A look at what's going on in Trinidad, on H Street, and in the larger area north of Capitol Hill.
Friday, April 13, 2012
Streetcar Updates
DC Streetcar has some cool simulation videos of the trolly running down H Street. The video above it shows the drop off/pick up point on the Hopscotch Bridge. You can also peruse the materials from last night's meeting.
So has the car barn location officially been selected? It looks (from the PDF on the DDOT website) as though DC Streetcar envisions this location for all cars on the future streetcar system, not just the cars for the Benning Road/H Street line. That seems like a terrible location, next to a school, an historic golf course, and the Anacostia River, and not particularly easy to access. I don't know what the right solution is, but it may not necessarily be simply the "lowest cost option".
I like how everyone files out in an orderly line and crosses the crosswalk single file. And how there are no PG County-bound rush hour cars running the traffic light giving the stick figures a brush with death! Ahhh, the future looks rosy...
in the voice of kristen wiig in those SNL "two a-holes..." skits, "it looks like a bussss..."
that simulation is enlightening. i thought when the bus stopped, it would open from the top and the people would be picked up and placed down like a bowling pin machine. apparently doors open and you just walk out.
it seems as though further phases are still planned, but it there at all a timetable on them? has there been any planning done besides drawing lines on maps? are they going to start laying tracks once we get this H st line rolling, or does it hover like mag-lev
I was at the street car meeting last night and I have to say I felt a bit intimidated. There were about 60 people there but about 20 of them were very angry about the car barn location. They were incredibly disrespectful, often disrupting the DDOT presentation to yell at officials. I think the people of DDOT did a great job dealing with the situation. The protester's accused DDOT officials of not hearing them, but I think they may have confused "being heard" with "getting their way".
The protesters concerns seem to center around children's safety and historic preservation. I don't see 3 street cars pulling out of this station in the morning and pulling back in at night at 10mph a major safety concern compared to the cars flying down the Benning Road tying to beat the light traveling 50mph.
As for the "historic" nature of the surrounding properties, I think a nice car barn would only add to the area. Car barns often become sites for historic preservation in there own rights. Instead of fighting a loosing battle to move the site, the attendees last night should have been working with DDOT to make the new facility a place that people will be fighting to protect 60 years from now.
The objectors appeared to want DDOT to get an act of congress for use of the RFK site. I don't think John Boehner is very interested in helping DC or public transportation.
Just my 2% that I was too intimidated to say last night but find it easier to give from behind my keyboard. Sorry.
Oh I'm sorry, you weren't heard...well maybe you should elect a competent Councilmember who had your interests in mind.
HTJ was/is screwup and god knows what Alexander is up to. Maybe if this thing extended to Minnesota Ave like it was supposed to (Yvette Alexander asleep at the wheel didnt really help, maybe HTJ too, but Alexander might have had more at stake) there would be other places to put the car barn.
People need to stop electing people because they are given the equivalent of a free turkey at Thanksgiving. I dont know specifically what HTJ or YA give out..
I live across from what would be the new car barn, I'm not thrilled with the proposal.
However My interest in seeing the new ar barn at Pepco or the Trash transfer sit is driven by creating an extensible system.
If it's at Pepco or the Transfer site, it's a hop skip and ajump over to the Minnesota ave station and provides a future link to a Minn ave Corr project.
a location on the other side of Springarn would also be good, as the open space on 26th can either become a future high value developement or serve as a beautiful park.
That said, if they are going to put in on 26th, it should be a showplace, something that adds to the neighborhood.
LEED SIlver? Go for LEED Platinum.
Big glas windows, lots of architectural details, make it a combination of the Georgetown Car Barn and a castle.
"Oh I'm sorry, you weren't heard...well maybe you should elect a competent Councilmember who had your interests in mind.
HTJ was/is screwup and god knows what Alexander is up to."
Why bring up HTJ at all, the car barn isn't in Ward 5.
And what makes you think Alexander doesn't have the interests of the car barn protesters in mind? Oh, I get it, you just make things up out of whole cloth.
I still can't figure out the point of this thing. It's way more expensive than a bus line, involves putting up ugly overhead wires, and can only go where the rails are, meaning it can't go around parked/stalled/slow cars, can't detour, can't be rerouted if population needs require it.
