Archive: January 2007
Driving With GPS
I didn't get lost till I got to be Dr. Gridlock. I prided myself on having a pretty good sense of direction and knowing where I was. But that became far more of a challenge last summer when I began driving around the region with letters from readers on the passenger seat. I was often going to places I was unfamiliar with so I could experience the same thing the writers had gone through and better understand their complaints. So for Christmas, the Grid Spouse gave me a GPS navigation unit. (My sister, who is much lower tech, gave me a set of jumper cables and a flashlight.) Now I guess because I deal in dissatisfaction, I'm looking for the downside of navigating by GPS rather than the stack of map books I also keep in the car. First, the upside: I haven't gotten lost. If I trust the force,...
By | January 31, 2007; 6:28 AM ET | Comments (0)
Purple Line Rally Today
Backers of the proposed transitway between New Carrollton and Bethesda rallied today in front of the State House in Annapolis to show continued support for the project. Leaders of the effort have been feeling pretty good since the November elections, in which many Purple Line supporters were victorious. The change in administrations in Annapolis also suggests that planners will wind up focusing on it as a light rail line rather than the bus rapid transit system that so interested Bob Flanagan, who was former governor Bob Ehrlich's transportation secretary. These days, it's rare to find anyone refering to the project as the Bicounty Transitway, the name it had during the Ehrlich administration. Last week's Montgomery County Council hearing on transportation priorities was mostly about how much people love the Purple Line and the Corridor Cities Transitway along the I-270 corridor and how much they hate the intercounty connector. But as...
By | January 30, 2007; 8:24 AM ET | Comments (0)
New Metro Chief Introduces Himself
The new guy looked pretty good: John B. Catoe Jr., the D.C. native who took over as Metro's general manager last Thursday, held his first press conference this moring to talk about his initial impressions and plans regarding the transit system. Nothing horrible has happened during his five-day watch, so this wasn't hardball. Still, he did many of the things that suggest his skills as a manager: Respect for his staff, a vision of what he can do to improve its performance, a focus on his customers, powers of observation and a sense that he's responsible for how this all comes together. His initial attention to the transit system's safety shows not only a good sense of priorities but also of timing, since the recent deaths of track workers and the derailment of a train are so prominent in the minds of transit workers and customers. Catoe said he wants...
By | January 29, 2007; 2:31 PM ET | Comments (0)
More Information From Metro
Metro is going to launch an information program in a couple of weeks for those of us who actually want to know why the train got stopped and how long it's going to stand still. The program that Lena Sun wrote about in Sunday's Post reminds me of those AM radio broadcasts that police or highway departments use to tell us why traffic is stopped on the highway and whether we can do anything to get out of it. For Metro, it will be a phone call to the customer service line that gets us the information about the delay. Now, I know what you're going to say -- or at least the first thing you're going to say. If train operators or station managers were sharing information, or if all the announcements were clear, we wouldn't need this. And it's true. Another thing you'll point out is that if...
By | January 29, 2007; 5:30 AM ET | Comments (0)
Traffic and Transit Developments Everywhere
This has been an unusually active week for traffic and transit planners and the travelers who have a stake in their decisions. Here are some highlights: -- John B. Catoe Jr. was sworn in Thursdays as Metro's new general manager. "It's good to be home," said Catoe, 59, a Washington native who most recently worked for the Los Angeles transit system. He said he would soon make announcements on making Metro safer, although he did declare his belief that the system is safe now, despite this month's derailment and the deaths of several track workers. -- Montgomery County residents presented their transportation requests to the County Council on Thursday night. The two hour session was dominated by what many speakers said they didn't want: the intercounty connector. Things the speakers said they do want included the Purple Line and Corridor Cities Transitway, the long-awaited Brookeville Bypass and a way into...
By | January 26, 2007; 8:10 AM ET | Comments (5)
Lanes Reopen on Inner Loop Before I-295
Traffic is now getting by in the three left southbound lanes on the Inner Loop before the Anacostia Freeway following an accident involving a tractor trailer and five cars, according to MapTuit traffic reports. The Inner Loop's southbound lanes were closed this morning at about 11:30 a.m. when the accident occurred, according to Sgt. Robert Lipsky. All southbound lanes are expected to reopen before rush-hour traffic begins....
