# WMATA's Silver Line: Phase ll



## The Davy Crockett (Jul 10, 2013)

From the press release here:



> The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority on Monday [July 9, 2013] issued a Notice to Proceed to Capital Rail Constructors, a joint venture of Clark Construction Group and Kiewit Infrastructure South, to begin construction of Phase 2 of the Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project.“This is an important milestone,” said Airports Authority President and CEO Jack Potter. “The Notice to Proceed allows Capital Rail Constructors to get to work making rail to Dulles a reality. This means crews will soon be in the field surveying, performing site preparations and making geological assessments while they finalize permits and other design work. Actual construction work using heavy equipment and cranes will likely begin in spring of 2014.”



Geeze... I just might actually live to see a rail link between IAD and downtown DC - promised since IAD opened in 1962 - in my lifetime.


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## afigg (Jul 11, 2013)

With the target completion date of July 2018 for the primary construction contract, you just have do your best to stay alive until the fall of 2018! Only a short 56 years after Dulles Airport opened for business. And in 2018, odds are good that someone will stand up at a public information meeting prior to the opening of Phase 2 and complain about how they rushed building the Metro out to the airport. 

The progress of the construction for Phase 1 of the Silver Line through Tysons and out to Wiehle Avenue has been impressive to observe over the last several years. The construction is officially 94% done as of the June Newsletter (has several photos). The May newsletter has some better wider view photos for those interested. MWAA claims that Phase 1 is still on schedule for completion of construction in September 2013 which would leave it up to WMATA to get testing and spin-up completed to start service in December 2013.

The start of revenue service on the 11.6 mile long Phase 1 Silver Line will be a noteworthy event because how long has it been since we added 11 miles of heavy rail rapid transit in the US? Been more than a few years I think.


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## The Davy Crockett (Jul 11, 2013)

afigg said:


> The progress of the construction for Phase 1 of the Silver Line through Tysons and out to Wiehle Avenue has been impressive to observe over the last several years. The construction is officially 94% done as of the June Newsletter (has several photos). The May newsletter has some better wider view photos for those interested. MWAA claims that Phase 1 is still on schedule for completion of construction in September 2013 which would leave it up to WMATA to get testing and spin-up completed to start service in December 2013. [/quote
> 
> The start of revenue service on the 11.6 mile long Phase 1 Silver Line will be a noteworthy event because how long has it been since we added 11 miles of heavy rail rapid transit in the US? Been more than a few years I think.


The pics in the links are great.
Having friends and family along the Dulles Corridor, I've had the pleasure of watching the construction on Phase 1 progress while driving by during off-peak hours. I think the nearly finished product looks great and the architecture, while clearly different than the original, maintains a certain familiarity.


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## afigg (Jul 29, 2013)

This is more about Phase 1 of the Silver Line, but the July newsletter for the Silver Line project has been posted. The newsletter is titled the Dulles Corridor Metrorail project, so they will continue the series of newsletters for the Phase 2 construction. The not so good news is the completion date for Phase 1 has been extended by "approximately" 8 weeks, so a December 2013 start of revenue service for the Silver Line is likely to slip into 2014.

The photo I find interesting is of the platform for the Tysons Corner station which shows the view from the elevated track platform height. the McLean, Tysons Corner, and Spring Hill stations in Tysons are elevated well above ground level on either side of the highest point in Fairfax county. These will be Metro stations with a view.


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## The Davy Crockett (Jul 30, 2013)

afigg said:


> This is more about Phase 1 of the Silver Line, but the July newsletter for the Silver Line project has been posted. The newsletter is titled the Dulles Corridor Metrorail project, so they will continue the series of newsletters for the Phase 2 construction. The not so good news is the completion date for Phase 1 has been extended by "approximately" 8 weeks, so a December 2013 start of revenue service for the Silver Line is likely to slip into 2014.


It sure is sounding like 2014 before the fare gates open and Silver revenue runs start rolling in. Hopefully it will just be 8 weeks!


