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  • Discussion related to DC area passenger rail services from Northern Virginia to Baltimore, MD. Includes Light Rail and Baltimore Subway.
Discussion related to DC area passenger rail services from Northern Virginia to Baltimore, MD. Includes Light Rail and Baltimore Subway.

Moderators: mtuandrew, therock, Robert Paniagua

 #1579913  by farecard
 
https://dcist.com/story/21/09/07/it-loo ... ro-station

Could a Metro station in Georgetown be part of the solution to chronic overcrowding on the Orange, Blue, and Silver lines?

That option is central to four scenarios Metro is considering as it weighs possible fixes to backups and delays in the Rosslyn Tunnel, which carries passengers on all three lines from Northern Virginia into D.C. and on to Maryland. The scenarios are fleshed out in a new update to Metro’s two-year study of the congested transit routes.

...
[Article has graphics for the multiple options.....]
 #1579927  by KTHW
 
I really hope WMATA goes with the National Harbor loop. The other lines don’t really add capacity in the same way, and it gives us a 3rd/4th much needed crossing of the Potomac.

Oh and extend the Purple Line all the way to National Harbor if we build a metro line there.
 #1580097  by STrRedWolf
 
farecard wrote: Tue Sep 07, 2021 4:35 pm My first question is: Which one best connects to the BWI line?
Orange, but seriously, what's with trying to extend it up to BWI? You got Amtrak and you got MARC full service. It's $7 now to go DC to BWI. Oh, and the B30 WMATA bus is gone now. Do you really need super-frequent (in comparison) service to BWI Airport from DC?
 #1580099  by STrRedWolf
 
Going through the actual study here: https://www.wmata.com/about/board/meeti ... -Study.pdf

I've always thought the Blue Line should be split off to lighten up Rossyln but... how many studies had it at least loop around Georgetown and over to Union Station, then down to Navy Yard. I would of joined the Green at Navy Yard or stopped the Blue there, but going to National Harbor and the MGM? And looping around to hit Regan National?

I like the idea of the loop. But if you joined the Green at Navy Yard and followed that down to Congressional Heights, then split off to go back south-west along Southern Avenue before turning onto MD 210 and hitting National Harbor twice... Yeah, I can see some cost savings. Ether way, you're tunneling most of the time and bridging the rest.
 #1580101  by KTHW
 
The biggest benefit I see from not following the current Green Line routing from Navy Yard to Branch Ave, is a station at Buzzard Point and potentially near JBAB and St. Elizabeth’s East.

Does that outweigh the costs? Not sure…but I guess WMATA thinks so.
 #1580359  by Sand Box John
 
In my opinion much of the Blue line loop north of the Anacostia River is redundant.

I believe the cheapest option is not among the any of the options in the study.

I think the M Street subway should connect to the Blue and Orange lines east of D&G Junction.

Image
 #1580381  by STrRedWolf
 
Sand Box John wrote: Tue Sep 14, 2021 1:21 am In my opinion much of the Blue line loop north of the Anacostia River is redundant.

I believe the cheapest option is not among the any of the options in the study.

I think the M Street subway should connect to the Blue and Orange lines east of D&G Junction.

Image
I'm not sure what you're thinking of, past Mount Vernon Station east. If you're thinking of not hitting Union Station and continuing on M Street to Benning Road and then the D/G interlock... well, I think the goal is to not have three lines on one set of track, and you've shrunk the problem down to a single point of failure -- the D/G interlock. And that doesn't fit the bill.

The more I delve into it, the more I see some problems. I like the idea of Union Station-Navy Yard-Congressional Heights-National Harbor for accessibility to various places and straight-shot line... but routing it to Capitol South? I think you'll get some issues with Amtrak and Homeland Security. Plus you got a military base to worry about as well in some of the routing.
 #1580432  by Sand Box John
 
STrRedWolf

I'm not sure what you're thinking of, past Mount Vernon Station east. If you're thinking of not hitting Union Station and continuing on M Street to Benning Road and then the D/G interlock... well, I think the goal is to not have three lines on one set of track, and you've shrunk the problem down to a single point of failure -- the D/G interlock. And that doesn't fit the bill.


New junction north of Arlington Cemetery, Rosslyn, M Street Georgetown, New Jersey Avenue, H Street, Benning Road new junctions east of D&G Junction on the Orange and Blue lines.

