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#1
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DC Metro Interconnects
"Keith F. Lynch" wrote:
Brian Robinson OR Carol Goter Robinson OR Bill Robinson wrote: This is gravy because the Centreville-Tysons spur would involve a separate platform north of WFC station, in the yard, elevated above the yard lead that connects the middle track of WFC station to the Dulles line via the Dulles-WFC yard connector. Would this also involve an *exit* on the north side of WFC? There is currently no way to enter or leave the station on the north. People living *adjacent* to the station to its north have to walk *miles* to catch a train. Don't ask me, you're the VA resident. If it were me, sure... and a direct connection to a Rt. 7/Rt. 1 limited-stop light rail, to boot. (Via Shirlington, NOT Route 29. Route 29 is a METRO route... Metro to Annandale, cf. http://earthops.net/purple-line/brown.html ) It seems to me that it would be far easier to fix this than to extend tracks miles and miles into the exurbs or countryside. Assuming the goal is to serve as much populated area as possible as cheaply as possible. No, the purpose is to serve customers, customers being drivers, good citizens who have paid their dues for a MetroCard and the right to be tracked by TIA in the future. Pedestrians are vagrants. Oh yeah... no tourists or visitors or anyone who might have a legitimate reason to drive to an outlying Metro station are allowed. No more "drive to DC, park at Greenbelt, take the Metro to visit the city..." SmartCard holders (car commuters) only! Nobody but me seems to have noticed or discussed this. -- Keith F. Lynch - http://keithlynch.net/ Please see http://keithlynch.net/email.html before emailing me. Mt. Pleasant, one of the most liberal neighborhoods in the country, ANC just passed a law asking the police to detain and question "persons of a suspicious character... who don't look like they belong" in a given area. According to Washpost. |
#2
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DC Metro Interconnects
"Keith F. Lynch" wrote:
It seems to me that it would be far easier to fix this than to extend tracks miles and miles into the exurbs or countryside. Assuming the goal is to serve as much populated area as possible as cheaply as possible. Brian Robinson OR Carol Goter Robinson OR Bill Robinson wrote: No, the purpose is to serve customers, customers being drivers, good citizens who have paid their dues for a MetroCard and the right to be tracked by TIA in the future. Pedestrians are vagrants. Huh? About half the stations don't have parking lots. All stations are accessible to pedestrians. You can ride without a SmarTrip card. And there's no requirement to register a SmarTrip card, in which case, if you paid cash for it, all they are tracking is card number 214365, and they have no idea what name goes with that card. Oh yeah... no tourists or visitors or anyone who might have a legitimate reason to drive to an outlying Metro station are allowed. No more "drive to DC, park at Greenbelt, take the Metro to visit the city..." SmartCard holders (car commuters) only! SmarTrip cards won't be nandatory for people parking at Metro stations until there are SmarTrip card dispensers at every Metro station parking lot. Yes, it's an annoyance that tourists will have to pay an *extra* five dollars. Once. But that's far from saying they're not allowed. Also, if I'm reading the press release correctly, parking will remain free on weekends, implying that no SmarTrip card is required then. If anything, it sounds like they're trying to *discourage* people from parking at Metro stations, and would prefer that people get to them on foot, by bike, or by bus. Mt. Pleasant, one of the most liberal neighborhoods in the country, ANC just passed a law asking the police to detain and question "persons of a suspicious character... who don't look like they belong" in a given area. According to Washpost. The closest thing I can find to that on their website is: ... the District's Mt. Pleasant neighborhood, where the five-member Advisory Neighborhood Commission narrowly adopted a resolution, 3 to 2, asking the police to take aim at everything from assaults and animal cruelty to littering, double parking, even cursing. ... That may be unreasonable, but it's far from stopping and questioning people who are just walking on the sidewalk. -- Keith F. Lynch - http://keithlynch.net/ Please see http://keithlynch.net/email.html before emailing me. |
#3
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DC Metro Interconnects
"Keith F. Lynch" wrote:
"Keith F. Lynch" wrote: It seems to me that it would be far easier to fix this than to extend tracks miles and miles into the exurbs or countryside. Assuming the goal is to serve as much populated area as possible as cheaply as possible. Brian Robinson OR Carol Goter Robinson OR Bill Robinson wrote: No, the purpose is to serve customers, customers being drivers, good citizens who have paid their dues for a MetroCard and the right to be tracked by TIA in the future. Pedestrians are vagrants. Huh? About half the stations don't have parking lots. All stations are accessible to pedestrians. I was being facetious, in defense of your original point. And on this secondary point, you are about the only person in the DC area who considers stations like Franconia and Vandorn pedestrian-friendly. It militates against your advocacy for more suburban metro coverage; e.g. I've repeatedly cited the possibility of a Brown Line on the original