Dr. Gridlock in the Washington Post, discussed today the potential rerouting of some metro trains across the Yellow Line bridge over the Potomac rather than through the Rosslyn tunnel. Old news. Virtually the same article was written by Lena Sun in February 2008. Same question: should they make a new color? Yes, of course, as I blogged here over two years ago . (For more on how we name routes, check out my blog post on that here.)
There appears to be a pattern. The same problems just keep plaguing Metro. I've been reading about the escalator problems (and experiencing them personally) for more than a decade--along with this passenger who writes in today's post. Robert Thompson (Dr. Gridlock) replied thus:
"The current generation at the transit authority includes some pretty smart people. The consequences of the escalator design have been widely known and discussed since the 1990s. Is it not reasonable to expect that these smart people would be well on their way to solving the problems they inherited? Instead, the transit authority remains far better at articulating the problems than at solving them."
Likewise with the invisible tunnel. Just do it.
If the rerouting of the trains across the Potomac instead of under it is a good idea, then quit talking about it and do it. Yes, deciding what to call it is an issue, but surely that is not what is keeping it from being implemented.
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Steve Offutt of Arlington also blogs at Greater Greater Washington
I suggest using Teal to identify the Blue-Green hybrid line, but ultimately both Potomac River Metrorail crossings need to be expanded with at least a third track each.
I believe the current proposal would divert fewer Blue line trains per hour than the earlier proposal.
Posted by: Allen Muchnick | July 26, 2010 at 04:07 PM