trains to their maximum length of eight cars.”

“The improvements put forth in the coming fiscal year budget by General Manager Wiedefeld represent an important step in the right direction,” says Stewart Schwartz, executive director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, a leading pro-transit advocacy organization in the D.C. region.

“This spring, when the region stepped up to pass $500 million of new dedicated funding for WMATA, it was a show of how important frequent, reliable transit service is. A cold reality, however, is that that $500 million is for capital improvements, not for day-to-day operations,” says Schwartz. “With this budget, elected officials have a chance to take another step toward bringing WMATA back to the operational level of service our region needs.”

WMATA is critical to the D.C. region’s economy: It provides access to jobs and services for people at all levels of the workforce, and attracts and retains employers. CSG believes that $20 million in additional jurisdictional commitment is not too steep a price to pay for the improvements recommended by Wiedefeld.

However, a continual topic of concern is the systemically reduced frequency of off-peak and weekend service. This is not addressed in the general manager’s proposal. “While the reduced weekend fare is welcome, better still for ridership would be an increase in frequency,” says Schwartz. “We’d like to better understand whether alternate approaches to maintenance could allow for reduced single-tracking.”

Nonetheless, this proposed package of service improvements is a welcome and needed signal that WMATA recognizes the importance of competitive fares and service to attract and retain its riders.

“We hope that constituents will respond by communicating to their elected officials — and the WMATA board members those officials appoint — the importance of frequent, reliable transit service, as well as the need to provide sufficient operating funds to support this expansion of service,” says Schwartz.

RELEASE: Bridge Boondoggle: Smart-growth groups respond to Loudoun’s push for upper Potomac River bridges

Posted on by Alex Baca

Coalition for Smarter Growth, Piedmont Environmental Council, Montgomery Countryside Alliance

Press Statement
For Immediate Release
October 10, 2018

Contact:
Stewart Schwartz, CSG, (703) 599-6437
Gem Bingol, PEC, (703) 431-6941
Caroline Taylor, MCA, (301) 461-9831

Recently, the Loudoun County Board voted to support and push for a new and controversial upper Potomac bridge, based on a county-funded study.

The Coalition for Smarter Growth and allies responded, citing years of studies that demonstrate the bridge is not needed, would waste tax dollars, and would destroy neighborhoods and the environment.

“An upper Potomac Bridge and associated outer beltway would be a boondoggle, wasting billions of dollars, diverting funding from true transportation needs, fueling more sprawl and traffic, and greatly harming neighborhoods and environmental resources,” says Stewart Schwartz, executive director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth. “A bridge didn’t make sense in 1988, 2001, 2004, 2015, or 2017 — when it’s been studied before — and it doesn’t make sense now.”

CSG, the Piedmont Environmental Council, and the Montgomery Countryside Alliance were critical of Loudoun County for not including three previous studies in their analysis: the 2001 “Wolf” study, the 2003-2004 Council of Governments/Virginia Department of Transportation origin and destination study, and the 2015 Virginia Department of Transportation origins and destination study.

“The Loudoun County study ignores the clear findings of VDOT’s 2015 origins and destination study of Potomac River crossings, which do not support a new upriver crossing,” says Schwartz.

The 2015 VDOT study is definitive. It shows that that just 5 percent of Virginia trips crossing the American Legion Bridge today, and 4 percent in 2040, are the “U-shaped commutes” that might use an upriver bridge. All other trips — 95 percent — are either “L-shaped” (60 percent) and best served by the location of the American Legion Bridge and its alignment with the largest job centers in Fairfax and Montgomery Counties, or are trips that cross the American Legion and have destinations along and inside the Beltway (35 percent — these are not discussed in the briefing).

“The 2015 study concluded that the American Legion Bridge has the worst congestion and need for improvement among Potomac River road bridges, and we are pleased the governors of Virginia and Maryland are now focused on multimodal improvements at the American Legion Bridge,” says Schwartz.

The 2015 VDOT findings confirm the previous origin and destination study for the American Legion Bridge (2003/2004), which tracked both Virginia and Maryland commuters crossing that bridge and found a similarly low percentage of “U-shaped commuters.”

“Given the high potential cost of a new upriver bridge, including the 10 to 15 miles of highway that Maryland would need to build, scarce tax dollars are better used fixing existing congestion problems at the American Legion Bridge and the Rosslyn Metro Tunnel, and on local road improvements within Loudoun County,” says Schwartz.