15 comments:
A lot of white people on that streetcar...
lol
So has the car barn location officially been selected? It looks (from the PDF on the DDOT website) as though DC Streetcar envisions this location for all cars on the future streetcar system, not just the cars for the Benning Road/H Street line. That seems like a terrible location, next to a school, an historic golf course, and the Anacostia River, and not particularly easy to access. I don't know what the right solution is, but it may not necessarily be simply the "lowest cost option".
I like how everyone files out in an orderly line and crosses the crosswalk single file. And how there are no PG County-bound rush hour cars running the traffic light giving the stick figures a brush with death! Ahhh, the future looks rosy...
in the voice of kristen wiig in those SNL "two a-holes..." skits, "it looks like a bussss..."
that simulation is enlightening. i thought when the bus stopped, it would open from the top and the people would be picked up and placed down like a bowling pin machine. apparently doors open and you just walk out.
it seems as though further phases are still planned, but it there at all a timetable on them? has there been any planning done besides drawing lines on maps? are they going to start laying tracks once we get this H st line rolling, or does it hover like mag-lev
Moar white peepl! I hung3rz!!!!
I was at the street car meeting last night and I have to say I felt a bit intimidated. There were about 60 people there but about 20 of them were very angry about the car barn location. They were incredibly disrespectful, often disrupting the DDOT presentation to yell at officials. I think the people of DDOT did a great job dealing with the situation. The protester's accused DDOT officials of not hearing them, but I think they may have confused "being heard" with "getting their way".
The protesters concerns seem to center around children's safety and historic preservation. I don't see 3 street cars pulling out of this station in the morning and pulling back in at night at 10mph a major safety concern compared to the cars flying down the Benning Road tying to beat the light traveling 50mph.
As for the "historic" nature of the surrounding properties, I think a nice car barn would only add to the area. Car barns often become sites for historic preservation in there own rights. Instead of fighting a loosing battle to move the site, the attendees last night should have been working with DDOT to make the new facility a place that people will be fighting to protect 60 years from now.
The objectors appeared to want DDOT to get an act of congress for use of the RFK site. I don't think John Boehner is very interested in helping DC or public transportation.
Just my 2% that I was too intimidated to say last night but find it easier to give from behind my keyboard. Sorry.
Oh I'm sorry, you weren't heard...well maybe you should elect a competent Councilmember who had your interests in mind.
HTJ was/is screwup and god knows what Alexander is up to. Maybe if this thing extended to Minnesota Ave like it was supposed to (Yvette Alexander asleep at the wheel didnt really help, maybe HTJ too, but Alexander might have had more at stake) there would be other places to put the car barn.
People need to stop electing people because they are given the equivalent of a free turkey at Thanksgiving. I dont know specifically what HTJ or YA give out..
Oh I'm sorry, you weren't heard...well maybe you should elect a competent Councilmember who had your interests in mind.
Damn, Dave B...don't go gettin' all logical and everything.
This is the worst Pixar film I have ever seen.
Rumor has it there was some mention of rerouting the X2. Any info on that?
I live across from what would be the new car barn, I'm not thrilled with the proposal.
However My interest in seeing the new ar barn at Pepco or the Trash transfer sit is driven by creating an extensible system.
If it's at Pepco or the Transfer site, it's a hop skip and ajump over to the Minnesota ave station and provides a future link to a Minn ave Corr project.
a location on the other side of Springarn would also be good, as the open space on 26th can either become a future high value developement or serve
as a beautiful park.
That said, if they are going to put in on 26th, it should be a showplace, something that adds to the neighborhood.
LEED SIlver? Go for LEED Platinum.
Big glas windows, lots of architectural details,
make it a combination of the Georgetown Car Barn
and a castle.
"Oh I'm sorry, you weren't heard...well maybe you should elect a competent Councilmember who had your interests in mind.
HTJ was/is screwup and god knows what Alexander is up to."
Why bring up HTJ at all, the car barn isn't in Ward 5.
And what makes you think Alexander doesn't have the interests of the car barn protesters in mind? Oh, I get it, you just make things up out of whole cloth.
I still can't figure out the point of this thing. It's way more expensive than a bus line, involves putting up ugly overhead wires, and can only go where the rails are, meaning it can't go around parked/stalled/slow cars, can't detour, can't be rerouted if population needs require it.
Anon 9:13,
Asking these questions is soooo 2010.
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