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Kaine Reluctant to Consider Tunnel

In an extremely cautious move, Governor Timothy Kaine refuses to consider plans for a tunnel to Tyson's Corner and Dulles in spite of new technology which might even produce a tunnel for less money than the Bechtel proposal for an elevated track. Residents of Northern Virginia are mostly furious, but Kaine isn't backing down from his support of the elevated line- at least not yet. While the underground tunnel might mean further delays, it appears to be the best solution for the area, as an elevated track would hinder the urbanization of the area.

The Washington Post

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I hope Kaine finds his "cojones" and rejoins the progressive thinking people that help get his Lt Governor hindparts elected and take the tunnel boring company up on its offer to build the tunnel. Hell, it looks like the tunnel boring company would actually reduce its own cost to make it happen, so they basically seem to be attempting to do whatever it takes to get those 4 miles of tunnel completed "more cheaply" than the above ground proposal. In all his eco-sounding rhetoric about land use planning, I just don't see how he in his position could not see the VISION!. Its clear as day.

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  • 2 weeks later...

From WTOP February 16:

WASHINGTON - Have you ever had to hustle down the escalator to a Metro platform, only to find your train pulling away? Metro is introducing signs posted outside stations to prevent customers from having to sprint.

"These signs would allow the customers to know what happens before they enter the rail station, about disruptions, about certain trains being on time, and also will provide the bus information as they leave the station," said Metro General Manager John Catoe.

The first signs have been installed at Gallery Place, Shady Grove and Vienna. They are kiosks with the information scrolling at about eye-level.

To supplement the kiosks, separate 46-inch flat screen signs will be installed in the next few weeks at Gallery Place-Chinatown, Silver Spring and Rosslyn.

The $100,000 a year project is being paid for with advertising revenue.

If customers like the signs, Metro will put them throughout the entire Metro system.

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Purple Line, Two Other Transit Projects Delayed

Study That Underestimated Ridership Could Cost Md. Federal Funds, Officials Say

Maryland officials said yesterday that three major transit projects, two of them aimed at using light rail or express buses to ease traffic in the Washington suburbs, will likely be delayed about a year because of a flawed study that underestimated the number of riders.

State Transportation Secretary John D. Porcari said Metro's proposed Purple Line between Bethesda and New Carrollton, a transit link between Shady Grove and Clarksburg and the Red Line in Baltimore have been shelved while Maryland and its consultants work on new projections.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Dulles Metro Extension to Proceed Without Tunnel Plans

For the moment anyway, plans for the Metro extension are proceeding without the underground tunnel at Tysons Corner. I'd still prefer to see the tunnel built in spite of the outrageous costs associated with such a project. The area will be better off with a tunnel. Still, it is good to see that action is being taken to get a train out to Dulles. This needed to happen forty years ago.

The Washington Post

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How much worse could it be to put a tunnel under Tysons than running an elevated track for an extended length? With Tysons being a major suburban center of the DC area, it would probably be more valuable in the long run to bury the line aesthetically as well as costwise.

In 20 years, the people of Tysons will be wishing the line was put underground. It would look a whole lot better anyway. Take for example in Boston, they tore down the elevated lines a couple decades ago in the North End and put the Green/Orange Lines underground to past North Station.

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  • 2 months later...

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted 8 to 2 yesterday to help pay for a 23-mile extension of Metro to Dulles International Airport with an overhead track through busy Tysons Corner, angering tunnel advocates but keeping alive plans for traffic-congestion relief along one of the Washington area's critical economic corridors.

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Tom,

I have to agree with you. It should have been done years ago when they could have done it more easily and helped to have worked to build the infrestructure around the Metro. I am sure that the decision was made that by building it through Tysons in the air that they could do it faster. I just think that they are going to wish that they had placed it underground in the long run.

Now maybe we can get final approval on the Purple Line and the Green Line Extension to BWI.

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  • 1 month later...

