Washington DC: Rail transit

[Cirrus]

If downtown DC not as vibrant as European city centers, it is because of what goes on at the base of the buildings, not because DC's buildings aren't tall enough. In case no one has noticed, most European cities are filled with buildings even shorter than Washington's.

[turigamot]

Originally Posted by Cirrus

If downtown DC not as vibrant as European city centers, it is because of what goes on at the base of the buildings, not because DC's buildings aren't tall enough. In case no one has noticed, most European cities are filled with buildings even shorter than Washington's.

Exactly. For security reasons, many buildings occupied by government agencies or contractors don't allow retail on the ground floors.

[novawolverine]

I would love to see the height limit lifted. There are economic trade-offs with having the height limit that a lot of people ought to consider in addition to the aesthetic trade-offs.

[202_Cyclist]

Even with the height restriction, downtown DC with its 10-11 story buildings is still twice as tall as much of Paris, and as tal as much of Madrid, cities that are plenty vibrant. IF downtown lacks energy and vibrance, it is as noted above, because of the lack of ground floor retail in many of the buildings, still relatively little housing (aside from Penn Quarter/Chinatown, the west end, and NoMA), and large setbacks for many buildings.

novawolverine:

I would love to see the height limit lifted. There are economic trade-offs with having the height limit that a lot of people ought to consider in addition to the aesthetic trade-offs.

I am not opposed at all to seeing the height limit relaxed but I still think there is plenty of land for at least the next two decades at least to accommodate growth. With that said, having 15-25 story buildings in locations like Georgia Avenue, Columbia Heights, or Friendship Heights will have very little to no impact on the historic views of the District (there is a 300-foot radio tower in Tenley and the District still seems to function fine). We have tremendous, multi-billiion dollar investment in our metro system and we should encourage as much development as feasible around many of the stations. Additionally, being a District resident, I would rather see DC capture this property and income tax than Fairfax or Montgomery Counties.

[novawolverine]

Originally Posted by babybackribs2314

LOL I've lived in Europe and Australia and have travelled extensively all over, probably more than you, and there is no need for your condescending attitude.

The office core may be sterile but much of DC is vibrant. CityCenter will do well to ameliorate the lack of retail/entertainment, as will the redevelopment of SW and NoMA (effectively extending downtown). You should educate yourself on what's going on in D.C. before posting, I think.

We don't know for sure what the CityCenter project is going to do. I see no reason to think that it won't succeed and be a pleasurable area, but we can't say for sure whether it's going to have a substantial effect on the retail and entertainment presence downtown. What I look for mostly in the downtown area going forward is more hotel space having a positive benefit.

And NoMa is going to develop, but I think it will be more like the Navy Yard area, except without the destinations. It will be a new office/residential district, but more of a neighborhood rather than a destination.

I'm in favor of lifting the height limit because I think DC would benefit tremendously. Areas like near the Rhode Island Ave Metro and out in Brookland and McMillan Reservoir should be low-rise and more intimate. I don't think Anacostia would be better off as anything more than a low-rise to mid-rise area as well. I'm not in favor of turning our nicest residential areas into something completely different.

I think looking into the distant future, say 50-100 years, there isn't much area in the city to grow our downtown and prices will remain high and DC will pay the price. By lifting the height limit downtown, you can increase the density of the city and keep the development where transit options are abundant and allow that growth to spread farther out as it has been doing, instead of the other way around which is what I've heard some people imply would work. I think there are corridors that will continue to grow nicely, like 14th St. for instance, but I think there is a ceiling on it and DC will lose out on some things to preserve the aesthetics of our core.

[202_Cyclist]

There is an excellent post on Greater Greater Washington that looks at the recent DC Office of Planning's 'Streetcar Land Use Report' and offers suggestions for how the routes and alignments can be improved.

I would like to see Wisconsin Avenue added to the list.

Do DC's planned streetcar routes need a few tweaks?
http://greatergreaterwashington.org/...-a-few-tweaks/

[202_Cyclist]

There was a new round of Capital Bikeshare stations installed today. Our neighborhood (Glover Park) got one at 39th Street and Calvert and the area by the baseball stadium in Southeast got one as well.

New Bikeshare Station Now Operating at 1st and K SE
http://www.jdland.com/dc/index.cfm/3...-1st-and-K-SE/

[Qubert]

It's not really as simple as simply rasing the height limit. For one thing, Metro is having serious issues keeping up with the maintainence of the existing system and securing funding sources. Secondly, even with that said, Metrorail is nearing max capacity on the Blue/Orange corridor and pretty soon the Red as well. The Orange should be spliced off at Rosslyn and run down Constitution until meeting back up again at Stadium-Armory. But of course, that means money...