> The photo I find interesting is of the platform for the Tysons Corner station which shows the view from the elevated track platform height. the McLean, Tysons Corner, and Spring Hill stations in Tysons are elevated well above ground level on either side of the highest point in Fairfax county. These will be Metro stations with a view.


I've wondered for a long time why Tysons One didn't make use of the view it has with a panorama restuarant or some such.


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## afigg (Sep 15, 2013)

The September 2013 newsletter for the Silver Line project has been posted. Has photos of the work approaching completion at several of the new stations and several of the early survey work for Phase 2 of geotech boring samples. The start of service date for Phase 1 has indeed slipped to early 2014 as that date timeframe is stated in WMATA board meeting presentations this week.

The September 2013 WMATA board meeting was a busy one with the announcement of an additional order of 220 Series 7000 cars and the news that new fare gates will be ordered and installed starting in 2014 that will also take payment from properly equipped credit cards and smartphones. One of the presentations at the board meeting was on the Silver Line Marketing Plan. Turns out that the market awareness of the Silver Line is only 45-55%. The viewgraph part of the presentation document has first year ridership projections for each station, headways, and photos of the 5 new stations.


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## The Davy Crockett (Sep 15, 2013)

afigg said:


> The September 2013 newsletter for the Silver Line project has been posted. Has photos of the work approaching completion at several of the new stations and several of the early survey work for Phase 2 of geotech boring samples. The start of service date for Phase 1 has indeed slipped to early 2014 as that date timeframe is stated in WMATA board meeting presentations this week.
> 
> The September 2013 WMATA board meeting was a busy one with the announcement of an additional order of 220 Series 7000 cars and the news that new fare gates will be ordered and installed starting in 2014 that will also take payment from properly equipped credit cards and smartphones. One of the presentations at the board meeting was on the Silver Line Marketing Plan. Turns out that the market awareness of the Silver Line is only 45-55%. The viewgraph part of the presentation document has first year ridership projections for each station, headways, and photos of the 5 new stations.


Thanks for the links! Nice photos, as always. Its great to see a train at a station, even if it is not on a revenue run yet! I'm looking forward to riding on some nice crisp, clear days this coming winter. I like the 'new/old' design - almost retro mid-century modern in looks. (Retro-Metro?  )

I had heard about the low numbers for market awareness and they surprised me. I know I've been known to occasionally foam at the mouth, but how can people live in the area where the Silver Line is going, and have no clue?... Well, maybe on second thought those numbers seem about right!  It just seems that with all the heck raised about rising tolls on the Access Road, the traffic delays, the visibility of the project while under construction, the media coverage, etc., etc., those numbers would be higher.

I hope the distance between the airport and the station don't discourage ridership. Treadway people movers will help a lot, but there will be a huge need for one to be in service in each direction at all times. If folks have to walk that distance it will certainly discourage them from becoming repeat customers. Considering Metro's history with escalators being out of service, I think that three 'moving sidewalks' should be installed at the Dulles Station so that one of them can be 'out of service' if need be. An added expense, yes, but considering how much less is being spent for that station than was originally planned, it seems like pennies. (Just my two cents. hboy: )


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## afigg (Sep 15, 2013)

The Davy Crockett said:


> I hope the distance between the airport and the station don't discourage ridership. Treadway people movers will help a lot, but there will be a huge need for one to be in service in each direction at all times. If folks have to walk that distance it will certainly discourage them from becoming repeat customers. Considering Metro's history with escalators being out of service, I think that three 'moving sidewalks' should be installed at the Dulles Station so that one of them can be 'out of service' if need be. An added expense, yes, but considering how much less is being spent for that station than was originally planned, it seems like pennies. (Just my two cents. hboy: )


On the marketing end, I see that the SilverLineMetro.com website is up. T-shirts and coffee mugs touting the Silver Line are probably in the works. And,hey, the SilverLineMetro website has the new Metro map as a PDF file.

