BGuthrie Photos: DC -- Metro Town Hall Meeting

DC -- Metro Town Hall Meeting:

Bruce Guthrie Photos Home Page: [Click here] to go to Bruce Guthrie Photos home page.

Description of Pictures: The Board of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (Metro) hosted its first Town Hall meeting to talk to customers on a variety of issues dealing with Metrorail, Metrobus and Metroaccess such as service, funding and expansion. Bob Levey, Senior Vice President for Development at the Washington Hospital Center and former columnist with The Washington Post, moderated the Town Hall meeting.

People asked a lot of interesting questions reflecting the diverse needs of the Metro customer base. Bathroom access, escalators, short door times, trash cans, future expansion, one-price service, unruly school kids, etc.

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Copyrights: All pictures were taken by amateur photographer Bruce Guthrie (me!) who retains copyright on them. Free for non-commercial use with attribution. See the [Creative Commons] definition of what this means. "Photos (c) Bruce Guthrie" is fine for attribution. (Commercial use folks including AI scrapers can of course contact me.) Feel free to use in publications and pages with attribution but you don't have permission to sell the photos themselves. A free copy of any printed publication using any photographs is requested. Descriptive text, if any, is from a mixture of sources, quite frequently from signs at the location or from official web sites; copyrights, if any, are retained by their original owners.

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Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
1. METRO_041116_007.JPG: Light rail which may be used on one of the extensions from the Pentagon to Columbia Pike.
2. METRO_041116_018.JPG: The 14th Street Metro bridge. You can see the Jefferson Memorial in the upper right.
3. METRO_041116_023.JPG: Plans for the new railroad cars. Note that they lose some seats for handicapper access and they've also yanked all of the poles at the entrance of the doors to get people moving further in. However, more of the seats will have vertical poles to help people stand in the middle of the trains. The length of the cars will be the same as now, 70 feet. They'll also have more emergency call boxes.
4. METRO_041116_045.JPG: The proposed bus solution for K street
5. METRO_041116_057.JPG: Fort Totten station's model
6. METRO_041116_067.JPG: The New York Avenue (and Gallaudet U) station is the first in-fill station (one built between two existing stations) in an operating U.S. transit system. It's also the first Metro station to have local financing filling in the costs.
7. METRO_041116_089.JPG: There's a bike path that runs down the area so they had to build a lane for that as well.
8. METRO_041116_127.JPG: Gordon Linton
9. METRO_041116_213.JPG: Christopher Zimmerman
10. METRO_041116_234.JPG: Dana Kauffman (Vice Chair)
11. METRO_041116_262.JPG: Left to right: Marcell Solomon, David A. Catania, and Charles Deegan
12. METRO_041116_283.JPG: Charles Deegan
13. METRO_041116_293.JPG: Gladys Mack (2nd Vice Chair)
14. METRO_041116_304.JPG: Calvin Nophlin
15. METRO_041116_310.JPG: Richard A. White (Chief Executive Officer)
16. METRO_041116_324.JPG: Jim Graham
17. METRO_041116_337.JPG: Marcell Solomon
18. METRO_041116_418.JPG: Bob Levey (served as moderator)
19. METRO_041116_424.JPG: Robert Smith (Chairman)
Wikipedia Description: Metrorail (Washington, D.C.)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Metrorail, or simply Metro, is the rapid transit system of Washington, D.C., and neighboring communities in Maryland and Virginia, both inside and outside the Capital Beltway, and is the second busiest in the United States behind the New York City Subway. In Maryland, service is provided in Prince George's County and Montgomery County; in Virginia, service extends to Fairfax County, Arlington County, and the city of Alexandria.

Overview:

The Metrorail (subway) system and the Metrobus (bus) network are owned and operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) — a multijurisdictional, quasi-governmental agency. WMATA also operates a paratransit service for the disabled called MetroAccess. However, the expression "Metro" usually refers to Metrorail exclusively.

Unlike the subway systems in cities such as New York, Philadelphia, and Boston, Metrorail fare is zoned. This means it is not fixed, but varies based on the distance traveled and the time of day. Riders enter and exit the system using a stored-value card in the form of a paper magnetic stripe farecard or a proximity card known as SmarTrip. Both methods track the balance paid to Metro, as well as the rider's entry and exit points.

Since opening in 1976, the subway network has grown to five lines, consisting of 86 stations and 106.3 miles (171 km) of track. The original plan of 83 stations on 103 miles (165.5 km) was completed on January 13, 2001. There were 207.9 million trips, or 702,121 trips per weekday, on Metrorail in fiscal year 2007. In July 2007, Metrorail set a new monthly ridership record with 19,281,809 trips, or 772,826 per weekday.

Metrorail was designed by Chicago architect Harry Weese, and is an exemplar of late-20th century modern architecture. With its heavy use of concrete and the repetitive nature of its design motifs, it displays aspects of Brutalism, which in Washington is also illustrated by the FBI's J. Edgar Hoover Building. Simultaneously, with its coffered groin and barrel vaults, it evokes Neoclassicism, arguably the closest thing to an "official" architectural style in Washington. Historic examples of Neoclassicism in Washington consist of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, by Robert Mills and others; the former U.S. Patent Office building (now the Smithsonian American Art Museum), also by Robert Mills and others; the White House, by James Hoban; and the Beaux-Arts Lincoln Memorial, by Henry Bacon.

