Washington DC: Rail transit

[cambron J]

waltlantz

Transit in Southern Fairfax County

We have been making progress on developing a plan for transit between the Beltway, Fort Belvoir and Woodbridge.

http://route1multimodalaa.com/

Short version: They're looking at either BRT, Light Rail or a Metrorail/BRT hybrid. Metro would extend like maybe 2-3 miles south then go to BRT. BRT would be only till Lorton, then just regular bus, unless it's in the median.

While I like light rail, it is the most expensive of the non Metro options. Plus, BRT would be flexible enough to take into accounts other nearby attractions like National Harbor and MAYBE Springfield.

However, only Transmilenio level BRT should be proposed.

Any form of light rail would make extending Metrorail at sometime in the future hard to justify, just like the Columbia Pike light rail would make extending Metrorail in that corridor hard to justify. The 1968 Adopted Regional System map showed potential extensions in both corridors. The hybrid Metrorail / Bus Rapid Transit leaves that option available in the future.

Extending Metrorail short of the main gate of Fort Belvoir in my opinion make little sense as that installation alone would likely generate the greatest number of boarding in the corridor.

[waltlantz]

I think it really depends on just how close to Metrorail they can get with a light rail system.

I'm actually pouring through the big light rail thread here to get a feel for it nationally.

Frankly if we had a really robust looking thing like Edmonton or Calgary that would be AWESOME considering the attractions in Fort Belvoir and Mt Vernon.

However, nothing else on the road justifies a HUGE capacity system, aside from traffic I suppose.

Worldwide, what is the best at grade light rail system? Cause it's gonna be at grade.

[cambron J]

Seems we are closer to an announcement of an opening date for the Silver line.

WTOP exclusive: Silver Line on track to open by July 4
04 04 2014, 10:10pm EDT
Max Smith and Ari Ashe
wtop.com

Must have corrected biggest obstacle to the opening of the line, the malfunctioning RTUs.

[cambron J]

Bechtel is going to say Silver line is "substantial complete" as early as today

Took an announcement by some one up the food chain at Bechtel to get the rest of the medias attention.

Silver Line Contractor: Issues Nearly Fixed, Project At “Substantial Completion” Again
Karen Goff
Reston Now.com
04 08 2014 at 6:43 PM EDT

Silver Line Inching Toward Completion
Adam Tuss
WRC 4
04 08 2014 7:00 PM EDT

Silver Line contractor says work is complete
Lori Aratani
Washington Post
04 08 9:22 PM EDT

[Eightball]

Finally!

Edit: snapped some photos yesterday of the streetcar substation construction (I think it's just facade work at this point)
More here: http://poppedupdc.blogspot.com/2014/...struction.html

[cambron J]

Eightball

Finally!

The opera ain't over tell the fat lady sings. The fat lady will be one of the suits at WMATA.

It should be noted that this has been typical procedure on the construction of all segments of the Metrorail system. The only difference here is the construction of this segment was not overseen and managed by WMATA.

[cambron J]

Test track and Commissioning Facility 04 11 2014

Rail and surface cable chase trays have been delivered to the staging area adjacent to the south kiss and ride short term parking area a the Greenbelt station. Precast deck panels for the parking garage in Greenbelt yard are also being staged there.

Interior work on the Commissioning Facility building continues. The structural work on the parking garage appear to be nearly complete.

Grading is moving alone in preparation for the building of the sub grade.

WMATA has taken delivery of a 5th 7k car.



This is pure speculation on my part but I believe the 5th 7k car is the first car of the initial option of 64 cars. I base that on the fact that the prototypes testing and evaluation program was scheduled to run about 3 months. It began shortly after the prototype set arrived on the property back in late December 2013 early January 2014.

More pictures at cambronj.blogspot.com Greenbelt Test Track and Commissioning Facility.

Edit

I have sense learned the car is 7062. It is the car on the lift in the 7000-Series Factory Tour & Test Drive youtube clip. Seems the car has been at Greenbelt Yard for at least a month.

[202_Cyclist]

This was written at 5 PM yesterday, so it would be interesting to see what Sunday's ridership was.

Crowded trains, Bikeshare set weekend records

By Max Smith
WTOP
Apr. 13, 2014

"WASHINGTON -- Huge crowds of Cherry Blossom visitors, tourists, and people simply enjoying the weather helped set transit records in the D.C. area this weekend.

Capital Bikeshare burst through the record for number of trips in a single day on Saturday, with 15,746 one-way rides. That is about 4,374 more than the record of 11,551 that had just been set on Friday (the previous record of 11,372 had been set Apr. 19, 2013).