“The Loudoun County study showed that any neighborhood chosen as the path for a new bridge would see negative impacts, including loss of homes and wetlands. It also ignored that the last time specific bridge crossings were proposed, in the 2001 study initiated by Congressman Frank Wolf, it prompted a massive outcry from neighborhoods on both sides of the river,” says Gem Bingol of the Piedmont Environmental Council. “The neighborhoods should not have the threat of this highway hanging over them when the road isn’t justified in the first place.”

In a Fairfax Times article dated May 29, 2001, “[Congressman] Wolf said communities in northern Fairfax and Loudoun counties and those in southern Montgomery County, Md., — particularly on the proposed bridge corridors — were simply too densely packed with homes.” Wolf also said, “Moving the route further west put the bridge into Maryland’s agricultural preserve and too far out to make a difference for commuters.”

“The bridge and highway would impact significant natural and historic resources, including the Potomac Heritage Trail, the C&O Canal National Historic Park, Broad Run, Seneca Creek, the Montgomery County Agricultural Reserve, and neighborhoods in eastern Loudoun and throughout Darnestown and North Potomac, Maryland,” said Caroline Taylor, executive director of the Montgomery Countryside Alliance. “As a result, and not surprisingly, Montgomery County and the State of Maryland remain adamantly opposed to the bridge and highway.”

In the 2017 Council of Governments study of long-range transportation plan priorities, Supervisor Ron Meyer of Loudoun County pitched the upper Potomac Bridge as a “game-changing” investment, but study results show it is not. It performed worst in meeting regional challenges, increased regional VMT and per capita VMT, ranked 6th in reducing vehicle hours of delay, and was among the scenarios that moved the needle very little on the remaining measures.

This almost precisely mirrors the findings in a recent Northern Virginia transaction plan analysis, which showed that the Northern Virginia network performed about the same with and without the bridge. In that case as well, other scenarios, such as compact land use, performed as well or better than the bridge. Additionally, the bridge would add traffic to area roads rather than reduce it, because it would induce demand for new trips rather than serving existing travel patterns.

“The bridge stands out from all the other scenarios for having the largest negative impact on air and water quality and open space,” says Bingol.

“This isn’t surprising. The bridge would directly impact the drinking water intakes for most of the region’s population; potentially impair the Piedmont groundwater aquifer, which serves as the sole source of drinking water in rural Montgomery County; create development pressure in the nationally recognized Agricultural Reserve; and increase vehicle miles traveled,” says Taylor.

“We urge Loudoun County to drop their push for an upper Potomac River bridge,” says Schwartz. “It won’t help traffic. It will, in fact, make traffic worse, while harming neighborhoods, drinking water, the Agriculture Reserve and environmental resources. And it will waste tax dollars.”

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About the Coalition for Smarter Growth
The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the Washington DC region dedicated to making the case for smart growth. Its mission is to promote walkable, inclusive, and transit-oriented communities, and the land use and transportation policies and investments needed to make those communities flourish. Learn more at smartergrowth.net.

RELEASE: Coalition for Smarter Growth Responds to Failure of Regional Leaders to Address WMATA’s Ridership Challenges

Posted on by Alex Baca

Press Statement
For Immediate Release
October 3, 2018

Contact:
Stewart Schwartz, 703-599-6437 (c)
Aimee Custis, 202-431-7185 (c)

WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Sun., Sept. 30, 2018, the Washington Post ran a story detailing the failure of the Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority board members to commit to increasing Metrorail service.

In Sunday’s Post story, the elected and appointed officials charged with the stewardship of our region’s rail and bus system refused to say that they would unite as a body to run more trains, more often, in order to increase ridership. Such a move would follow the demands of riders, the recommendations of consultants, and well-known industry best practices.

National Transit Database data show that Metrorail ridership is down about 25 percent from a decade ago. Five of the past 12 months have set new record lows.

“We know this is primarily due to unreliable service and unreasonable wait times for trains,” says Stewart Schwartz, executive director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth. Schwartz continues, “These long wait times, especially during nights and weekends, have made other modes of transportation, like biking and ride-hailing, more attractive and more realistic to use than Metrorail.”