There are moving sidewalks in the tunnel from the Daily Parking Garage #1 to the terminal. The Metro station will go between the parking garage building and the hourly parking lot over the existing pedestrian tunnel. The odd thing about the moving sidewalks is that they maybe cover about 1/2 of the total walking distance. Big gap in the middle between the 2 sets of moving sidewalks. Then the moving sidewalk ends short of the Y-split leading to the escalators and elevators up into the 2 halves of the terminal. Dulles is not a compact airport, so there is a lot of walking to get through the airport to the gates, regardless of where the Metro station ended up.

I would expect the airport will provide a golf cart shuttle or two to run during peak periods between the elevators from the Metro station and the base of the escalators leading up into the terminal to those who need the assistance.


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## afigg (Oct 30, 2013)

This is Phase 1 news, but I figured I might as well put it in this thread. Perhaps a moderator could rename this thread WMATA's Silver Line, so it can be used for catchall discussions and updates of both phases of the DC Metro new Silver Line.

It appears that the start of revenue service for Phase 1 is now expected to begin in February, 2014. WTOP article: Officials: Silver Line will carry passengers in February. DC Metro has always started service on new segments on Saturdays, so unless there is an unexpected delay, DC Metro will add 11.5 miles and 5 stations to the system on a Saturday next February.

There are 2 news reports videos available on YouTube, both around 2 minutes long showing stations nearing completion.
WJLA ABC7 from August: The New DC Metro Silver Line (shows the views that we will have with the elevated stations in Tysons)

WAMU from late September: MWAA Previews New Silver Line Phase 1 Stations.


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## The Davy Crockett (Oct 31, 2013)

afigg said:


> This is Phase 1 news, but I figured I might as well put it in this thread. Perhaps a moderator could rename this thread WMATA's Silver Line, so it can be used for catchall discussions and updates of both phases of the DC Metro new Silver Line.


Sounds like a good idea to me.



> It appears that the start of revenue service for Phase 1 is now expected to begin in February, 2014. WTOP article: Officials: Silver Line will carry passengers in February. DC Metro has always started service on new segments on Saturdays, so unless there is an unexpected delay, DC Metro will add 11.5 miles and 5 stations to the system on a a Saturday next February.
> 
> There are 2 news reports videos available on YouTube, both around 2 minutes long showing stations nearing completion.
> 
> ...


Nice videos! I'm glad the Silver Line was built above ground where one can see the sky and clouds. The '_silver lining'_ to this is how good it looks! 

I'm looking forward to 'wasting' a day riding it. I might even use the excuse of meeting one of my sisters at the "Wiehle - Reston East - And Soon-to-be More Points West" (In keeping with Metro's penchant for overly long station names) station for lunch.

Two things I noticed on the videos:

First, they are already painting the concrete. This was a bone of contention with the original design, as the stations were envisioned to be unpainted. When Metro decided to paint some due to staining from water leaking into the stations - I believe Farragut North was the first to be painted - there were some unhappy people.

Second, (I'm joking) I see the escalators are ready to go, as they are in Metro's normal operating 'stationary' mode! :giggle:


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## Ryan (Oct 31, 2013)

Yep, if I'm free on opening day, I'll definitely "waste" a day riding out there and back. If not then, soon after.

I need to work on closing the gaps so I can say that I've aced the system. I just have a few short segments (that are widely scattered, of course!).


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## afigg (Oct 31, 2013)

The Davy Crockett said:


> Nice videos! I'm glad the Silver Line was built above ground where one can see the sky and clouds. The '_silver lining'_ to this is how good it looks!
> 
> I'm looking forward to 'wasting' a day riding it. I might even use the excuse of meeting one of my sisters at the "Wiehle - Reston East - And Soon-to-be More Points West" (In keeping with Metro's penchant for overly long station names) station for lunch.