Capital Bikeshare says 50.3 percent of all trips Saturday were taken by so-called casual members - the people who pay with a credit card at a docking station to use the bikes for one or three days. On a typical day, casual members take only 20 percent of trips, while longer-term members with Bikeshare fobs take the rest..."

http://www.wtop.com/41/3602316/Crowd...eekend-records

[202_Cyclist]

Washington Retail District’s Future Rides on Streetcars

By EUGENE L. MEYER
APRIL 15, 2014
NY Times


Workers tested a new streetcar that will run along the H Street commercial corridor in Washington and, city officials and others hope, drive development. Credit Daniel Rosenbaum for The New York Times

"WASHINGTON — The streetcars stopped running in 1949, replaced by buses. In the wake of the assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. the 1968 riots devastated the commercial corridor. Only in recent years has revitalization occurred and gentrification taken hold.

This summer, if all goes as planned, the return of streetcars after 65 years will be another step forward for the former H Street NE shopping district in the nation’s capital.

The return of the trolleys is being hailed by city officials, businesses and developers as a new generator of economic wealth that will more than pay for the first of eight planned and heavily subsidized streetcar lines, eventually extending for 37 miles throughout the District of Columbia. District planners are projecting as much as $8 billion in new investment within 10 years of the lines’ completion..."

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/16/bu...cars.html?_r=0

[Eightball]

DCStreetcar.com

REMINDER: Public Meeting for Benning Road Transportation Improvements Environmental Assessment
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) are preparing an Environmental Assessment (EA) for the proposed Benning Road and Bridge Multi-Modal Transportation Improvements, per the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The project will also include evaluation of historic resources, as required under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act [PDF].
The study area is along Benning Road, NE, from Oklahoma Avenue to the Minnesota Avenue and Benning Road Metrorail Stations. This public meeting will serve to inform attendees about the project’s scope and discuss transportation issues.


What: Benning Road Transportation Improvements Environmental Assessment

When: Tuesday, April 22, 2014
6:30 – 8:00 pm

Where: Department of Employment Services (DOES) Building
4058 Minnesota Avenue, NE

Transit: Metrorail: Minnesota Avenue Station (Orange Line)
Metrobus: Visit www.wmata.com

[Eightball]

I noticed yesterday they were tearing up the concrete around the power poles on h.

http://dcconstructionphotos.blogspot...y-are.html?m=1

I hit dcstreetcar on twitter and they said they had to change the bolts. I said wtf it wasn't done right the first time and they said installed during street rebuild and they didn't know what they needed. Sigh.

[202_Cyclist]

More DDOT 'ready, fire, aim' approach to transportation planning.

[Eightball]

Truth.

[waltlantz]

http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/fcdot/2...oncept_map.htm

Key points;

Emphasis is naturally getting into the Core DC/ARL/ALEX area and Tysons.

Route 1, 7 and I-66 corridors are still under review

The county envisions expanding Blue Line Service to Potomac Mills and VRE Service to Haymarket.

Interestingly, it's looking at LRT/BRT service from Centreville to Dulles.

For me, I am most interested in Route 1 corridor studies along with work being done on Alex/Arl transit networks and Springfield development as that is where most of my business is done.

Secondarily, while unlikely, it would be nice to have a one stop run from King Street to Tysons, but it's likely going to be VAN DORN to tysons due to lack of right of way in Old Town.

[Eightball]

Silver Line now on track to open by summer
http://m.washingtonpost.com/local/tr...b57_story.html

[Eightball]

D.C. Streetcar Nears New Phase Of Testing
http://dcist.com/2014/04/streetcar_s...begin_this.php

The D.C. Streetcar is nearing a new phase of testing. And while there's no date set for passenger service, officials say they are looking toward summer.
Thomas Perry, DDOT project manager for the Streetcar, said they are currently in the "functional acceptance testing" stage, "which verifies that what we designed and what we built matches up, and also that the cars work with the actual system." Perry said they are "nearing the end of that phase" and "gearing up" to enter "systems integration testing." The first kind of testing deals with construction, the latter operations.
Again, if you're looking for an exact date for passenger service, you won't find one here.
"I hate to be vague," Perry said. "We're definitely looking toward the summer,...

[202_Cyclist]

Summer goes until Sept. 21. This was suppose to be completed in 2013, maybe 2012.

[Eightball]

Agreed!

Have we officially taken bets on which will open first, Silver Line or Streetcar?

[202_Cyclist]

Originally Posted by Eightball

Agreed!

Have we officially taken bets on which will open first, Silver Line or Streetcar?

Maybe the Purple line at this rate!

[Eightball]

Lol!

Well, I'm voting for the home team (DC Streetcar) to open first! Hopefully they both open soon.