Schwartz says, “WMATA’s own consultants, hired to study declining ridership, have made clear to WMATA what has been intuitive to its customers for years: while there is increased competition from ridesharing services, low gas prices, and telecommuting, the primary cause of Metro’s ridership slide is reduced frequency, and especially reduced off-peak frequency on evenings and weekends.”

In his comments to the Post, board member Christian Dorsey did identify the need for “more service generally,” and “less disruption in service through closings and maintenance activities,” including during off-peak hours. But advocates say that taken in total, the WMATA board’s comments to the Post show Metro’s board pursuing goals that do not align with the realities of how transit works for the people who use it. As has been shown time and again, frequent, reliable service is the most important factor in attracting and retaining people who ride transit.

Moreover, elected officials in local and state jurisdictions where WMATA operates have not committed to providing the necessary operating funding to make frequent, reliable service possible.

While the Post reported solely on Metrorail, urgent attention must also be paid to Metrobus and other area bus services. A lack of political will to install and enforce dedicated bus lanes or signals — so buses can avoid the congestion of personal cars and move more people — means that bus performance is slowing alongside Metrorail.

“We support frequent, reliable public transit that connects the region. We stand fully behind WMATA when it takes steps to realize that reality,” says Schwartz. “We have worked closely with the agency as it has taken steps toward reform, fought for dedicated bus lanes, and campaigned successfully for its first-ever dedicated capital funding as part of the MetroNow coalition. We fought hard for this with the understanding that reliable financial resources for capital spending would enable WMATA, and its board, to focus on not just restoring, but improving, Metrorail service.

“WMATA’s stewards and elected officials representing the jurisdictions it serves are falling short in protecting the freedom and accessibility that transit service is central to providing to area residents. Frequent and reliable service increases transit ridership. It provides freedom and greater access to jobs and services. We need the board and regional elected officials to commit emphatically to improving service and ridership.”

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About the Coalition for Smarter Growth
The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the Washington DC region dedicated to making the case for smart growth. Its mission is to promote walkable, inclusive, and transit-oriented communities, and the land use and transportation policies and investments needed to make those communities flourish. Learn more at smartergrowth.net.

RELEASE: Park Morton residents and affordable housing supporters call on Court to allow stalled mixed-income housing development at old school site

Posted on by Claire Jaffe

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 9, 2018

Contacts:
Cheryl Cort, Coalition for Smarter Growth
T. 202-251-7516, cheryl@smartergrowth.net
Danielle Burs, DC Appleseed
T. 202-289-8007, dburs@dcappleseed.org

Park Morton residents and affordable housing supporters call on Court to allow stalled mixed-income housing development at old school site

Housing supporters including DC Appleseed, the Park Morton Residents Council, and the Coalition for Smarter Growth file amicus brief asking Court to affirm DC Zoning Commission’s decision in favor of Bruce Monroe Planned Unit Development

Washington, DC — On Monday, May 7, a group of affordable housing, community development, and public policy organizations, filed a “friend of the court” or amicus brief to show support for the mixed-income Bruce Monroe Planned Unit Development (PUD), a case stalled at the Court of Appeals of the District of Columbia. The group’s main argument is that the Bruce Monroe PUD, that fronts Georgia Avenue, plays a vital role in achieving the District’s affordable housing goals and revitalizing public housing communities.

“The Bruce Monroe project is about giving the residents of Park Morton access to safe, clean, quality housing; the chance to stay in this community and maintain their networks; and new opportunities to thrive and prosper in Park View for many years to come. We want housing that reflects our best hopes and dreams for our families, and we hope the Court will listen to what we have to say,” said Shonta High, President of the Park Morton Residents Council.

The Bruce Monroe PUD and Park Morton PUD were approved by the DC Zoning Commission in April 2017, but four nearby neighbors of the Bruce Monroe site appealed the decision. While the Park Morton redevelopment plan was not contested, it cannot move forward without the Bruce Monroe site first delivering new replacement homes for many of the current Park Morton residents. The Bruce Monroe site is the second and largest component of the revitalization plan to ensure all Park Morton units are fully replaced.

“The Bruce Monroe Planned Unit Development makes good on a promise to Park Morton residents and uses the ‘build first’ principle to restoring decent homes for our public housing residents without forcing them to leave their community,” said Danielle Burs, DC Appleseed.

The Bruce Monroe PUD would include 273 residential units, including 90 public housing replacement units for the Park Morton public housing complex, located four blocks northeast of the Bruce Monroe site. Park Morton residents will have priority for the public housing units on the Bruce Monroe site.