proposed route, extended to serve Annandale and loop around to the north or south parallel to the Beltway; to no avail in terms of positive feedback here. Obviously if the one or two militant anti-car people in NOVA don't want such a line it's not likely anyone else does, either. You can ride without a SmarTrip card. And there's no requirement to register a SmarTrip card, in which case, if you paid cash for it, all they are tracking is card number 214365, and they have no idea what name goes with that card. You're arguing in terms of loopholes, I'm arguing in terms of de facto results guaranteed by what is considered practical for most people, like MOST pedestrians (who don't want to walk two miles from their destination station to their office in Tysons every day) or like most tourists who DRIVE into DC (for the issue of entering DC via outlying Metro stations would be moot otherwise; logically, the recommendation to do so applies only to tourists who are driving in. That said, you are right that it is a tax on these people for not having the "sense" to go Greyhound.) Oh yeah... no tourists or visitors or anyone who might have a legitimate reason to drive to an outlying Metro station are allowed. No more "drive to DC, park at Greenbelt, take the Metro to visit the city..." SmartCard holders (car commuters) only! SmarTrip cards won't be nandatory for people parking at Metro stations until there are SmarTrip card dispensers at every Metro station parking lot. Yes, it's an annoyance that tourists will have to pay an *extra* five dollars. Once. But that's far from saying they're not allowed. Also, if I'm reading the press release correctly, parking will remain free on weekends, implying that no SmarTrip card is required then. The reality is that this requirement is the latest step in ensuring that SmartTrip is so ubiquitous that it not only legitimizes its use as a tracking tool, but legitimizes driving to the Metro station as the most popular and acceptible way of utilizing the Metro system, further dragging us down the road of a BART-like commuter system in the course of government efforts to promote an entirely tangential homeland security device (SmartTrip). If anything, it sounds like they're trying to *discourage* people from parking at Metro stations, and would prefer that people get to them on foot, by bike, or by bus. See my objection above, this does not apply to tourists who would have no reason to use said stations except to park, and who have no choice but to pay $5 or, thinking in terms of de facto practicality, drive all the way to their hotel, which is what your type of thinking here will result in all of them doing. The idea of trying to discourage tourists from driving to DC period is outrageous, anyway; what more acceptible use of a car is there than a road trip from rail-free Podunk to the nations capital? Mt. Pleasant, one of the most liberal neighborhoods in the country, ANC just passed a law asking the police to detain and question "persons of a suspicious character... who don't look like they belong" in a given area. According to Washpost. The closest thing I can find to that on their website is: ... the District's Mt. Pleasant neighborhood, where the five-member Advisory Neighborhood Commission narrowly adopted a resolution, 3 to 2, asking the police to take aim at everything from assaults and animal cruelty to littering, double parking, even cursing. ... That may be unreasonable, but it's far from stopping and questioning people who are just walking on the sidewalk. You need to read the article cited in the Post (Sunday, Outlook). They quoted a Mt. Pleasant restaurateur for his take on the rule in question and that was the quoted directive (and not the first time I've heard tell of it.) |
#4
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DC Metro Interconnects
"Keith F. Lynch" wrote: If anything, it sounds like they're trying to *discourage* people from parking at Metro stations, and would prefer that people get to them on foot, by bike, or by bus. Wrong, The reason for the SmartCard at the parking lots is to eliminate the handling of cash by the parking lot attendants. If you had read the media reports you would have learned that WMATA did an audit and found it was losing thousands of dollars from pilferage by the employees that worked for the contractor that was operating the parking lots. The operation of and collecting of parking fees is the only part of WMATA where people do cash transaction outside of there sails offices. -- ================================================== ==================== Ever wanted one of these John R Cambron http://205.130.220.18/~cambronj/wmata/ or Hebron MD USA http://www.chesapeake.net/~cambronj/wmata/ ================================================== ==================== |
#5
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DC Metro Interconnects
John R Cambron * wrote:
If you had read the media reports you would have learned that WMATA did an audit and found it was losing thousands of dollars from pilferage by the employees that worked for the contractor that was operating the parking lots. Millions. There are, of course, ways to prevent such pilferage that don't involve abolishing cash. Safeway seems to manage it. -- Keith F. Lynch - http://keithlynch.net/ Please see http://keithlynch.net/email.html before emailing me. |
#6
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DC Metro Interconnects
Brian Robinson OR Carol Goter Robinson OR Bill Robinson wrote:
And on this secondary point, you are about the only person in the DC area who considers stations like Franconia and Vandorn pedestrian-friendly. I assume Van Dorn is pedestrian friendly, but I'll admit I've never been there. I've walked between the Franconia/Springfield station and Springfield mall about a dozen times, with no problem. I will admit I did once get lost in the Greenbelt station's immense parking lot, unable for half an hour to find any road that didn't lead either to the Beltway or back to the station. If you want to see something that's pedestrian UNfriendly, I recommend walking the length of Prosperity Avenue in Fairfax County. Over much of its length it's narrow, with heavy traffic, no sidewalks, no shoulder, and either shrubs, fences, or a ditch keeping you from cutting through people's yards. During heavy rain, part of it is often under several feet of fast-moving debris-filled water. It militates against your advocacy for more suburban metro coverage; e.g. I've repeatedly cited the possibility of a Brown Line on the original proposed route, extended to serve Annandale and loop around to the north or south parallel to the Beltway; to no avail in terms of positive feedback here. I may not have commented on that specific proposal, but I've often said there should be a Metro station within reasonable walking distance of every point in the region. Obviously if the one or two militant anti-car people in NOVA don't want such a line it's not likely anyone else does, either. I'm not anti-car. I'm pro-choice on transportation. I don't believe anyone should ever be forced into an absolute reliance on any one mode. ... or like most tourists who DRIVE into DC (for the issue of entering DC via outlying Metro stations would be moot otherwise; logically, the recommendation to do so applies only to tourists who are driving in. That said, you are right that it is a tax on these people for not having the "sense" to go Greyhound.) I figured most tourists arrive by Amtrak or by plane. Union Station and National Airport are already on the Metro. Dulles and BWI are finally acessible by a regular city bus. BWI is also on MARC and on Baltimore's light rail. And the main Greyhound terminal is adjacent to Union Station. Sure, a tourist can bring his own car to DC, if he has one. He can also bring his own stove to a restaurant. But both are foolish choices. The reality is that this requirement is the latest step in ensuring that SmartTrip is so ubiquitous that it not only legitimizes its use as a tracking tool, And how can it be used as a tracking tool if people aren't required to register it? Sure, if they arrest you they can take your card and find out where you've been. But the same is true with a regular farecard, and always has been. but legitimizes driving to the Metro station as the most popular and acceptible way of utilizing the Metro system, further dragging us down the road of a BART-like commuter system in the course of government efforts to promote an entirely tangential homeland security device (SmartTrip). I'm not familiar with BART. How does it differ from DC's Metro? You need to read the article cited in the Post (Sunday, Outlook). They quoted a Mt. Pleasant restaurateur for his take on the rule in question and that was the quoted directive (and not the first time I've heard tell of it.) Fortunately, he's not in charge. The police know better than to arrest people for looking like they don't belong. They've been sued enough times for the lesson to sink in. -- Keith F. Lynch - http://keithlynch.net/ Please see http://keithlynch.net/email.html before emailing me. |
#7
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DC Metro Interconnects
"Keith F. Lynch" wrote: Brian Robinson OR Carol Goter Robinson OR Bill Robinson wrote: And on this secondary point, you are about the only person in the DC area who considers stations like Franconia and Vandorn pedestrian-friendly. I assume Van Dorn is pedestrian friendly, but I'll admit I've never been there. I've walked between the Franconia/Springfield station and Springfield mall about a dozen times, with no problem. I will admit I did once get lost in the Greenbelt station's immense parking lot, unable for half an hour to find any road that didn't lead either to the Beltway or back to the station. Van Dorn Street Right across Eisenhower Avenue is a UPS depot, Alexandria Cities incinerator and a little further north is a bunch of townhouses, to the east on Eisenhower Avenue is a lot of light industry warehouses. Both sides of Eisenhower Avenue have paved sidewalks to the east all the way to oldtown. Greenbelt If you had gone further south along the access road you would have ended up on Cherry Lane, To the right is a large garden apartment complex, outside of the beltway is a United States District Court and a number of office buildings. Going north down the pedestrian tunnel that leads to the MARC platforms on the north side of the CSX tracks is the Hollywood section of Collage Park. If you want to see something that's pedestrian UNfriendly, I recommend walking the length of Prosperity Avenue in Fairfax County. Over much of its length it's narrow, with heavy traffic, no sidewalks, no shoulder, and either shrubs, fences, or a ditch keeping you from cutting through people's yards. During heavy rain, part of it is often under several feet of fast-moving debris-filled water. It militates against your advocacy for more suburban metro coverage; e.g. I've repeatedly cited the possibility of a Brown Line on the original proposed route, extended to serve Annandale and loop around to the north or south