By washingtonpost.com editors | January 25, 2007; 12:31 PM ET | Comments (0)
Watch For Wilson Bridge Work
The new span on the Wilson Bridge is going through final testing and commissioning, which will require a few brief shutdowns in coming weeks. Project managers promise to give plenty of notice. Some of the shutdowns will occur at off-peak times during the week, but most of the work is likely to occur on weekend days. The testing must be done with the benefit of daylight. Even with a closing of no more than 20 minutes, the backups are likely to extend for about three miles. The closures will occur in only one direction each day and electronic signs will provide warning, project officials say. This wrapup work on the first of the new Wilson spans is coming as the District prepares for a big new reconstruction project at the Frederick Douglass Bridge, which takes South Capitol Street over the Anacostia River. You can read about that in a story...
By | January 25, 2007; 8:21 AM ET | Comments (3)
Summer Detour for D.C. Commuters
The Frederick Douglass Bridge, an important commuter route that carries South Capitol Street traffic over the Anacostia River will be shut down for July and August for a big reconstruction job. Drivers will be detoured north to the 11th Street Bridge. Just setting up the big traffic diversion is an interesting and ambitious goal, but that's nothing compared to the work itself: When the bridge reopens, drivers will be in for a very different experience. The northern part of the crossing will be cranked down to put nearly three blocks of the elevated roadway at street level. There will be a new intersection at Potomac Avenue. The District government wants to improve the appearance of one of the city's gateways, one that leads travelers north toward the U.S. Capitol, and to stitch together a neighborhood now divided by the elevated roadway. The big closing is scheduled for the summer when...
By | January 23, 2007; 5:26 PM ET | Comments (21)
Trouble Ahead For Tysons Travelers
If you travel through Tysons regularly, you are in for interesting times. While the citizens who make up the Tysons Land Use Task Force were talking last night about how to involve the public in creating a small city of distinctive, liveable, walkable neighborhoods, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors was approving a developer's plan to surround the Tysons Corner Center mall with eight residential and commercial towers up to 30 stories high. The citizens, who are taking their job seriously no matter what the board is doing, passed a resolution in support of putting the new Metrorail line underground through Tysons. One of their concerns about an elevated track is that it will look like a wall to pedestrians thinking about crossing Route 123. Once the towers go up, the tracks may look no more intimidating than a Lionel train set running around a Christmas tree. Those who drive...
By | January 23, 2007; 7:26 AM ET | Comments (36)
Maryland vs. Virginia
A poster on this blog made an interesting observation over the weekend that I'd like to discuss with you. Here's what "Baltimore" said to us: "I find it very interesting that the posts regarding transportation in Virginia tend to get a much bigger response than the posts regarding transportation in Maryland (other than the ICC, of course). I'm curious: is that because Virginia has worse traffic, or because this issue is something that is being so actively debated politically? Has Maryland done a better job in managing traffic than Virginia? Or are Maryland's other main traffic issues (the 270 corridor, Southern Maryland) just not receiving the political attention?" Or maybe Virginians have more interest in blogs about transportation issues. But as I read letters to Dr. Gridlock, engage in online discussions and speak to community groups, I do sense more passion at the moment among Virginians than among Marylanders over...
By | January 22, 2007; 6:05 AM ET | Comments (38)
Breakthrough in Virginia
For the first time in two decades, Virginia is on the verge of making a strong commitment to improving its transportation system. The state's next big hurdle will be to spend the money wisely. Maybe that's thinking too far ahead. After all, what happened on Thursday did not create a new transportation plan for the state. It didn't guarantee more rail cars for Metro or traffic relief on Interstate 66. But it was easily the most significant day in many years for the drivers and transit riders who are vexed by the problems of getting around the Washington suburbs. As of Jan. 18, 2007, the leaders of Virginia's two main political parties agree that the transportation system is very important and very broken, and that it requires a big fix. Now, it becomes a question of working out the details. That can be done, as long as outriders on either...
By | January 19, 2007; 7:20 AM ET | Comments (18)
What's Ahead For Projects
Look at the Maryland Department of Transportation Web site today and you'll see the brand new line up of state leaders across the top and a new welcome message from John Porcari, Gov. Martin O'Malley's choice to lead the transportation department. What else is different? Porcari told me that he saw no reason to stop the intercounty connector, the suburban Washington highway that former governor Bob Ehrlich put on the fast track. But Porcari also is likely to show a greater interest in improving transit than was evident during the previous administration. He's hoping to make some relatively quick improvements in MARC train and commuter bus services, for example. His predecessor, Bob Flanagan, was enthralled with the possibility of creating bus rapid transit systems. He had the department looking at them for the proposed Purple Line and Corridor Cities Transitway. Last week, Porcari accompanied O'Malley to a town hall meeting...
