The Metro board’s governance committee is receiving a report Thursday on what government and community leaders, along with riders and other interested parties, had to say about the type of general manager they want the transit authority to pick. The public picked up on the split among the board members over whether Metro needs a transit expert or a management turnaround specialist. These are excerpts from some of the statements presented to the board.
Category: Regional and Federal
Testimony to WMATA Board Regarding Leadership by Stewart Schwartz
When I last testified before you in February, I outlined how essential Metro has been to the success of our region and stressed that we need the leadership and commitment of all area officials to the system’s success, and a similar commitment from staff to improving system communications, safety, incident response and customer service.
Government cuts hurt the economy and transit
Complicating the matter are the transit benefits. The federal government offered $250 per month tax-free to workers for mass transit. In 2013, Congress cut it almost in half to about $130. It was briefly restored in December, but once again is lower than the parking benefit.
Purple Line goes to Hogan in May
Maryland transportation officials say Gov. Larry Hogan will get options about the future of the Purple Line in mid-May.
Metro committee delays vote on budget options for two weeks
Transit advocate groups also agree that between fare increases, service cuts or increased subsidies from the jurisdictions, only the third is palatable. “Eighty-percent of those you polled support increasing state and local investment to meet Metro’s full operating budget shortfall, rather than include $46 million in fare increases and service cuts. When we see $46 million, we think of the spending on road and interchange projects where a single interchange can cost that much,” says Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth.
Sign-On Letter to Transportation Planning Board on Cutting Carbon Emissions
The undersigned organizations call on the National Capital Transportation Planning Board (TPB) to strengthen the resolution before it to affirm COG’s accepted long range CO2 target of 80% reductions by 2050 in two ways: 1) Include a deadline of September 30, 2015 to complete committee work and the final report in time to inform the next CLRP process
Does the D.C. regional transportation plan include enough mass transit?
“There are 1,200 lane miles of new highway in this plan and only 44 miles of transit,” said Stewart Schwartz, the executive director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, a pro-transit group. “We’ve argued that when you see the success of D.C., Arlington, and Alexandria and the urbanizing suburbs in places like Tysons and White Flint, more investment in transit, walking, and bicycling would do much more to reduce regional traffic than this road-heavy approach.”
RELEASE: Dangerous by Design – with 843 pedestrian fatalities in 10 years, still work to do for safe streets in DC region
Washington, D.C. – A new report, Dangerous by Design, released today by the National Complete Streets Coalition, a program of Smart Growth America, provides information on pedestrian fatalities and injuries and ranks every state, metro region and county based upon the degree of danger faced by pedestrians. Comparatively, the Washington, DC region is safer for pedestrians than many other regions in the nation, ranking 35 out of the 51 largest metro areas (with 1 being the most dangerous). At the same time, the report found that 843 pedestrians were killed in the region from 2003 to 2012 — an unacceptable number no matter the DC region’s current ranking – and the dangers for pedestrians along suburban arterial roads is particularly high.
Study: Extend Metro or build light-rail to Ft. Belvoir?
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – It’s a 25-mile stretch connecting Quantico, Ft. Belvoir and the Capital Beltway. Now a study is under way to look at U.S. Route 1 from Virginia 123 north to the Beltway.
The Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transit is leading the analysis of the 14-mile stretch in Prince William and Fairfax Counties.
“The congestion is the number one issue on Route 1,” says Amy Inman, Planning and Mobility Programs Administrator at DRPT.
“We’ll look at how many cars are utilizing this roadway. What is it today? What is it anticipated to be out to 2040? We’ll be assessing the various transit alternatives and what the impact of those investments will be on the road,” she says.
According to the Virginia Department of Transportation, between 50,000 and 70,000 vehicles travel the stretch between Quantico Marine Corps Base and Ft. Belvoir each weekday, a figure that has grown since the Base Realignment and Closure plan a few years ago. For example, Ft. Belvoir has more than 30,000 people living or working at the Belvoir Main Post on Route 1/Richmond Hwy. While base officials provide a shuttle bus from the Springfield VRE and Metro stations, some commuters would rather drive on I-395/95 or Route 1 from Woodbridge or Dumfries than deal with the transfer.
“Ft. Belvoir today employs more people than the United States Pentagon. It has on average 64,000 vehicles that goes on and off base everyday. We don’t have a road network to support that,” says State Del. Scott Surovell, D-District 44.
State Senator Toddy Puller, D-District 36, helped get the funding for the study.
“I want to see this study work and come up with several alternatives that we can look at and pick the one that fits our needs,” she says.
Among the options being considered are extending Metro’s Yellow Line from Huntington south, improving VRE, light-rail, bus-rapid transit in bus-only lanes and better pedestrian and bicycle access. The original Metrorail plans in the 1970s included extending the subway to Woodbridge.
Surovell favors the option to extend the Yellow Line.
“Metro has been transformative everywhere it’s been introduced in the DC metro area. And I think it would be transformative here too. I think one of the big lessons learned from the Silver Line is how are you going to pay for it. That is definitely an issue we’re going to have to confront, no matter what we do here,” he says.
Puller doesn’t think Metro would be the best choice.
“I don’t like going in with my mind made up. But I want to know how much Metro will cost. At least at this point, I don’t think we have the density to support Metro,” she says.
Inman says there may not be a one-size fits all approach for the entire stretch from the Capital Beltway to Virginia 123 in Woodbridge. She says there could be a combination of several options on the list, although she understands that the more transfers that commuters have to make, the less appealing transit becomes.
“Modern transit, high-capacity, frequent transit on its own dedicated right-of-way is the key to the revitalization of the Route 1 corridor. It’s a green solution, it’s a smart growth solution and it’s a pro-economic growth solution for the corridor,” says Stewart Schwartz of the Coalition for Smarter Growth.
“This is the study we’ve needed for a long time. So credit has to go Senator Puller, Delegate Surovell and the folks at DRPT for making this happen,” he says.
The Route 1 Multimodal Alternatives Analysis, as it’s formally called, will also explore whether road widening can also help solve the traffic problem.
“The Route 1 corridor (in Fairfax County) has received very little transportation investment in my entire lifetime. I think the last time it was actually widened was in 1971, the year I was born,” says Surovell.
As WTOP has reported, a project to widen Route 1 from Pohick Road to Mt. Vernon Memorial Highway will begin next spring. The Department of Defense is funding the $180 million project that will take three years to complete. The project will include extra right-of-way to implement whichever mass transit option ultimately becomes the preferred option.
DRPT held a public meeting earlier this week and will hold another one in February with residents. A final recommendation could come next summer. Then the question becomes: Will the report collect dust, or will Fairfax and Prince William officials act on the recommendations? If they act, how will they pay for a mass transit option?
Photo courtesy of Ari Ashe. Click here to read the original story.
Washington Area’s Mean Streets
A disturbing increase in the number of pedestrian deaths in the Washington, D.C., region is prompting public concern. In response, area officials have launched a “Street Smart” education campaign exhorting both walkers and motorists to watch out. Area jurisdictions are also stepping up law enforcement. Caution is always warranted and enforcement essential, but the only lasting way to ensure all users can travel safely is to design communities and streets that make walking and bicycling less risky and provide convenient connections. Each land use and transportation decision must consider and design for safe walking and bicycling.