In underground stations, light is provided via banks of fluorescent lights next to the station walls. Additional light is provided in center platform stations by lights in the crowns of the platform pylons. In side-platform stations, additional light is provided by a bank of fluorescent light bulbs between the tracks. In all stations, as a signal to passengers, a row of lights embedded in the platform's granite edge flash when a train is about to arrive. This is not controlled by the central computer, but is activated by a simple track circuit indication; the lights also flash when a diesel-powered work train approaches or stops in the station.

Metrorail network:

The network was designed with a spoke-hub distribution paradigm, which makes the subway ideal for getting from a suburb to any part of the city, or vice versa, but unattractive for suburb-to-suburb travel; groups have proposed a Purple Line to remedy this. The system is also noteworthy as a system with a limited number of lines that nevertheless makes extensive use of interlining (running more than one line on the same track). ...

There are currently stations in the District of Columbia, Prince George's County and Montgomery County in Maryland, and Fairfax County, Arlington County, and the city of Alexandria in Virginia. The Silver Line would add stations in Loudoun County, Virginia, once completed.

Half of the system, including most of the stations in the District of Columbia, is underground, but most suburban stations are on elevated rails or at grade. In the case of the western Orange Line, the tracks run in the median of Interstate 66. The deepest stations in the system are at the northeastern end of the Red Line, with Wheaton having the longest escalator in the western hemisphere at 230 feet (70 m) long, and Forest Glen being even deeper than that. From that station, the only way to the surface is by elevator.

The system is not centered on any single station, but Metro Center is considered the hub; one of the busiest stations, it is located at the intersection of the three busiest lines, and the Metro Information Center and Gift Shop are located there. Other notable transfer stations include Gallery Place/Chinatown (located near the Verizon Center), Stadium-Armory (located near RFK Stadium), and L'Enfant Plaza, the only station in the system with service to four lines.

Various colleges and universities are accessible through the Metro, including:

* American University from Tenleytown-AU
* American University Washington College of Law, also from Tenleytown-AU.
* The Catholic University of America from Brookland-CUA
* The University of the District of Columbia from Van Ness-UDC
* Gallaudet University from New York Ave-Florida Ave-Gallaudet U
* Georgetown University from Rosslyn (via shuttle bus or a long walk across the Key Bridge) or Dupont Circle
* Georgetown University Law Center from Judiciary Square and Union Station
* The George Washington University from Foggy Bottom-GWU
* George Mason University from Vienna/Fairfax-GMU (Main Campus) and Virginia Square-GMU (Arlington Campus, including George Mason University School of Law)
* Howard University from Shaw-Howard Univ
* Howard University Law School from Van Ness-UDC
* The University of Maryland, College Park from College Park-U of Md
* Marymount University from Ballston–MU
* Southeastern University from Waterfront–SEU
* Trinity University from Brookland-CUA
* Johns Hopkins University, Carey School of Professional Studies in Business and Education (at Washington DC Center Campus) and Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) from Dupont Circle

Since 1999, Metro has run a special service pattern on July 4 to accommodate movements into and out of the city for Independence Day activities on the National Mall. This generally involves switching the southern terminals for the Blue and Yellow Lines (Blue Line trains terminate at Huntington, while Yellow Line trains terminate at Franconia-Springfield), terminating the Blue Line at the Rosslyn upper level, and sending Orange Line trains to both Largo Town Center and New Carrollton. Since 2002, Smithsonian station has been closed all day on July 4 because its entrances are located within the secured perimeter established around the Mall.

WMATA has a stated goal of integration of its rail and bus networks. In 2004, SmarTrip readers were installed on all buses, enabling paperless transfers between lines and with the rail system. Metro also offers numerous connections to other transit systems and modes of transportation in Washington, D.C..

See also: List of Washington Metro stations

Yellow Line extension:

Beginning December 31, 2006, Metro extended its Yellow Line service past Mt Vernon Sq/7th St-Convention Center to Fort Totten during off-peak hours as part of an 18-month pilot program. This adds five stations to the existing Yellow Line route and increases off-peak service (non-rush hour) from one train every 12 minutes, to one train every six minutes. Metro installed over 5,000 signs throughout the system to reflect the extension. The $5.75 million cost of the expansion will be covered by the District of Columbia.

History:

During the 1960s, there were plans for a massive freeway system in Washington. However, opposition to this freeway system grew. Harland Bartholomew who chaired the National Capital Planning Commission thought that a rail transit system would never be self-sufficient because of low density land uses and general transit ridership decline. Finally, a mixed concept of a Capital Beltway system along with rail line radials was agreed upon. The Beltway received full funding; monies for the ambitious Inner Loop Freeway system were partially reallocated toward construction of the Metro system.