[novawolverine]

Originally Posted by Qubert

It's not really as simple as simply rasing the height limit. For one thing, Metro is having serious issues keeping up with the maintainence of the existing system and securing funding sources. Secondly, even with that said, Metrorail is nearing max capacity on the Blue/Orange corridor and pretty soon the Red as well. The Orange should be spliced off at Rosslyn and run down Constitution until meeting back up again at Stadium-Armory. But of course, that means money...

We haven't expanded the capacity in the core enough while we've been expanding service in the suburbs. What we need is a separate blue line and another Potomac River tunnel, while re-routing more trains over the 14th St. bridge. I think the height limit and metro are separate issues, though.

[afiggatt]

Originally Posted by turigamot

Most definitely, VRE and MARC both need to improve the regularity of their service.

It is a shame MARC and VRE have to share with CSX, who only do so grudgingly.

MD DOT has long range plans to expand MARC to a 7 day a week service. The two MARC routes on CSX do present problems, but there are studies and proposals, presumably done in cooperation with CSX, for additional tracks and capacity expansion that would allow MARC to run far greater frequency of service while CSX can still run their freight trains.

The more feasible in the nearer term expansion is MARC running 7 days a week service on the NEC, aka the Penn Line from DC to Perryville,MD and eventually to Newark DE (to meet up with SEPTA). In order to fully do that, the NEC from south of Baltimore to New Carrolton needs to be upgraded from 3 to 4 tracks, the B&P tunnel in Baltimore needs to be replaced (serious bucks), and the 3 bridges north of Baltimore need to be replaced with 3 or 4 track bridges. All of these capacity and track upgrades are part of the NEC Master Plan, so they will get done, just will take some years to get there with up and down annual funding levels.

VRE also has plans or proposals for 7 days a week service to Fredericksburg, if not Manassas, but I gather the plans are more tenuous and really long term proposals than MD has for MARC. The problems for VRE expansion are more complex with capacity constraints for CSX, NS, and Amtrak traffic. Replacing the Long Bridge across the Potomac with a new bridge passenger and freight tracks, for example, will be an expensive and challenging project to fund and get done. VRE also runs to more sprawled out suburbs and ex-urbs than MARC does (overall), so expanding to 7 days a week may not be cost effective.

[afiggatt]

Originally Posted by Qubert

It's not really as simple as simply rasing the height limit. For one thing, Metro is having serious issues keeping up with the maintainence of the existing system and securing funding sources. Secondly, even with that said, Metrorail is nearing max capacity on the Blue/Orange corridor and pretty soon the Red as well. The Orange should be spliced off at Rosslyn and run down Constitution until meeting back up again at Stadium-Armory. But of course, that means money...

Run the Orange line down Constitution Avenue? I don't see that idea getting much support. The proposal to split the Blue Line off at Rosslyn to go under the Potomac to Georgetown and then head east under M street to Union Station and meet back up at Stadium-Armory has been studied and gotten some support. That would provide Metro service to Georgetown and provide a 2nd line to Union Station, the busiest Metro station in the system. Of the various alternate routes presented in the viewgraphs on the DC Metro PlanItMetro website, the Blue line re-route along M street is the one that makes the most sense to me in expanding capacity in the city core. Just need to find probably 6 to 8 billion to do it.

[Qubert]

The only thing is by the time you reach M st you're skirting the northern edge of the core. If we're looking to expand downtown northward then I agree with you, but otherwise a Constitution line would serve the core head on.

One idea actually would be to take the Yellow after Gallery Place and run it down M st and have it feed into Rosslyn and run to Dulles. This would cause a setup like this:

Blue = Largo to Huntington via current route

Orange = Vienna to New Carrollton via current route

Yellow = Franconia/Springfield to Dulles via new M st line to Rosslyn

[afiggatt]

Originally Posted by Qubert

The only thing is by the time you reach M st you're skirting the northern edge of the core. If we're looking to expand downtown northward then I agree with you, but otherwise a Constitution line would serve the core head on.

One idea actually would be to take the Yellow after Gallery Place and run it down M st and have it feed into Rosslyn and run to Dulles. This would cause a setup like this:

Blue = Largo to Huntington via current route

Orange = Vienna to New Carrollton via current route

Yellow = Franconia/Springfield to Dulles via new M st line to Rosslyn

Constitution Avenue is really on the southern edge of the core. It would be useful to tourists and access to the Mall, but not useful to those traveling to the business and the federal government buildings on the Orange line. Rerouting the Orange line would never fly because too many people are dependent on the current Orange line route to get to commute.