By | January 18, 2007; 7:41 AM ET | Comments (0)
When Commutes Go Bad
Neil Pedersen, the Maryland state highway adminstrator, told me a while ago that it isn't so much the length of a commute that bothers travelers as the lack of reliability in a commute. I've been thinking about that during the six months I've been reading letters from travelers. Sure, people do complain about the length of the trips, both in time and distance. They might say so in the context of writing that we need to create more affordable housing near work centers, like the District or Tysons. But for many people, the length of the trip is a given. It's not the thing that really vexes them. It's the thing that goes wrong that they complain about. It might be something that goes wrong and directly affects them or it might be something going on around them that they think is unfair. I've heard from a commuter whose trip...
By | January 17, 2007; 8:08 AM ET | Comments (0)
Maryland's Transportation Plans
John Porcari, who returns to the job of Maryland transportation secretary on Wednesday, isn't looking for wiggle room on the state's commitment to build the intercounty connector highway. "It will be under construction" during the upcoming term of Gov.-elect Martin O'Malley, Porcari told me. When I noted that he wasn't leaving himself an escape hatch, despite the continuing controversy over the connector and an environmental lawsuit, he said: "No, I'm really not. Anything could happen, but I do think it's been studied enough, it's been scrutinized enough and it has been debated enough that all the significant issues have been vetted one way or another." Porcari already has served a term as transportation secretary, under the previous Democratic governor, Parris Glendening. During those years, he helped launch two of the region's biggest and, so far, most successful projects: the Wilson Bridge reconstruction and the redevelopment of BWI-Marshall Airport. But Porcari...
By | January 16, 2007; 8:10 AM ET | Comments (0)
Getting Around This Weekend
Can't go skiing this weekend because there's nothing around here to ski on? Some Virginians are on a four-day weekend, thanks to the Lee-Jackson Day state holiday on Friday. While others must settle for the three-day weekend provided by the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday on Monday. The weather outlook isn't great for travelers, but at least it's consistent: It's a headlights and windshield wipers weekend. Showers through Monday, with high temperatures in the 50s and lows in the high 30s and 40s. If you're hanging around town, and maybe taking in the "Monster Jam" of trucks at Verizon Center or "King Lear" at the Folger Shakespeare Library (anybody got tickets for both?) or seeing "King: A Filmed Record" at the AFI Silver Theatre, you can reach all of those by Metro. But here are some things to know about the weekend transit schedule: -- Track work: Arlington Cemetery...
By | January 12, 2007; 8:37 AM ET | Comments (0)
Etiquette for Transit Riders?
A friend of mine from Baltimore who takes the MARC train to Washington asked me whether we've talked about the standards of behavior in crowded cars. Like other MARC riders, and VRE riders and Metrorail and Metrobus riders, she's used to traveling in vehicles where there is little or no room for passengers to maneuver. Who stands, who sits, and where? Which way do you lean to get out of the way of a conductor or passengers moving along the aisles? Can you save a seat for someone? The commuters who form the slug lines to carpool into Washington have their own standards of behavior for riding in groups, such as: Only the driver should initiate a conversation and talking on cell phones is not allowed. Who's got some practical advice for transit passengers during the everyday crowding we encounter? I'm trying to be focused here: I don't mean stand...
By | January 11, 2007; 8:57 AM ET | Comments (0)
Meet the New Boss
Same as the old boss. Martin O'Malley, who will become Maryland governor next week, introduced his designated transportation secretary at a jammed town hall meeting in Montgomery County last night. John D. Porcari has served most recently as vice president for administrative affairs at the University of Maryland in College Park. But before that, he spent four years as Maryland's transportation secretary under Gov. Parris N. Glendening. Porcari helped get the big reconstruction projects started at BWI-Marshall Airport and the Wilson Bridge. He also helped improve Maryland's Department of Motor Vehicles services. When O'Malley introduced Porcari last night in the auditorium at Einstein High School, many people stood to applaud, in what generally proved to be a love-fest for the governor-elect and the new Montgomery County executive, Ike Leggett. When Leggett invited the public to approach two microphones, scores of people took up the offer. The first transportation topic that...