I think the segment along Rt. 7 in Tysons should have been built underground using cut & cover techniques. The elevated segment along Rt. 7 looks a bit like a roller coaster when you look at it lengthwise. The plans are for high density development along Rt. 7 there and the elevated tracks in the middle of Rt. 7 won't fit that well with the high density a decade or two from now. Also, by putting the Rt. 7 segment underground, they could have left a wide median strip where a future light rail line could run from a stop above the Greensboro Station down the Rt. 7 corridor/axis towards Falls Church, Bailey's Crossroad, and then to a TBD Blue/Yellow line station. But what is done is done. Elevated concrete railway it is.
The views from the platforms of the 3 elevated stations in Tysons could be interesting. Likely to be able to see some DC landmarks from the McLean and Tysons Corner stations.

WMATA did a good job in trimming the bloated station names several years ago with the new maps and rules on primary name length. Well, except for Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport which they left alone. The end of Phase 1 will be just the Wiehle - Reston East station. Don't know if it might be renamed Wiehle Ave - Reston for consistency someday after Phase 2 opens.


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## MARC Rider (Oct 31, 2013)

Yeah, it probably would have been better to cover the Metro line, but having just visited Chicago, it seems that high density development and elevated transit can peacefully coexist.



The Davy Crockett said:


> The plans are for high density development along Rt. 7 there and the elevated tracks in the middle of Rt. 7 won't fit that well with the high density a decade or two from now.


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## AlanB (Oct 31, 2013)

RyanS said:


> I need to work on closing the gaps so I can say that I've aced the system. I just have a few short segments (that are widely scattered, of course!).


I just drop a few ace bandages whenever I ride the DC Metro; that way I can say that I've aced the system.


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## AmtrakBlue (Oct 31, 2013)

AlanB said:


> RyanS said:
> 
> 
> > I need to work on closing the gaps so I can say that I've aced the system. I just have a few short segments (that are widely scattered, of course!).
> ...


Litterbug! :lol:


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## Ryan (Oct 31, 2013)

Is that your bagbandage?


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## Trogdor (Oct 31, 2013)

Which phase does anyone think will become phase II of the silver line? Will it take longer to construct than phase I? Will the cars be painted in phase III paint for the introduction?

Oh, sorry, wrong thread.


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## The Davy Crockett (Nov 1, 2013)

Trogdor said:


> Which phase does anyone think will become phase II of the silver line? Will it take longer to construct than phase I? Will the cars be painted in phase III paint for the introduction?
> 
> Oh, sorry, wrong thread.


Its okay. It doesn't phase me.


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## The Davy Crockett (Nov 1, 2013)

MARC Rider said:


> Yeah, it probably would have been better to cover the Metro line, but having just visited Chicago, it seems that high density development and elevated transit can peacefully coexist.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


While putting the Silver Line underground would certainly have had its merits, it also had its issues:

First is cost. The 'folks in Richmond' would have balked, just like they did when they looked at the costs of putting Phase II of the Silver Line underground at Dulles Airport. IMHO putting it underground at Dulles would have been preferable because it would have meant a much shorter walk from the main terminal to the trains, but that plan was derailed as being too costly. I think putting Phase 1 underground along Rt. 7 would have proven so costly that the funding for Phase 2 could have become problematic. Of note too is the organization which pushed hardest for the underground option was funded largely by the large land owners in the Tysons Corner environs. It seemed to me that these 'Richie Richs' were looking out for their own interests, not the common good, and were trying to enrich their property values and thus themselves, through taxes and tolls payed by people of much more modest means.

Second, as reported earlier, there is an amazing lack of awareness that the Silver Line project exists in the local area. Out of sight would have meant even greater 'out of mind.'

Third, as Joe says, above groung heavy rail coexists pretty darn well with high density development in downtown Chicago.