The capacity chokepoint are the 2 connections across the Potomac with the tunnel at Rosslyn soon to be loaded with 3 lines. Rerouting the Yellow Line westward on M street to Georgetown(?) to Rosslyn onto the Orange/Silver lines would only overload the Rosslyn to East Falls Church section even more. And would be the long way from King St or Huntington to Dulles. The possible Metro re-alignment looked at include splitting the Yellow Line off south of L'Enfant Plaza and running a new line north on 3 possible north-south lines, one of which would be turn east to 10th street then north to Union station.

The studied Metro re-alignments of the Blue line include a new tunnel under Potomac north of Rosslyn to Georgetown, but with 2 options: one east-west on M street as I mentioned, the 2nd southeast with a new station south of Foggy Bottom to Constitution Avenue for a bit, then northeast to Union Station, then west with 3 new stations to meet up with the existing Blue Line (pass Stadium Armory) to Benning Road. The Blue Line route from Georgetown to Constitution Avenue to Union Station would be rather complicated and did not do very well apparently in the Metro traffic analysis.

There is another re-route that has been considered which is to split the Silver Line off east of East Falls Church where or before the Orange line goes underground and follow the I-66 ROW or go north of it in a tunnel, with a new station in VA, then under the Potomac to Georgetown and along the M street corridor to Union Station. Big drawback is that it eliminates a one seat ride to Tysons and Dulles from Ballston through the federal district.

Lots of options for new routes and re-alignments through the DC core. Huge challenge in getting all the decision makers to agree on the best one over pushing to extend the Orange, Blue, Green, Yellow lines and then to line up the billions to build it.

[202_Cyclist]

Labor pact for Dulles Metrorail opposed
Lawmaker aims to thwart MWAA

By David Sherfinski
The Washington Times
February 21, 2012

"RICHMOND — A Northern Virginia delegate has inserted language into the House’s proposed budget to effectively negate a proposed incentive for firms bidding on Phase 2 of the Dulles Metrorail project to use a labor agreement that many say favors unions.

The move was made by Delegate Timothy D. Hugo, a Fairfax Republican helping lead the charge against the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority board of directors’ efforts to mandate the so-called project labor agreement. The agreements set the terms and conditions between contractors and labor groups.

The state has conditionally agreed to provide an additional $150 million for Phase 2 of the project. Absent that contribution, a $2.25 toll on the Dulles Toll Road for a one-way trip could jump to $4.50, according to a recent report prepared for the airports authority. Mr. Hugo’s amendment would prohibit state funds from being used on projects that are subject to the labor agreements or union contractor preference..."

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...=all#pagebreak

[202_Cyclist]

How many streetcars will H Street get?

By Mike DeBonis
Washington Post
2/23/2012


Image courtesy of the Washington Post.

“Three D.C. streetcars are already built and in storage. (District Department of Transportation) Three streetcars? Five streetcars? Does it really matter how many trolleys are plying H Street and Benning Road NE come next year?

There is quite a bit of difference as far as D.C. Council member Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6) is concerned. Wells, who represents the area containing most of the trackage of the city’s first streetcar line in 50 years, thinks two cars could mean the difference between success and failure for the trolley endeavor.

His concerns were aired toward the end of a D.C. Council hearing Thursday on the financing and governance of the planned 37-mile streetcar system, after a District Department of Transportation contracting official suggested that the H Street/Benning Road line might open in 2013 with three cars instead of five…”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...s=mike-debonis

[waltlantz]

There has been talk of trying to get some sort of transit on the Route 1 corridor South of Old Town.

For those in the know, what sort of transit options do you think are viable?

I live around there, naturally I like the idea, but we all know that extending the Yellow Line ain't gonna happen.

Also creating light rail would be terribly disruptive to thru traffic in addition to providing a ton of headaches at intersections.

Then I found a blurb online from a pedestrian advocacy group that was pushing MONORAIL. That could be interesting, it could potentially be less than Metro Heavy Rail extensions and could probably leave the general form of Route 1 itself intact (no destruction of medians).

Naturally, this is assuming we have enough development to make such an option viable but...

[OhioGuy]

Rush Hour Reinvented

Metro is enhancing rush hour to serve more customers, reduce crowding and provide new transfer-free travel opportunities. It's all called Rush+ and it begins June 18, 2012.

Rush+ will improve service for nearly 110,000 customers on the Green, Yellow, Blue and Orange lines. Seventeen stations will get more frequent service with six additional trains every hour of rush hour.

During peak periods, more than 46,000 Orange Line customers will benefit from six additional trains per hour – three in each direction – between Vienna and Largo Town Center. This will result in 18 percent more capacity on the line, or approximately 2,600 seats per hour.