A few articles on the expansion of the Metro to Dulles

Loudoun Supervisors Back Metro ExtensionShare Is $240 Million; Project Would Add Station at Airport, 2 in Ashburn

The Loudoun County Board of Supervisors voted yesterday to support extending Metrorail to Dulles International Airport and into the county, indicating it will come up with its $240 million share of the project's cost when the time comes.

If the plan goes forward as proposed, Loudoun will have three Metro stations, one at the airport and two along the median of the Dulles Greenway in Ashburn. It will hasten the county's rapid suburbanization, but it also might alleviate traffic congestion.

Edited by urbanvb
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I don't know if this has been mentioned on the message boards here, but after riding to and from White Marsh and seeing the signs I had to figure out what this project was all about. The plan is to reconstruct 3 interchanges from I-95 at I-895 northeast of Baltimore city ending at the White Marsh interchange. The interchange reconstructions are necessary to add 2 lanes per direction to be designated as express toll lanes where the tolls are based on traffic counts, time of day, etc. The I-95/I-695 interchange is definitely remniscent of LA.

Edited by blburton
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Metro May Curtail Late Weekend Service

In a remarkably stupid move, the director of the Washington Metro has suggested that it might be necessary to curtail weekend service at night- between 12:00 and 3:00 AM. This would merely put more drunk drivers on the road. As noted in the article, bus service is not an acceptable alternative to rail service. Washington willl be turning back the clock if it allows this to happen. I pray that funding can be found somewhere to keep the late service going. Washington is not Indianapolis and must not behave in this way.

The Washington-Post

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I'm hoping the FTA evaluation won't be a substantial hinderance. I mean come on, surely you know by now that construction costs for just about anything aren't cheap these days.

As far as cutting back weekend hours of operation on the Metro, I really hope not. I agree, it would be a serious step back. I've taken the Metro late on a Saturday night, and it was a life saver.

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Me and some other kids in this club at my college went down to Washington in March for the weekend, they went out on a Saturday night to the clubs in Georgetown, took the Metro cause the cabs are too expensive in town. Had I not pre-gamed too hard before hand, I woulda been on the Metro right with them.

I don't think any of us want to see the Midnight-3 am weekend service should be pulled back. It's a great convenience, and I wish other cities (like Boston) took on the hours themselves. If they have to charge off-peak or premium prices, so be it. It'll still be better and cheaper than cabs.

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It is certainly not going to happen as long as the current crop of leaders we have in the White House and in Congress continue to fund anything but rail projects. I will grant that a DC-Baltimore segment of mag-lev wouldn't make much sense all by itself. The key is to get it built elsewhere- to Richmond, Norfolk etc.. Certainly, getting it up to NY and Boston would bake sense, but that route is currently served by the Acela Express. I'm for building it south of Washington as a beginning. I rather doubt we will be seeing anything of this any time soon, as much as I would like to believe it is possible.

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  • 1 month later...

Kaine and Others Face Opposition From Tunnel Advocates

At a meeting today, Governor Timothy Kaine and Senator Warner faced vocal opposition from advocates of the tunnel option for rail service to Dulles Airport. While I prefer the tunnel for many reasons, it is unlikely to be built. The reasons are manifold, but the cost is foremost and paramount. As I have said before, let's just get this built. It has been forty years too long already.

The Washington Post

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Well, you could make an argument that building the Metro underground from the get go will avert future costs and problems down the road from building the viaduct first and then the tunnel afterwards. To take example, they built the Central Artery (I-93) through Boston. Fourty years later, they decided it needed to go and started building a tunnel. Probably should have been a tunnel in the first place, but now they did it. And now that cost 18 billion dollars. I'm just worried that a similar mistake will be made in Tysons where they change their minds, put the tunnel in later on after all, and it costs a small fortune.

The line needs to get extended through Tysons to Dulles yes. It needs to be done, and soon. I just have my fears on how it should be done.

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I'd love to see them build a tunnel. It would be smarter to do a tunnel than any system above ground. Since when, however, has anyone in this town done things the right way? Better to get something done than to add another 15 years to the project. I hate to be this cynical, but it won't likely be built below ground,

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