“It is our responsibility to plan for the future and share with the community what is possible and what benefits come from strengthening the system, and that is exactly what it is. said Metro board member Matthew F. Letourneau at the board meeting. meeting on thursday. “But I can’t say too loudly that this is an exercise in planning. This is a proposal. It’s not an immediate plan.”
Board members considered several early proposals for expanding the service, but most of them will take “decades” to plan, finance and build, transportation planners said. The proposal is primarily intended to solve the tunnel capacity shortage between Foggy Bottom, Washington, DC, and Roslyn, Virginia. Subway officials said the growth around stations that use tunnels is expected to create congestion problems that existed before the pandemic.
This option includes two options that Metro stakeholders believe will provide the best service and economic benefits to Metro and the region. One plan is to split the Silver Line into its own tracks, allow for express service, and create new stops in Georgetown and Ivy City, one of the fastest growing areas in the district. . Another would be to take the Blue Line to stops at Georgetown and Union Station, then move south to connect with the DC Waterfront and Navy Yard, serving areas such as Buzzard Point, St. Elizabeth, and National Harbor. I suggest readjusting. The line will cross the Woodrow Wilson Bridge to Alexandria.
Each proposal involves building a new tunnel across the Potomac River at a cost of about $35 billion.
The plan, which began before the pandemic, comes as Metro seeks regular payments of new subsidies to cover its projected $750 million deficit next year. The gap is caused by rising labor costs due to inflation and union-bargained wage increases, as well as the shift to remote work, which has cut half the number of rail riders.
Metro has called on regional leaders to help address the growing funding shortfall if they want frequent rail service. The financial gap was filled by federal aid in the first three years of the pandemic, but that funding is also drying up.
Still, Metro leaders are pushing expansion plans as cities and counties plan for large developments that rely on Metrorail proximity and connectivity, as well as light rail services such as the Purple Line in Maryland. said there was a need.
“We want to be with them, we want to be partners because if there’s one thing we’ve learned in the last few years, [it] Metro is critical to the region’s future economic success,” Metro board chairman Paul C. Smedberg said after the meeting.
Transportation officials said they wanted to solve the restriction caused by too few tracks crossing the Potomac. Subway officials also want the system to be part of a planned renovation of Union Station, with two stations, Farragut North and Farragut West, disconnected but less than two blocks apart. He also said that he would like to correct the inadequate design, such as not being separated. .
“There are some fundamental design challenges in how the system is laid out that must be overcome and tied to areas like Union Station. I think it will,” said Metro General Manager Randy Clark.
Metro planners acknowledge that congestion problems near tunnels no longer exist, as passenger numbers have lagged behind pre-pandemic levels. But subway planners said ridership in recent months has risen faster than at any time since 2020, while growth around stations using tunnels continues.
Transportation officials say one of the reasons they keep moving forward is to ensure that Metro is prepared for a recovery in ridership and an increase in ridership, while keeping the costly tunnel project proposal under federal funding rules. He said it was to make sure it fit. The agency has been unable to accurately forecast demand since the pandemic changed transit usage.
“We always try to recalculate passenger numbers when we think we have at least a few years to spare. [of data] Mark Phillips, director of regional mobility planning for Metro, said. “Anytime you project the future, you need a trend line. Everything is still undecided, but the fact is that passenger numbers are recovering very quickly this year compared to the last two years.”