Opinion Posts
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DC, I love you. Lose the post-breakup energy.
Like lovers we just couldn’t quit, office building monoculture and businesses we thought cared for us left DC when we were utterly dependent on them. It hurts. But it’s time to dust ourselves off and create our own future. Keep reading…
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Columbia Heights plaza pilot shows results, but private sector is missing link
The Columbia Heights Civic Plaza long lacked maintenance and experienced further deterioration in the pandemic, both physically and socially. A new outreach effort brought together entities around the plaza to address the needs of its most vulnerable users and support a thriving community space. Keep reading…
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The new downtown: A place for all of us
As Washington reimagines its urban core, the key is mixed-use development, creating an environment where people can live, work, play, send their kids to school, and age in place. Keep reading…
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GGWash Picks of 2023: Transit Diary: A bike advocate commutes – and rescues food – on two wheels
In this Transit Diary, Renée Moore, outreach director at WABA, details her travels around the region for a week, mostly by bike and including a lot of food rescue efforts. Keep reading…
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GGWash Picks of 2023: Fake tags are a real problem
Illicit license plates–whether fake, expired temporary, or shaded–protect dangerous drivers from facing any penalties for risky behaviors by making it impossible to identify them. Meanwhile these tags are being openly mass-produced and sold for profit online. Are DC policymakers ready to take it seriously? Keep reading…
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GGWash Picks of 2023: To get the Metro we deserve, transform parking into housing
The Metro system is the foundation the Washington region needs to build a pleasant, sustainable, equitable future. Transforming its parking lots into transit-oriented development can increase revenue and build a bigger rider base. Keep reading…
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GGWash Picks of 2023: Why trans and queer visibility on public transport matters
Public transit agencies should consider intentionally inclusive policies for transgender, nonbinary, and genderqueer people so that everyone can feel and be safe riding. Here’s how some systems are approaching the issue. Keep reading…
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GGWash Picks of 2023: Don’t take tunneling for granite: Building Metro under Georgetown
Metro’s leaders have a lot to take into consideration when weighing Blue-Orange-Silver expansion proposals, not least of which is the ground beneath their feet, literally. The area’s geology creates unique challenges. J.M. Christoph excavates the implications. Keep reading…
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GGWash Picks of 2023: The case for rider joy
Kai Hall, GGWash’s policy officer, argues that transit and local leaders should pursue rider joy as a visionary long-term strategy to build cultural, political, and financial support for transit. Keep reading…
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GGWash Picks of 2023: Street parking in DC is way too cheap
This post makes the case for residential parking passes in DC being worth far more than what the District charges for them. How much revenue is the city losing out on, what could be done to align the cost of RPPs with their true value, and what could all that money pay for? Keep reading…