Fourth, it is usually so much nicer looking out the window when one is above ground. And as afigg notes, the Tysons area has some sweeping views. (Of course, on the downside, it will likely be pretty chilly in the winter when there's a cold wind blowing, especially with the present and future tall buildings. (Hmmm - With the malls at Tyson's already named Tysons I & Tyson's II, how about Tysons Corner: Windy City II?  )


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## Anderson (Nov 1, 2013)

AlanB said:


> RyanS said:
> 
> 
> > I need to work on closing the gaps so I can say that I've aced the system. I just have a few short segments (that are widely scattered, of course!).
> ...


Dropping bandages on the Metro...when did WMATA hire you? 

As to putting it underground: I actually like the mostly-above-ground portions in the suburbs, since you get a view rather than spending up to an hour looking at a mix of underground stations and blackness. Even if there's not much to look at, a little sky is better than no scenery at all.


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## jis (Nov 1, 2013)

Anderson said:


> As to putting it underground: I actually like the mostly-above-ground portions in the suburbs, since you get a view rather than spending up to an hour looking at a mix of underground stations and blackness. Even if there's not much to look at, a little sky is better than no scenery at all.


And it is way way cheaper to build too. A preponderance of the new systems being built are for that reason built preferably on surface or elevated, with tunneling reserved for only those portions where nothing else can be made to work.


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## afigg (Nov 1, 2013)

The Davy Crockett said:


> While putting the Silver Line underground would certainly have had its merits, it also had its issues:
> 
> First is cost. The 'folks in Richmond' would have balked, just like they did when they looked at the costs of putting Phase II of the Silver Line underground at Dulles Airport. IMHO putting it underground at Dulles would have been preferable because it would have meant a much shorter walk from the main terminal to the trains, but that plan was derailed as being too costly. I think putting Phase 1 underground along Rt. 7 would have proven so costly that the funding for Phase 2 could have become problematic. Of note too is the organization which pushed hardest for the underground option was funded largely by the large land owners in the Tysons Corner environs. It seemed to me that these 'Richie Richs' were looking out for their own interests, not the common good, and were trying to enrich their property values and thus themselves, through taxes and tolls payed by people of much more modest means.


The large land owners in Tysons, aka the real estate developers, are footing part of the cost for the Silver Line through special tax assessments. They were looking at the longer term view of the benefits of placing more of the route through Tysons underground, even if it was mostly self interest for expected profitable future high density development.

We managed to build 50.5 miles of the 106 mile Metro system underground without breaking the bank. The Silver Line will run through a 1500' long tunnel under the highest point in Fairfax County making the turn from Rt. 123 to Rt. 7. I think it would not have been that expensive to dig out a ~2 mile underground segment along Rt. 7 in the median (which was cleared out anyway for the elevated tracks) using cut and cover. But, the original PE stage design went with elevated tracks when not as many people were paying attention and once that was set, it was too difficult to change w/o risking the entire project.

The debate / fight over the location of the route and station at Dulles Airport was a different situation because it would have cost an estimated $600 million more to have a station closer to the terminal. With the amount of parking structure reconstruction and utility relocation needed for the closer in station, the price tag could have easily gone up. It came down to $600+ million and an extra 6 months in construction to save 600' in walking distance (with most of that on existing moving sidewalks). Not a surprise that the lower cost option won.

BTW, I see they have updated the funding breakdown of the Silver Line project on the Dulles Metro website to incorporate the additional funding from the state of VA. What it shows is that the project cost is now down to $5.5 billion due to the bid for the primary Phase 2 construction contract coming in several hundred million below the original estimate. During the debates over funding Phase 2, there were people claiming the entire project cost would spiral to $7 or $8 billion. Worth noting that the federal government is only providing $900 million for Phase 1 for 16% of the total; the rest of the funding is state or local or Dulles toll road drivers.


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## Andrew (Nov 1, 2013)

How deep is this tunnel in Fairfax County?


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## The Davy Crockett (Nov 1, 2013)

Andrew said:


> How deep is this tunnel in Fairfax County?