For 33,500 Blue and Yellow Line customers in Virginia, Rush+ will increase the share of Yellow Line trains, meaning more direct and faster access to downtown via the Yellow Line bridge. A smaller number (about 16,000) weekday peak-period customers who travel on Blue Line trains via Arlington Cemetery will experience a maximum of six-minutes additional waiting time for a train.

Stations north of downtown on the Green and Yellow lines will benefit from 18 additional trains during rush hour periods. Stations from Shaw-Howard to Greenbelt will benefit from six additional Yellow Line trains each peak hour – three in each direction – between Greenbelt and Franconia-Springfield. And for the first time, you will be able to travel from Greenbelt to Franconia-Springfield without transferring. More than 28,000 customers will benefit from the change.

We are introducing a new system map to reflect Rush+ service, with enhanced rush hour service indicated with dashed lines. These dashed lines will be carried through to platform signs, station pylons and other customer information.

[OhioGuy]

With the additional blue line trains (they'll be yellow) from Franconia-Springfield crossing the yellow line bridge, does anyone know whether this means there will be less yellow line trains departing from Huntington to "make room"? I work near the Eisenhower metro stop, so a reduction of yellow line trains heading inbound from Huntington would hurt my commute. The press release only mentions a reduction in service levels for blue line customers who travel via Arlington National Cemetery, so I'm hopeful my rush hour service levels won't increase beyond the current 6 minute headways (and increased yellow line service will be experienced from King Street northward).

[aquablue]

Originally Posted by novawolverine

We don't know for sure what the CityCenter project is going to do. I see no reason to think that it won't succeed and be a pleasurable area, but we can't say for sure whether it's going to have a substantial effect on the retail and entertainment presence downtown. What I look for mostly in the downtown area going forward is more hotel space having a positive benefit.

And NoMa is going to develop, but I think it will be more like the Navy Yard area, except without the destinations. It will be a new office/residential district, but more of a neighborhood rather than a destination.

I'm in favor of lifting the height limit because I think DC would benefit tremendously. Areas like near the Rhode Island Ave Metro and out in Brookland and McMillan Reservoir should be low-rise and more intimate. I don't think Anacostia would be better off as anything more than a low-rise to mid-rise area as well. I'm not in favor of turning our nicest residential areas into something completely different.

I think looking into the distant future, say 50-100 years, there isn't much area in the city to grow our downtown and prices will remain high and DC will pay the price. By lifting the height limit downtown, you can increase the density of the city and keep the development where transit options are abundant and allow that growth to spread farther out as it has been doing, instead of the other way around which is what I've heard some people imply would work. I think there are corridors that will continue to grow nicely, like 14th St. for instance, but I think there is a ceiling on it and DC will lose out on some things to preserve the aesthetics of our core.

When will the CityCenter be completed?

Also, I agree with you. The downtown area is far too lacking in retail and street activity, it is not a destination and I find myself never wanting to go down there. However, the alternatives for shopping (like Georgetown) are not true downtown shopping, have crowded narrow sidewalks and lack large impressive retail stores like you find in NYC or Chicago.

I think the height limit would increase density and vitality, and I would have no problem with higrises located in specific points as to ensure no impact on the monumental core (in London, skyscrapers are located outside view corridors so not to impact the parks, the cathedral, the Parliment, etc - and this works out well). Just having skyscrapers visible in clusters should NOT be a problem. NoMa would have been perfect for a high rise zone, as would parts of NE DC.

If this is never going to happen (likely), I think the existing buildings in the city could be retrofitted for larger retail spaces if security laws were relaxed and new zoning could allow for some office buildings to be converted to residential. Really, DC NEEDS more innovative areas in the city with some innovative starchitecture to make heads turn. It needs more than just the classical styles, it should be looking at exciting modern buildings. The buildings for NoMa look terribly bland that I've seen, with the same old DC warehouse/loft style buildings or glass groundscrapers. The only area that looks exciting to me is the waterfront, but even there, I'm terribly unimpressed by the boring architecture. DC, get in the game and build some modern buildings that are up to the level of the Capital city of the world's largest economy! It is hard to be a modern architecture fan in DC, when most developments look like warehouse revivals groundscrapers.

[paytonc]

Originally Posted by OhioGuy

With the additional blue line trains (they'll be yellow) from Franconia-Springfield crossing the yellow line bridge, does anyone know whether this means there will be less yellow line trains departing from Huntington to "make room"?

There will be the same number of trains departing Huntington and Franconia, but now some trains at Franconia will go to Greenbelt instead of Largo. If you're just going to Eisenhower, you might also be able to go to King Street (more frequent service) and walk -- or, maybe in 2013, you can take Capital Bikeshare the last half mile from King Street.