The more I delve into it, the more I see some problems. I like the idea of Union Station-Navy Yard-Congressional Heights-National Harbor for accessibility to various places and straight-shot line... but routing it to Capitol South? I think you'll get some issues with Amtrak and Homeland Security. Plus you got a military base to worry about as well in some of the routing.

I see no issues with Amtrak or Homeland Security as the existing Blue, Orange and Silver lines tunnels pass under the Union Station First Street tunnel leaving WMATA no choice to put the Blue line loop tunnels under that. The Anacostia River tunnel approach alignments are further away from Fort McNair and Joint Base Anacostia Bowling then the Red Line is from the White House.

I will note that WMATA's Blue line loop option bears a striking resemblance to David Alpert fantasy map from 2008.

Edit:

I wrote this in a post at reddit.com/r/washingtondc under the post title Silver Line’s second phase could open to passengers early next year.
"As to the M Street subway Blue line loop. I think WMATA's selection of the options was made to produce the results they wanted. The ideas WMATA floated back in 2013 to address the so called Blue, Orange Silver lines capacity issues were not included in this study and two of the three option in this study were not among the ideas floated back in 2013."
 #1580569  by STrRedWolf
 
Sand Box John wrote: Tue Sep 14, 2021 7:48 pm I will note that WMATA's Blue line loop option bears a striking resemblance to David Alpert fantasy map from 2008.
Ah, I can see where you got the idea. Let me counter that idea:

Follow David Alpert's map, but at Union Station, the Blue line goes down on via the map's Brown Line routing. Between Union Station and Stadium/Armory, use the DC Streetcar and extend it from Benning & Oklahoma NE down via the Lot 6 loop to East Capitol Street NE. You are now within walking distance of Stadium-Armory, and you now have a way to transfer between it and Union Station.

...oh, to late for that, they're extending it to the Benning Road Metro Station.
 #1580663  by Sand Box John
 
STrRedWolf
...oh, to late for that, they're extending it to the Benning Road Metro Station.


Phase II of the original DC Streetcar plan had a line the ran north south along 8th Street NE, SE and crossed the 11st Bridge and continued down Martin Luther King Avenue to a terminal at Alabama Avenue. The line had stops at both the Eastern Market and Anacostia stations. A junction was planed at 8th and H Streets NE to allow streetcars to operate between the Foggy Bottom station and the terminal at Alabama Avenue.
 #1580673  by STrRedWolf
 
Sand Box John wrote: Sat Sep 18, 2021 11:22 am STrRedWolf
...oh, to late for that, they're extending it to the Benning Road Metro Station.


Phase II of the original DC Streetcar plan had a line the ran north south along 8th Street NE, SE and crossed the 11st Bridge and continued down Martin Luther King Avenue to a terminal at Alabama Avenue. The line had stops at both the Eastern Market and Anacostia stations. A junction was planed at 8th and H Streets NE to allow streetcars to operate between the Foggy Bottom station and the terminal at Alabama Avenue.
Well now they're planning to bridge it over Kingman Island and keep going down Benning Road. https://www.benningproject.com/ for the details. Ether way, that's that section of the fantasy Blue line covered.
 #1580703  by Sand Box John
 
STrRedWolf

Well now they're planning to bridge it over Kingman Island and keep going down Benning Road. https://www.benningproject.com/ for the details. Ether way, that's that section of the fantasy Blue line covered.


Phase I of the original DC Streetcar plan also extended the H Street line to the Benning Road Metrorail station.
 #1580729  by STrRedWolf
 
Sand Box John wrote: Sun Sep 19, 2021 10:03 am STrRedWolf

Well now they're planning to bridge it over Kingman Island and keep going down Benning Road. https://www.benningproject.com/ for the details. Ether way, that's that section of the fantasy Blue line covered.


Phase I of the original DC Streetcar plan also extended the H Street line to the Benning Road Metrorail station.
Ah, so it's still in Phase I. Awesome.
 #1580761  by davinp
 
They are not even considering expanding the Blue line south of Franconia/Springfield.
Many VRE riders connect to Metro at the Franconia/Springfield station.
VRE does not all day long like Metro does, but they have a plan to expand service.
It would be convenient if Metro went to Woodbridge because traffic is heavy on I-95 and Route 1.
After all, the HOV lanes were expanded south of Franconia-Springfield and in Maryland, Metro goes past the beltway