WHAT tunnel? :blink:

Some folks need to read with less speed and cite when they write. :giggle:


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## Fan Railer (Nov 1, 2013)

The Davy Crockett said:


> Andrew said:
> 
> 
> > How deep is this tunnel in Fairfax County?
> ...


This tunnel, apparently:



> We managed to build 50.5 miles of the 106 mile Metro system underground without breaking the bank. The Silver Line will run through a 1500' long tunnel under the highest point in Fairfax County making the turn from Rt. 123 to Rt. 7. I think it would not have been that expensive to dig out a ~2 mile underground segment along Rt. 7 in the median (which was cleared out anyway for the elevated tracks) using cut and cover. But, the original PE stage design went with elevated tracks when not as many people were paying attention and once that was set, it was too difficult to change w/o risking the entire project.


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## afigg (Nov 1, 2013)

The Davy Crockett said:


> Andrew said:
> 
> 
> > How deep is this tunnel in Fairfax County?
> ...


The Silver Line in Tysons has a ~1500' long tunnel between the Tysons Corner and Greensboro stations that goes through the ridge line northwest of the Rt. 123 and Rt. 7 intersection. The tunnel ends at the Greensboro station. Since the tunnel cuts through the ridge at the highest point in Fairfax County (marked by the communications tower placed there), to answer Andrew's question, it is not a deep tunnel.

BTW, the Dulles Metro October 2013 newsletter has photos of the elevated track & Spring Hill station from above and one from ground level of the Tysons Corner station for those interested.


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## George Harris (Nov 2, 2013)

The 50.5 miles of tunnel has to be for the entire system spread over Maryland, DC, and Virginia.

Some of that should have been on the surface or aerial. Underground is far more expensive both to build and to operate than any other form of construction.


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## afigg (Nov 22, 2013)

The November 2013 newsletter (2 page PDF) for the Silver Line project has been posted. Has photos of the elevated tracks, new stations, and installed fare machines as well. Getting close to completion. Geotechnical test bores are continuing for Phase 2.

There is still no date for start of revenue service for Phase 1 beyond some general pronouncements about possibly starting in February 2014. Which I interpret as meaning no earlier than the last Saturday in February.

PS. The underground DC Metro stations will all be getting new lighting over the next 2 years. PlanItMetro website info on the upgrades: New Station Mezzanine Lights Show the Way. The stations do need better lighting, just hope they are not overdoing it.


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## The Davy Crockett (Dec 2, 2013)

afigg said:


> There is still no date for start of revenue service for Phase 1 beyond some general pronouncements about possibly starting in February 2014. Which I interpret as meaning no earlier than the last Saturday in February


Yep, you be right...

From this article at WTOP:



> The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority is again pushing back its expected completion date for construction of the new Silver Line through Tysons Corner.
> 
> The airports authority, which oversees construction of the new commuter line, says it needs several more weeks to complete work. Its most recent estimate had been that it would finish up at the end of November.
> 
> Because the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which operates Metrorail, estimates it will need 90 days to conduct its own tests, passengers are unlikely to ride the line until the end of March.


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## afigg (Dec 3, 2013)

Yep, it appears that it is now likely a March, maybe April, start date for Silver Line Phase 1. Whether WMATA needs a full 90 days for testing, filling the allotment of new hires, training, coordination with bus route changes, emergency services training & exercises, after the extra delays is not that clear. The delays should be giving WMATA extra time to prepare, hire people, train them, and so on. But they probably won't announce a specific target start date until a month or 6 weeks before.

My guess is that WMATA management is ok with the delays because it means that they won't have to provide rolling stock and cut into their reserve capacity for Silver Line operation for as many months until the Series 7000 cars start to enter revenue service. The first set of Series 7000 cars are supposed to be delivered for testing in December with an initial operational date of later 2014. I have seen a number of news reports recently of rush hour delays due to problems with the cars. They may be hard pressed to sustain Silver Line service if Series 1000 and 4000 cars break down too much.


