With the controversy about the value of its newly opened streetcar ongoing, Washington, D.C. has commenced with a planning process for extending the line to Georgetown.
David Alpert provides a sneak peak into the proposed plans for the DC streetcar extension. According to Alpert, "planners from the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) [presented] options to extend the existing H Street streetcar route to Georgetown" this week. In addition to a no-build option, the current plan includes two potential configurations: "one in a dedicated lane from Mount Vernon Square to Washington Circle but in mixed traffic the rest of the way, and a new option to use dedicated lanes for almost the whole length." After opening in February 2016, the D.C. streetcar has been one of the prime talking points in discussions about the value of transit planned to share lane space with automobiles.
The dedicated lane is the result of community feedback, according to Alpert: "more and more people argued that without dedicated lanes, the streetcar would not offer a faster ride, making it no more appealing, transportation-wise, than existing bus lines." The article is also but one in a series that Greater Greater Washington calls a "streetcar mega-feature."
Read the full story: DC's streetcar may go to Georgetown with dedicated lanes
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