parallel to the Beltway; to no avail in terms of positive feedback here. I may not have commented on that specific proposal, but I've often said there should be a Metro station within reasonable walking distance of every point in the region. Obviously if the one or two militant anti-car people in NOVA don't want such a line it's not likely anyone else does, either. I'm not anti-car. I'm pro-choice on transportation. I don't believe anyone should ever be forced into an absolute reliance on any one mode. ... or like most tourists who DRIVE into DC (for the issue of entering DC via outlying Metro stations would be moot otherwise; logically, the recommendation to do so applies only to tourists who are driving in. That said, you are right that it is a tax on these people for not having the "sense" to go Greyhound.) I figured most tourists arrive by Amtrak or by plane. Union Station and National Airport are already on the Metro. Dulles and BWI are finally acessible by a regular city bus. BWI is also on MARC and on Baltimore's light rail. And the main Greyhound terminal is adjacent to Union Station. Sure, a tourist can bring his own car to DC, if he has one. He can also bring his own stove to a restaurant. But both are foolish choices. The reality is that this requirement is the latest step in ensuring that SmartTrip is so ubiquitous that it not only legitimizes its use as a tracking tool, And how can it be used as a tracking tool if people aren't required to register it? Sure, if they arrest you they can take your card and find out where you've been. But the same is true with a regular farecard, and always has been. but legitimizes driving to the Metro station as the most popular and acceptible way of utilizing the Metro system, further dragging us down the road of a BART-like commuter system in the course of government efforts to promote an entirely tangential homeland security device (SmartTrip). I'm not familiar with BART. How does it differ from DC's Metro? You need to read the article cited in the Post (Sunday, Outlook). They quoted a Mt. Pleasant restaurateur for his take on the rule in question and that was the quoted directive (and not the first time I've heard tell of it.) Fortunately, he's not in charge. The police know better than to arrest people for looking like they don't belong. They've been sued enough times for the lesson to sink in. -- Keith F. Lynch - http://keithlynch.net/ Please see http://keithlynch.net/email.html before emailing me. -- ================================================== ==================== Ever wanted one of these John R Cambron http://205.130.220.18/~cambronj/wmata/ or Hebron MD USA http://www.chesapeake.net/~cambronj/wmata/ ================================================== ==================== |
#8
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DC Metro Interconnects
OK, as a long time DC Tourist, we always drive, it is much cheaper than any
other way for 3 or 4 people. In addition we always use a "fringe" hotel, cheaper than downtown and no parking fee. Our current preferred location seem to be Tyson's Corner. There are a couple of Metro stations with in easy drive of the hotel complex out there. It seems to me that the parking is oriented towards commuters, no charge on a weekend, no pay after 10:00 pm. It is quite a long ride back out of town but it gets us off our feet for a while, not a bad thing after walking the Mall, etc for 6 or 7 miles and supper. Doug. .. "Keith F. Lynch" wrote in message ... I figured most tourists arrive by Amtrak or by plane. Union Station and National Airport are already on the Metro. Dulles and BWI are finally acessible by a regular city bus. BWI is also on MARC and on Baltimore's light rail. And the main Greyhound terminal is adjacent to Union Station. Sure, a tourist can bring his own car to DC, if he has one. He can also bring his own stove to a restaurant. But both are foolish choices. |
#9
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DC Metro Interconnects
On 23 Mar 2004 23:27:46 -0500, "Keith F. Lynch"
wrote: John R Cambron * wrote: If you had read the media reports you would have learned that WMATA did an audit and found it was losing thousands of dollars from pilferage by the employees that worked for the contractor that was operating the parking lots. Millions. There are, of course, ways to prevent such pilferage that don't involve abolishing cash. Safeway seems to manage it. You REALLY expect the DC Metro system to implement a RATIONAL, CONSUMER-DRIVEN system ? You must be on some really GREAT drugs. . . .The same DC Metro that, until recently, kept its' bathrooms locked, and is locking them again ? The same one that charges peak fares for non-peak service ? |
#10
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DC Metro Interconnects
Keith F. Lynch wrote:
Brian Robinson OR Carol Goter Robinson OR Bill Robinson wrote: but legitimizes driving to the Metro station as the most popular and acceptible way of utilizing the Metro system, further dragging us down the road of a BART-like commuter system in the course of government efforts to promote an entirely tangential homeland security device (SmartTrip). I'm not familiar with BART. How does it differ from DC's Metro? I'm not sure about the salient differences, but as a one-time BART commuter (and a BART user as recently as three weeks ago) there's no problem paying with cash for a paper ticket just like DC Metro. miguel -- Hit The Road! Photos and tales from around the world: http://travel.u.nu |
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