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## afigg (Jan 17, 2014)

After a period of dead silence, there was an update this week on the status of Phase 1 of the Silver Line. Washington Post: Silver Line close to completion but still no opening date. They believe they have solved the software problems and are planning to hold formal simulated service tests on the evening of January 25. For the tests, they will run 10 eight car trains between the Wiehle Ave - Reston East and the East Falls Church stations. If the system passes the tests and the check list get checked off, then MWAA could turn the the tracks over to WMATA in early-mid February. Which leads to a likely May start of service date.

Meanwhile, WMATA has posted a Silver Line Introduction video, 4:51 long, on Youtube. Video of the stations, tracks, etc for those interested.


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## The Davy Crockett (Jan 17, 2014)

Meanwhile, an audit by DOT's IG of MWAA's handling of the almost $975,000,000.00 in federal funding it has been granted for 'Phase One' raises questions about the Authority's ability to manage all that dough...

From this article in The Washington Post:



> In one example, MWAA used $16,000 in grant money to pay for lobbying services – even though such an expense is not allowed under federal rules. The lobbying services were provided by former MWAA board members.
> 
> In another instance highlighted in the report, the airports authority used grant money to pay for $54,000 in expenses related to the second phase of the rail project, even though the dollars were specifically earmarked for Phase 1.
> 
> ...


Here is a link to the IG's report.


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## afigg (Feb 8, 2014)

Phase 1 of the Silver Line may finally be completed and ready to be turned over to WMATA. WTOP story: Metro Silver Line closer to an opening date this spring. If MWAA and WMATA accept the contractor's work during the 15 day review, revenue service for Phase 1 could start on a Saturday in May.



> WASHINGTON -- After months of delays, the Silver Line is finally taking a big leap closer to opening in Northern Virginia.
> 
> The contractors building Phase One of the Dulles Rail Project say they have reached "substantial completion" Friday of the new stretch from East Falls Church to Wiehle-Reston East.
> 
> ...


There was also information posted on-line that the contractor for Phase 2 will start next week to drill and build 3 pairs of test shafts at Dulles Airport to verify the load bearing capacity of the foundations for the elevated segment of the railway through Dulles. So construction for Phase 2 is getting started.


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## Ryan (Feb 8, 2014)

Depends on how you define construction, I guess. I recall reading somewhere that drilling work has already started at IAD.

Sent from my iPhone


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## afigg (Feb 9, 2014)

RyanS said:


> Depends on how you define construction, I guess. I recall reading somewhere that drilling work has already started at IAD.


That could be the drilling for the test shafts or the preperation for it. The notice that was posted on rr.net referred to the test shaft that will be drilled in the median of the access road to Dulles with the barriers going up the week of February 10. It says that "The two other test shaft pairs are being constructed in locations at the airport that are not visible to the general public." So maybe they are already started drilling those. The test shafts, BTW, will be 6' in diameter and ~39' long with ~ 50 yds of concrete and lots of rebar. So these are not small test borings.


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## Ryan (Feb 9, 2014)

Yeah, I was thinking of the test borings described in the November newsletter:

http://www.dullesmetro.com/documents/_Nov2013/13NOV_DullesMetroNewsletter.pdf


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## afigg (May 1, 2014)

While the date for the start of revenue service for Phase 1 of the Silver Line is now vaguely set for mid to late summer (maybe), there is some good news for the financing of Phase 2. The US DOT has signed off on a $1.9 billion low interest rate TIFIA loan for Phase 2, the largest TIFIA loan ever. The low interest rates will help keep the tolls lower on the Dulles Toll Road as the DTR tolls are being used to pay off the debt for the 23 mile Silver Line extension.

Washington Post: Silver Line to get nearly $2 billion federal loan. Excerpt:



> The Silver Line project will receive nearly $2 billion in a low-interest, long-term federal loan to help pay for the second phase of the project that will extend the new line to Dulles International Airport and into Loudoun County.
> 
> Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx has signed the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) loan, the largest in the history of the federal program, Virginia’s congressional delegation announced Thursday.