In 1960, the federal government created the National Capital Transportation Agency to develop a rapid rail system. Then in 1966, a bill creating WMATA was passed by the federal government, the District of Columbia, Virginia, and Maryland, with planning power for the system being transferred to it from the NCTA. WMATA approved plans for a 98-mile (158 km) regional system in 1968, and construction on the metro began in 1969, with groundbreaking on December 9. The system opened March 27, 1976, with 4.6 miles (7.4 km) available on the Red Line with five stations from Rhode Island Avenue to Farragut North, all in the District of Columbia. Arlington, Virginia, was linked to the system on July 1, 1976; Montgomery County, Maryland, on February 6, 1978; Prince George's County, Maryland, on November 20, 1978; and Fairfax County, Virginia, and Alexandria, Virginia, on December 17, 1983.

The final 103 mile (166 km), 83 station system was completed with the opening of the Green Line segment to Branch Avenue on January 13, 2001. This did not mean the end of the growth of the system, however: a 3.22 mile (5.18 km) extension of the Blue Line to Largo Town Center and Morgan Boulevard stations opened on December 18, 2004. The first in-fill station (New York Ave-Florida Ave-Gallaudet U on the Red Line between Union Station and Rhode Island Ave-Brentwood) opened November 20, 2004, and planning is underway for an extension to Dulles Airport.

The highest ridership for a single day was June 9, 2004, with 850,636 trips, as thousands of people went to Washington to view the funeral procession of Ronald Reagan, and to the U.S. Capitol to view his body as it lay in state. The previous recordholding day was January 20, 1993, President Bill Clinton's first inauguration. June and July 2007 set ridership records, with four of the ten highest ridership days occurring in these months. July 2007 also holds the single-month ridership record with 19,281,809 total riders while June 2007 holds the record for highest average weekday ridership with 772,826 weekday trips. In February 2006, Metro officials chose Randi Miller, a car dealership employee from Woodbridge, Virginia, to record new announcements after winning an open contest to replace the "doors opening", "doors closing", and "please stand clear of the doors, thank you" messages recorded by Sandy Carroll in 1996.

Rolling stock:

Main article: Metrorail rolling stock (Washington, D.C.)

Metro's rail fleet consists of 1070 75-foot (23 m) rail cars, delivered in five shipments. All rail cars in the Metrorail system operate in married pairs (consecutively numbered even-odd), with systems shared across the pair.

The original order of 300 rail cars was manufactured by Rohr Industries, with delivery in 1976. These cars are numbered 1000-1299 and were rehabilitated in the mid-1990s by Breda Costruzioni Ferroviarie and Metro at the Brentwood Shop in Washington. The second order, of 76 cars, was through Breda Costruzioni Ferroviarie (Breda), with delivery in 1982. These cars are numbered 2000-2075, and were rehabilitated in 2003 and 2004 by Alstom in Hornell, New York. The third order consisted of 290 cars, also from Breda, with delivery in 1987. These cars are numbered 3000-3289 as originally delivered, and are currently undergoing rehabilitation by Alstom in Hornell, New York. The fourth order consisted of 100 cars from Breda, numbered 4000-4099. These cars were delivered in 1991. The fifth order consisted of 192 rail cars from a joint venture of Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles of Spain and AAI Corporation of Hunt Valley, Maryland. These cars are numbered 5000-5191, with delivery from 2001 through 2004. Most recently, Metro has ordered 184 rail cars from Alstom. Delivery began in late 2005, with initial service starting in October 2006. The new cars have their body shells built in Barcelona, and assembly is completed in Hornell, New York.

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Featured Folk: Some of the people here can also be seen on other pages on this site.
- Levey, Bob appears on:
  - 2023_DC_Literary_HillBF_230917 Literary Hill BookFest (2023) @ Eastern Market
  - 2023_DC_Kalb_230722 Politics & Prose -- Deborah Kalb ("Off to Join the Circus") w/Susan Coll
  - 2023_MD_WWC_M_230513 Washington Writers Conference (2023) -- Saturday -- Miscellaneous
  - 2019_DC_Levey_191002 USCHS -- Lunch Talk: Bob Levey ("Larry Felder, Candidate")
  - 2019_MD_GBF_Levey_190518 Gaithersburg Book Festival (2019) -- Bob Levey ("Larry Felder, Candidate")
  - 2019_DC_Literary_HillBF_190505 Literary Hill BookFest (2019) @ Eastern Market
  - 2017_DC_DocHist1F_170428 DC -- Celebration of the publication of the last volumes of the Documentary History of the First Federal Congress @ Society of the Cincinnati
  - 2013_DC_PassportDC DC -- Passport DC (Around the World) Open House
2004 photos: Trips this year: (1) Margot and I went off to Scotland for a few days, my first time overseas. (2) I went to Hawaii on business (such a deal!) and extended it, spending a week in Hawaii and another in California. (3) I went to Tennessee to man a booth and extended it to go to my third Fan Fair country music festival. Equipment this year: I bought two Fujifilm S7000 digital cameras. While they produced excellent images, I found all of the retractable-lens Fuji models had a disturbing tendency to get dust inside the lens. Dark blurs would show up on the images and the camera had to be sent back to the shop in order to get it fixed. I returned one of the cameras when the blurs showed up in the first month. I found myself buying extended warranties on cameras. Number of photos taken this year: 110,000.
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