Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Maryland > Washington, DC suburbs in Maryland
 [Register]
Washington, DC suburbs in Maryland Calvert County, Charles County, Montgomery County, and Prince George's County
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 12-13-2022, 12:31 PM
 
Location: Boston
20,098 posts, read 8,998,912 times
Reputation: 18734

Advertisements

Planning, funding, construction can take 20 years or more to complete.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 12-14-2022, 08:19 AM
 
5,114 posts, read 6,084,776 times
Reputation: 7184
Quote:
Originally Posted by ion475 View Post
It's my biggest peeve with MARC anyway - plans, more plans, but never much action. I can only hope Moore focus on improving that.

Now, some of those MARC extension (i.e. to NOVA) are dependent on other projects, i.e. Long Bridge across Potomac (They're building a new one IIRC to make that section quadruple track) to Virginia, and station improvements in Delaware to extend MARC that way. Full-day service on both Camden Line and Brunswick Line had also been talk about for years...
Why should they extend MARC to Virginia? They have VRE over there. Let Virginia fund and operate rail service in their state.


Quote:
Well, either those or just extend Metrorail up to Laurel, build a new line to Columbia (and pull HoCo ever closer to DC), and extend Red Line to Germantown area. But of course, right now they can't even get BRT done on those corridors...

The problem with doing any expansion to Metro is that it is ruled by so many different political entities. Getting an expansion that satisfies all is almost impossible. And remember the original purpose of Metro. It was to get federal workers to and from their offices in downtown out to the suburbs. And it was done on the cheap. Otherwise it would have been built with 4 tracks at least inside the beltway so they could run express trains from downtown that skipped stations. The way ot is you have to stop at every station along the line.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-16-2022, 08:33 PM
 
1,202 posts, read 789,941 times
Reputation: 1415
Quote:
Originally Posted by MidValleyDad View Post
Why should they extend MARC to Virginia? They have VRE over there. Let Virginia fund and operate rail service in their state.
The plan IIRC is to extend MARC services (basically one-seat ride) further south to at least Alexandria, if not more, just so Marylander don't have to change trains at Union Station to go to places like L'Enfant (to change to 4 Metro lines instead of just Red Line), Crystal City which is a commercial/job center, and Alexandria just b/c IIRC that's the closest point they can build a place for train to turn around.

VRE is likely to operate that section in Virginia anyway similar to those NJ Transit/Metro North inter-running.

Of course...this require:
1. Expanding the facility at L'Enfant
2. A new Long Bridge across Potomac
3. Dealing with Virginia
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-17-2022, 12:35 AM
 
836 posts, read 850,658 times
Reputation: 740
Isn't it the responsibility of the MTA to provide mass transit service from DC to Baltimore???
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-20-2022, 09:21 AM
 
8,223 posts, read 13,338,852 times
Reputation: 2534
Quote:
Originally Posted by ion475 View Post
The plan IIRC is to extend MARC services (basically one-seat ride) further south to at least Alexandria, if not more, just so Marylander don't have to change trains at Union Station to go to places like L'Enfant (to change to 4 Metro lines instead of just Red Line), Crystal City which is a commercial/job center, and Alexandria just b/c IIRC that's the closest point they can build a place for train to turn around.

VRE is likely to operate that section in Virginia anyway similar to those NJ Transit/Metro North inter-running.

Of course...this require:
1. Expanding the facility at L'Enfant
2. A new Long Bridge across Potomac
3. Dealing with Virginia
I remember when MTA was going to reduce or cancel service into WV if they didnt increase their contribution and they had a fit. Or at least the people that use MARC in WV did. It sems to have gotten worked out though I dont know if they actually increased their contribution. They even proposed eliminating places like St. Denis on the Camden Line and people went all the way to the MD Congressional reps to stop that. At any rate .. I would hope that MD and VA would come together with some form of Agreement for run through service especially as Amazon ramps up in Crystal City. I am sure there would be some form of "charge back" from MARC to VRE on those tickets sold to VA Stations.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-20-2022, 09:29 AM
 
8,223 posts, read 13,338,852 times
Reputation: 2534
Quote:
Originally Posted by MidValleyDad View Post
The problem with improving MARC service is that CSX does not want anymore MARC trains on their lines. They are interested in Freight, Freight, and more Freight. As long as MARC is using CSX tracks there is not much chance of increasing the number of trains.
I have seen CSX using the NEC frequently. I believe they have a yard in SE DC along 295? I would hope that Amtrak/MARC could negotiate with them to have more access to the NEC in exchange for additional service on the Camden Line.. assuming it made sense for everyone which it could during the overnight hours.