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## The Davy Crockett (May 13, 2014)

From this report at WTOP:



> In an update with reporters Monday [5/12/14], project officials described the latest hiccup that could delay the project yet again: Signals are misfiring, telling approaching trains to stop because a train is on the track ahead, even when no train is there.
> 
> Testing was needed to determine how long the repairs would take, and it's unclear whether it will affect the planned opening.
> 
> But Rob Troup, Metro's deputy manager for operations, said he was encouraged that progress is being made to resolve a list of other issues that must be addressed before Metro would take over the line.


And at least the error is a false postive, unlike the situation at Fort Totten a few years back.


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## CHamilton (Aug 21, 2014)

Metrorail to Dulles Airport receives $1.28 billion loan





> U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx has announced the closing of a $1.28 billion Transportation Infrastructure Financial Innovation Act (TIFIA) loan to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) for construction of Phase Two of the Metrorail Silver Line extension.


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## afigg (Mar 31, 2015)

Sand Box John has posted new photos of the construction work for Phase II of the Silver Line from a March 28, 2015 site visit. Work is now underway at 3 of the 6 station sites. The piers for the elevated track through the land at Dulles Airport have been going in since late last summer, IIRC. I expect the construction work will begin to really get underway this summer. Thought some might be interested in looking through the photos.


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## Shawn Ryu (Mar 31, 2015)

How long would it take from DC downtown to Dulles Airport?


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## Ryan (Mar 31, 2015)

Very. No express service.


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## afigg (Mar 31, 2015)

Shawn Ryu said:


> How long would it take from DC downtown to Dulles Airport?


It will take about 50 minutes for the Silver Line trip from the Dulles Airport station to Metro Center.

The scheduled trip time for Wiehle-Reston East to Metro Center is 41 minutes (and 18.8 miles). The Dulles station will be about 6.5 miles from the Wiehle-Reston East station with 3 stops in-between: Reston Town Center, Herndon, Innovation Center. So, figure about 10 minutes from Wiehle-Reston East to the Dulles stop when Phase 2 opens.

The Loudoun County board, BTW, has chosen Ashburn (now Rt. 772) and Loudoun Gateway (Rt. 606) as the names for the stops west of Dulles. The WMATA board still has to agree to the proposed names, so there is a chance they will reject Loudoun Gateway as too vague. But I doubt the WMATA board will do that. So when Phase 2 opens, one could take a trip from Innovation Center to Loudoun Gateway. Bleh.


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## Scott York (Apr 28, 2015)

It has been announced that the earliest Phase II will be in revenue service is now 2019. This is being blamed on new storm water management regulations a both the federal and state levels, which is said to have caused WMAA (the airport authority) to go back to the drawing board, though I believe some of the operational problems encountered in getting Phase I into revenue service are also to blame. But don't worry, the new sprawl spurred on by Metro coming to Low Down, err, Loudon County will more than offset any improvement in the water quality of the Chesapeake Bay watershed, while the WMAA has found something to blame other than their ineptitude.


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## afigg (Apr 15, 2016)

To revive this thread, the Phase 2 construction of the Silver Line is well underway. The heavy construction and digging started on the grounds of Dulles Airport and really got underway outside of the airport late last summer. The April 2016 project newsletter (2 page PDF) has several photos and update on the construction status.

Direct link to the photo of the hole in the ground where the Dulles Airport station will go.







Elevated guideway under construction at the north end of the route through Dulles Airport


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## chakk (Jun 22, 2016)

Shawn Ryu said:


> How long would it take from DC downtown to Dulles Airport?


With single-tracking in effect beteen East Falls Church and Ballston on the Orange Line when I rode two weeks ago, the time from Dulles Airport to downtown D,C. Was about 75 minutes.


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