By | January 10, 2007; 8:13 AM ET | Comments (11)
Learning About Long Commutes
Would you agree that there are two basic issues in a long-distance commute: How do you endure it, and what makes it worth enduring? I had my own version of it: When I worked at the Long Island, N.Y., newspaper Newsday, I commuted 50 miles from my home in Westchester County, north of New York City, to the middle of the island. I did that 100 mile round trip, including two toll plazas and a bridge each way, for five years because I wanted to. Of course, I could have moved when I took the job on Long Island, but I didn't see anything out there that I lived in my price range, wanted to live near my old friends and had a very nice apartment in a great location. Always drove solo. Transit wasn't a good option on that route at those unstable hours. Michael Leahy, a magazine writer...
By | January 9, 2007; 8:36 AM ET | Comments (39)
Metro's Problem-Plagued Cars
Metro and the National Transportation Safety Board have not determined the cause of Sunday's derailment at Mount Vernon Square, but it's interesting to note that it involved the troublesome 5000 Series of railcars. The transit authority bought 192 of these cars, which were the first to have the red, white and blue color scheme (although by now, many other cars also have that color scheme). They began to enter service in 2001 and last of them started running in 2004. The cars were built by CAF Inc., a Spanish manufacturer that was hoping to enter the U.S. transit market. The cars has troubles all through the construction process, plus there were many mechanical and electronic problems once they entered service. They were involved in four derailments in less than 18 months. There was a debate within Metro over whether the design of the cars was a contributing factor, but they...
By | January 8, 2007; 8:22 AM ET | Comments (12)
Many Metro Disruptions This Winter
Now that the holiday season is over, Metro is resuming its weekend track work, which will be with us for the foreseeable future, the transit authority says. This weekend, track maintenance and rail car testing on the Green and Yellow Lines will cause delays of 15 to 20 minutes, according to Metro, because the trains will be sharing a single track. Click here to see the full details on Metro's Web site. This is just the beginning. During the winter, major track renovations will affect service on all lines. During the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend-- the weekend after this -- Metro will close Arlington Cemetery Station to replace a rail switch. During Presidents Day weekend -- Feb. 16 to 19 -- Metro will close Cheverly Station to replace another rail switch. And it's not just weekends. Here's an example of the many projects that could affect your travels:...
By | January 5, 2007; 6:55 AM ET | Comments (21)
Kaine Sets Transportation Goals
Last year, when Gov. Tim Kaine offered the biggest transportation program for Virginia in two decades, he bounced off a brick wall of opposition from Republicans in the House of Delegates. This morning, he told a receptive audience of Northern Virginia's business and civic leaders in Herndon that he's going to take another run at the wall: "I like hard stuff." This time, though, the run probably will take him through the state's elections in November, when his fellow Democrats will run in part on a platform of transportation improvements in their effort to take control of the House and Senate. Still, Kaine said he was hopeful of success in the General Assembly session that starts in the middle of this month. He says he wants three things: to improve the performance of the state's transportation department, raise more money for maintenance and new projects and allow government to link...
By | January 4, 2007; 1:35 PM ET | Comments (10)
What's Your New Year's Outlook?
New mayor in the District, new governor in Maryland: What's your New Year's wish list for these guys? And while we're at it, let's throw some requests for the members of the Virginia General Assembly, who will be telling you between now and election day in November how much they've done to improve your travels. I'd like them all to kick in more money for Metro transit operations, while urging the Metro board members to limit the fare increases and service reductions to whatever is truly essential. (They can do more than urge the board members in most cases.) In Maryland, I'll be curious to see how Gov.-elect Martin O'Malley performs the necessary balancing acts between roads and transit and between regions of the state. Is the intercounty connector really a done deal? Will he find the money to advance all three of the upcoming transit projects for Baltimore and...
By | January 3, 2007; 8:04 AM ET | Comments (10)
Right Lanes Open at I-66, Inner Loop Interchange
The Inner Loop's left lane remains blocked following an accident involving an overturned tractor trailer on the Capital Beltway at the Interstate 66 interchange in Virginia. Drivers on I-66 must still use the left exit to access the Capital Beltway, according to MapTuit traffic reports. Inner Loop delays begin in Springfield....
By washingtonpost.com editors | January 2, 2007; 12:39 PM ET | Comments (3)