The remainder of the new homes would consist of about 109 low-income units affordable at 60 percent median family income, and approximately 70 units at market rate. The Bruce Monroe development would consist of an apartment building, a 76-unit affordable senior building, and eight townhouses. The new buildings will better provide for a changing community’s needs by providing 1, 2, and 3 bedroom units, in contrast to current Park Morton units which are all 2 bedrooms. Bruce Monroe was a school site until the building was demolished in 2009, and has served as a park as an interim use. The plan for the site would create a permanent one-acre park alongside the new buildings. The Bruce Monroe plan demonstrates that PUDs can be a powerful tool to promote affordable housing.

“This case is about ensuring we can use the zoning tools we have to help our city preserve the diversity of our neighborhoods in the face of so much change. The Petworth and Park View neighborhoods are in high demand, with housing prices soaring, but few new homes have been built. The Bruce Monroe and Park Morton development plans are securing a place for many of our long-time and low-income residents,” said Cheryl Cort, Coalition for Smarter Growth.

To date, 4,593 homes in the District of Columbia, including 706 dedicated affordable homes, have been stalled by lawsuits appealing approved PUDs. On Monday, another 199-home PUD in DC’s middle-class Shepherd Park neighborhood was dropped after it was appealed and will open instead as a single story retail store. Thirty-three of the units were to be affordable. Days before, another PUD in the affluent Tenleytown neighborhood was appealed. It was to provide 146 units. Fifteen of these would be affordable at the 60 percent area median income level.

These groups hope that the amicus brief will serve as a voice in support of the Bruce Monroe PUD and the use of PUDs in creating affordable housing in the District. At this time, a decision on the Bruce Monroe case at the District of Columbia Court of Appeals has no set timeline.

About the Coalition for Smarter Growth: The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the Washington DC region dedicated to making the case for smart growth. Its mission is to promote walkable, inclusive, and transit-oriented communities, and the land use and transportation policies and investments needed to make those communities flourish. Learn more at smartergrowth.net.

About DC Appleseed: DC Appleseed has worked for over 20 years to make the National Capital Area a better place to live and work. DC Appleseed’s projects involve working with broad coalitions, researching best practices, issuing reports, participating in regulatory proceedings, bringing lawsuits, managing public education campaigns, meeting with, and testifying before governmental decision-makers. The ultimate goal of all our projects is to do whatever is needed to achieve real, tangible improvements in the National Capital Area. Learn more at www.dcappleseed.com.

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RELEASE: MetroNow Coalition Calls on Trump Administration and DC, MD, and VA Delegations to Maintain Critical Metro Funding in FY 2019 Budget

Posted on by Tyler Sanders

Washington, D.C.— The MetroNow Coalition, a group of businesses and non-profit advocacy groups calling for immediate reforms to Metro governance, funding, and operations, made the following statement in response to reports that the Trump Administration’s FY 2019 budget will not include an expected $150 million in Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act (PRIIA) funds:

“The MetroNow Coalition is deeply concerned by reports this morning that the Trump Administration’s Fiscal Year 2019 budget does not contain $150 million in critical capital funding for Metro through the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008 (PRIIA).  Maintaining this funding, long believed by Metro officials and regional leaders to be assured by law, is crucial to continued progress to improve the state of repair for our system, and MetroNow’s goal of accomplishing long-term funding and governance reform this year.

With 35 Metrorail stations serving federal government facilities, and with federal employees comprising 39% of Metrorail’s peak period commuters, Metro’s health greatly affects the efficiency and effectiveness of our federal government. MetroNow is working with a bipartisan coalition of leaders in the MD and VA’s General Assemblies and DC’s City Council who are responding to the urgent imperative to provide additional funds for Metro’s capital and maintenance backlog, and to make governance reforms that improves accountability and outcomes from the needed investment. Leaders are setting politics aside and working together because Metro powers our economy and enables a high-quality of life for our residents, including the federal workforce.

