MARYLAND -- While much of Maryland’s political watchers may still be reeling over Republican Larry Hogan’s historic upset last night of Democrat Anthony Brown, those grappling for new pieces of conventional wisdom may find themselves surprised on at least one key issue. Despite what many said during the heat of the campaign, long-planned new transit projects like the Purple Line or Baltimore’s Red Line are not dead in the water because of Hogan’s victory. Nor should they be when one looks at the merits of each project as well as Hogan’s key campaign focus – the economy.

"The discussion is about how to ensure that the Purple Line is doing what it should to bring people together with jobs and services and still protect those who might not earn a lot of money, but want to benefit from the transit without being unable to afford it," adds Cheryl Cort, policy director at the Coalition for Smarter Growth.

Many government officials see public-private partnerships as a convenient solution to their infrastructure woes. Enlisting investors and private sector know-how gets roads, bridges and other projects built long before government could do the work on its own.

Some county officials hope the large bus situated front and center at this year’s Montgomery County Agricultural Fair is a glimpse of the not-so-distant future.

With Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett running for a third term in November, transit advocates are planning an agenda for his next term. Leggett will run against Republican James Shalleck in an overwhelmingly Democratic county. For transit advocates, this means a push to turn projects such as the Purple Line, Corridor Cities Transitway and a bus rapid transit network into reality.