Silly question... That "yard" that I referenced on 295.. doesnt that run into L'Enfant Plaza from the east? If MARC is using modified diesel engines (less emissions) cant some MARC trains run down to L'Enfant and skip Union altogether and then go on to VA ? Trains bound for Union can just continue to terminate there from the NEC?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-20-2022, 12:34 PM
 
2,282 posts, read 3,929,742 times
Reputation: 2105
Wes Moore intends to revive the Red Line Baltimore Project that Larry Hogan rejected. So, any hope for a regional transportation system connecting DC and Baltimore may be a case of wishful thinking.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-20-2022, 07:38 PM
 
1,202 posts, read 789,941 times
Reputation: 1415
Quote:
Originally Posted by Woodlands View Post
I remember when MTA was going to reduce or cancel service into WV if they didnt increase their contribution and they had a fit. Or at least the people that use MARC in WV did. It sems to have gotten worked out though I dont know if they actually increased their contribution. They even proposed eliminating places like St. Denis on the Camden Line and people went all the way to the MD Congressional reps to stop that. At any rate .. I would hope that MD and VA would come together with some form of Agreement for run through service especially as Amazon ramps up in Crystal City. I am sure there would be some form of "charge back" from MARC to VRE on those tickets sold to VA Stations.
They did find some money...

https://www.marylandmatters.org/2020...train-service/

But IMHO the main problem? You're talking about $1M a year which is almost nothing for a state budget, yet they still "scramble"...(WV Annual State Budget is $13.8B for 2020).

Oh, and BTW Purple Line will cost $9.3B to build...but Red Line was 1.6B and of course Hogan throws a fit.

Quote:
Originally Posted by NJ2MDdude View Post
Wes Moore intends to revive the Red Line Baltimore Project that Larry Hogan rejected. So, any hope for a regional transportation system connecting DC and Baltimore may be a case of wishful thinking.
TBH Baltimore needs way more than Red Line. But hey...those NIMBY at Lutherville are already crying about a potential light rail line:

https://www.wmar2news.com/news/local...happy-about-it
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-21-2022, 06:58 AM
 
8,223 posts, read 13,338,852 times
Reputation: 2534
Quote:
Originally Posted by ion475 View Post
They did find some money...

https://www.marylandmatters.org/2020...train-service/

But IMHO the main problem? You're talking about $1M a year which is almost nothing for a state budget, yet they still "scramble"...(WV Annual State Budget is $13.8B for 2020).

Oh, and BTW Purple Line will cost $9.3B to build...but Red Line was 1.6B and of course Hogan throws a fit.



TBH Baltimore needs way more than Red Line. But hey...those NIMBY at Lutherville are already crying about a potential light rail line:

https://www.wmar2news.com/news/local...happy-about-it
OK... yeah I figured that did because the service is still running. Even though the riders may make up a smaller portion of the overall population of WV..I am sure the taxes they pay from the "higher paying DC Region Jobs" make them hard to ignore.. I know its not dollar for dollar but I am sure the politicos out there can count votes.... LOL
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 12-21-2022, 07:00 AM
 
8,223 posts, read 13,338,852 times
Reputation: 2534
Quote:
Originally Posted by NJ2MDdude View Post
Wes Moore intends to revive the Red Line Baltimore Project that Larry Hogan rejected. So, any hope for a regional transportation system connecting DC and Baltimore may be a case of wishful thinking.
So.. if that happens ..How long would you think it would take to go to construction then completion? I will likely be retired and moved south by the time its built ...LOL

Again.. I like the idea of keeping it on the surface and trying to incorporate the Howard Street Corridor into it so that you can have multiple routes created rather than creating an above ground/below ground transfer site downtown. I know its not ideal because its running down the street but it seems the additional connectivity to the existing line would make the system more interconnected rather than having three stand alone systems.. Subway, Light Rail, and a "new" New Light Rail that all require transfers and no one seat rides
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Maryland > Washington, DC suburbs in Maryland
Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top