Posts tagged Commuter Rail
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The future of Union Station includes new destinations
Amtrak just announced more DC-NYC services. But let’s think even bigger: by the time the massive redevelopment of Union Station has finished, DC could be connected to scores of new destinations across the country. Thank a series of federal grants to study 69 corridors for passenger rail, plus a slew of new commuter connections across the Washington region. Keep reading…
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Sen. Tammy Duckworth talks about why every US transit station must be accessible
Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), with Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Bob Casey (D-Pa.), introduced the All Stations Accessibility Program (ASAP) Act of 2021, which would establish a $10 billion grant program to help transit agencies and commuter-rail providers retrofit stations to meet the needs of people with physical, cognitive, sensory, and other mobility challenges. Keep reading…
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The saga of Waldo Schmitt, the crustacean biologist obsessed with building a commuter rail subway in DC
Prior to World War II, there were even more commuter rail lines leading into DC than there are now. Most of them ended at Union Station, just like they do today. But in the 1940s a man named Waldo Schmitt proposed a commuter rail subway to bring workers closer to the center of downtown, and to connect rail lines from the east and west. Keep reading…
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A new report strengthens the case for MARC “run-through” service to Virginia
Even with Maryland Governor Larry Hogan’s recent veto of a bill to study expanding MARC (Maryland Area Rail Commuter) service to Northern Virginia, the potential demand to bring “run-though” rail service across the Potomac River remains strong according to a new report presented to the Washington region’s main planning body this week. Keep reading…
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National links: What will the future hold for the commuter rail post-coronavirus?
Will riders get on board commuter trains again? The space given to cars is exposed. Hundreds of thousands of retail stores are not expected to survive the current pandemic, and more in this week’s National links. Keep reading…
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Maryland looks at connecting MARC toward Philadelphia and within Baltimore
Rail commuter riders may soon have more better-linked options to travel across the region, as Maryland will be studying how to better connect MARC (Maryland Area Rail Commuter) trains to Philadelphia, and throughout Baltimore. Keep reading…
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What alternatives does Maryland have to curb congestion besides building more highways?
Could the solution to highway congestion not involve highways at all? Here’s what that would look like. Keep reading…
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More lanes on I-95 won’t fix Virginia’s traffic woes, VDOT says
If you want to ease congestion and improve travel times on Interstate 95, widening the roads won’t do the trick. Keep reading…
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What MARC should learn from my most frustrating commute
This past summer was a particularly frustrating time to be a MARC commuter. Delays during July and August were the worst I had endured since choosing it as my primary transportation mode to work. To see just how much of my time was spent delayed, I logged my commute from Odenton to Union Station for the month of September 2018. Keep reading…
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Is MARC’s newest plan to improve service a step backwards?
The MARC Cornerstone Plan lays out how the country’s ninth-largest commuter rail system aims to increase ridership and improve reliability and service. However, the latest iteration the Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) released in November has no timeline for some important goals, and lacks information that existed in previous versions of the plan.v Keep reading…