MetroNow calls upon our Federal delegation to unite as a team to secure $150 million in the FY2019 budget, and work effectively together in a bipartisan manner to secure a long-term solution and expansion to federal authorization of WMATA’s capital program, federal assistance on operating costs, and needed governance reforms. Our region’s businesses, residents and elected officials are stepping forward to make critical investments and governance reforms this year, and we call for similar coordination and advocacy from our federal Members of Congress to maintain momentum and forward progress to return the transit system to a world leading position that drives our region’s prosperity. ”

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About MetroNow Coalition

The MetroNow Coalition is a group of regional leaders from organizations representing businesses and non-profit advocates who have come together to ensure that action is taken to put Metro – a vital component of Greater Washington’s transportation infrastructure – on a safe, smart and sustainable path forward in 2018 and beyond. We are dedicated to securing comprehensive improvement of Metro’s governance, funding and operational structures in 2018. Visit www.MetroNow.com for more information.

 

RELEASE: MetroNow Coalition Commends Maryland State Senator Feldman, Delegates Korman and Barron on Introduction of Metro Reform Bills

RELEASE: MetroNow Coalition Commends Maryland State Senator Feldman, Delegates Korman and Barron on Introduction of Metro Reform Bills

Posted on by Tyler Sanders

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 19, 2018

Contact
Clare Flannery, MDB Communications
cflannery@mdbcomm.com
202-969-3332

MetroNow Coalition Commends Maryland State Senator Feldman, Delegates Korman and Barron on Introduction of Metro Reform Bills

Annapolis, Md.— The MetroNow Coalition, a group of businesses and advocacy groups calling for immediate reforms to Metro governance, funding, and operations, made the following statement in response to a bill introduced yesterday regarding Maryland’s commitment to Metro:

“The coalition applauds Maryland State Senator Brian Feldman, Delegate Marc Korman, and Delegate Erek Barron on the introduction of The Maryland Metro Funding Act and The Metro Board Member Act.

“These bills are a positive step forward in the effort to secure Maryland’s commitment to the long-term funding and governance reforms Metro requires and the Coalition is working to ensure are enacted in 2018. We urge leaders in Annapolis to move quickly to build on this important first step on the road to enacting comprehensive reform to WMATA’s funding and governing structures.

“This is particularly urgent in light of Amazon’s announcement of its HQ2 shortlist yesterday, which included three sites in the Greater Washington metropolitan area: Montgomery County, the District of Columbia, and Northern Virginia. Amazon has stated that direct access to world class public transit is among the top criteria they will consider. Immediate action to begin reforming Metro would send a clear message to Amazon that the region is fully behind its HQ2 expansion, and prevent Metro from becoming a net negative for the Greater Washington region’s competitiveness.

“The Greater Washington region requires Metro to be capable of delivering safe, reliable, and frequent service for our continued prosperity and quality of life. Simply put, Metro is essential to our region’s prosperity across the board – from individual riders who rely on the system every day, to attracting and keeping major economic engines like Amazon.”

The MetroNow Coalition looks forward to working with Senators Feldman, Delegates Korman, Barron, Governor Hogan and legislative leaders in Annapolis to ensure that immediate action is taken during the 2018 legislative sessions to provide Metro with the long-term funding and governance reforms that are long overdue.

Below is the press release put out by Delegate Korman’s office in regards to the bill introduction:

 

For Immediate Release
January 19, 2018

Contact: Sean Emerson
(301) 858-3649
Marc.Korman@house.state.md.us

MARYLAND LEGISLATORS PROPOSE DEDICATED FUNDING AND

GOVERNANCE REFORM FOR METRO

Bills will provide permanent, bondable dedicated funding source for Metro and add the Maryland Transportation Secretary To the Metro Board

Senator Brian Feldman, Delegate Marc Korman, and Delegate Erek Barron introduced legislation this week to provide a permanent, bondable funding source for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA or Metro) and reform Maryland’s appointments to the Metro Board of Directors.

The Maryland Metro Funding Act builds on Governor Hogan’s proposal to provide an additional $125 million in capital funding to Metro over the next four years, instead making the additional funds a permanent annual allocation from a new account within the Maryland Transportation Trust Fund. In addition, the bill indexes the state’s current capital funding contribution to Metro at 3% to ensure that the state’s allocation to Metro increases at the rate of inflation. Enactment of the Maryland Metro Funding Act is contingent on D.C. and Virginia establishing their own dedicated, bondable funding sources totaling at least $125 million respectively to match Maryland’s potential contribution.

The Metro Board Member Act would make one of Maryland’s voting members on the Metro Board of Directors the state’s Transportation Secretary or their designee. The state’s other voting board member would shift between Montgomery and Prince George’s counties. Adding the Transportation Secretary to the Board would put in place an individual with knowledge, staff, and resources to provide improved oversight of Metro. The District of Columbia already puts their Director of Transportation on the Board.

“Metro is a necessity for our area – an essential component for attracting new business and growing our regional economy. Given that Montgomery County is a finalist for Amazon’s new headquarters and that one of their selection criteria is access to safe and reliable public transportation, funding for Metro is more critical than ever.” said Senator Brian Feldman, who is introducing the legislation in the Maryland Senate.

“Metro is critical to our state’s transportation network and economic success. As a daily rider during the nine months a year that the legislature is not in session and with five Red Line stations in my district, I know its importance and want to see it succeed. To move Metro in a more positive direction requires both funding and reform,” said Delegate Marc Korman, the lead sponsor of the legislation in the House of Delegates and co-founder of the General Assembly’s Metro Work Group.

“A strong public transit system is key to our region’s economic development and job growth success. We are committed to ensuring Metro is safe, reliable, efficient and sufficiently funded.” remarked Delegate Erek Barron, also co-founder of the General Assembly’s Metro Work Group.

Establishing a dedicated funding source for Metro has been a need since the tri-jurisdictional agency’s formation in 1967. Reforms to the Metro Board will ensure those funds are spent appropriately. The issue is of significance to the entire state, as estimates show that that there are over 30,000 daily riders of Metrorail alone from Maryland jurisdictions other than Montgomery or Prince George’s counties. Metro is an invaluable part of the state’s economy. With the introduction of these pieces of legislation, Maryland is a step closer to ensuring that this critical asset is well maintained and reliable into the future.

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About MetroNow Coalition

The MetroNow Coalition is a group of regional leaders from organizations representing businesses and non-profit advocates who have come together to ensure that action is taken to put Metro – the backbone of Greater Washington’s transportation infrastructure – on a safe, smart and sustainable path forward in 2018 and beyond. We are dedicated to securing comprehensive improvement of Metro’s governance, funding and operational structures in 2018. Visit MetroNow.com for more information.

In October, Coalition members commissioned an online survey of 621 registered voters in the District, suburban Maryland, and Northern Virginia, finding that 94 percent of respondents agreed that the Metro system is valuable to the greater Washington region. In the survey, 70 percent also supported an increase in public funding to improve the Metro system, and 90 percent agreed that without an effective governance structure, the Metro system can never reach its full potential.

STATEMENT: I-66 Tolls Should Stay

Posted on by Claire Jaffe

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 7, 2017

CONTACT:
Stewart Schwartz
703-599-6437
stewart@smartergrowth.net

CSG Press Statement – I-66 Tolls Should Stay

NORTHERN VA – Today Stewart Schwartz, the Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, made the following statement in response to the widespread outcry regarding the toll prices on the newly-open high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes on I-66:

“We see the initially high tolls as reflecting that it’s not possible to accommodate all single-occupant commuters on limited road-space during the peak-of-the-peak commute hours. While the peak tolls are likely to settle down at a lower level, it’s important to note they are a market price reflection of demand.

The system set up for I-66 is designed to move the most people through the corridor during commuting hours as quickly and smoothly as possible. The tolling makes possible the maintenance of a 55-mph speed, provides for carpooling to remain free and uses toll revenues to expand express bus and other transit services in the corridor.

And its worth noting that single-occupant cars, which couldn’t use the corridor during peak hours in the past, now have that option – for a price based on market demand. Users now have more options than they did before: drive alone, in addition to carpool, more express buses, Metro and even bicycling options.

Proposals to eliminate tolls and widen the entire highway are simply not viable. The cost would be in the hundreds of millions of dollars and because of the phenomenon of “generated travel” (also called induced demand), an expanded highway like this would fill up in record time and traffic would crawl again.

While we’re sympathetic to the sticker shock drivers and politicians are experiencing this week, the combination of tolling, HOV, Metro, and new transit provides the most effective way to move the most people the most expeditiously as possible to and from work in the corridor. This comprehensive approach should stay in place.”

About the Coalition for Smarter Growth:
The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the Washington DC region dedicated to making the case for smart growth. Its mission is to promote walkable, inclusive, and transit-oriented communities, and the land use and transportation policies and investments needed to make those communities flourish. Learn more at smartergrowth.net.

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