# Maryland passes gas tax increase - good news for Purple & Red Line



## afigg (Mar 31, 2013)

The Maryland legislature has passed a bill to increase the gas tax. It is certain to be signed by the Governor. Washington Post article on the passage, although the article also covers other bills and does not get into the implications. MD has been facing a serious transportation funding shortfall for years with the gas excise tax not having been increased in 20 years, but kicked the can down the road before. This year, facing the prospect of no funding available for any new road or transit projects by 2017 and with Virginia having raised taxes for transportation, they finally acted with by adding an wholesale gas tax which will increase in steps over the next 3 years.

The relevance to transit and to Amtrak is that the new revenue will provide funding to advance the light rail Purple Line and Baltimore Red Line projects. For those not familiar with the projects, the Purple Line will run from the Amtrak/MARC, DC Metro stations at New Carrolton to College Park to Silver Spring to Bethesda. When the Purple Line opens (sometime after 2020), it should make New Carrolton a busier stop with direct connections to the huge University of Maryland campus in College Park and the MD DC suburbs.

The Baltimore Red Line will run east-west through Baltimore, providing a direct connection from the MARC West Baltimore stop on the NEC to downtown Baltimore and the Inner harbor. It will also provide direct connections to the subway Green Line and the light rail line in Baltimore, giving Baltimore a connected rail transit system.

With two new light rail lines in the works that direct connect to the NEC, aka the MARC Penn Line, I would expect that with the additional revenue to draw on, that MD will also be looking to expand MARC Penn Line service to 7 days a week. Which means more state funding for NEC upgrade projects such as the BWI Airport station rebuild, 4th track from West Baltimore to New Carrolton, the B&P tunnel and Susquehanna bridge replacements.


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## Ryan (Apr 1, 2013)

The amount of whining and complaining about this in Maryland has been epic, but I'm glad that it's finally passed. Like everything else, people want and want and want, but think the money should just come out of thin air.

The bill also helps stop the raiding of transportation money for other projects - hopefully between the two of them MARC service can really flourish. MARC has long had plans for weekend expansion, so hopefully this will be something that they can work out quickly, I was down in DC this weekend and would have loved to been able to take the MARC.


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## afigg (Apr 1, 2013)

Ryan said:


> The amount of whining and complaining about this in Maryland has been epic, but I'm glad that it's finally passed. Like everything else, people want and want and want, but think the money should just come out of thin air.
> The bill also helps stop the raiding of transportation money for other projects - hopefully between the two of them MARC service can really flourish. MARC has long had plans for weekend expansion, so hopefully this will be something that they can work out quickly, I was down in DC this weekend and would have loved to been able to take the MARC.


Yes, the amount of complaints and the over the top rhetoric about raising the gas tax, possibly by 20 cents, over the next 3+ years has been excessive. If someone buys 500 gallons a year for their car, at the current prices, say $3.80, they are spending $1,900 a year on gas. An extra $100 over the course of a year is going to be that big a deal? Compared to the cost of buying the car, maintenance, insurance, new tires, batteries, etc over the lifespan of the car? For an extra $100, they get better road maintenance, fewer potholes, road improvement projects, and more transit options if they live near DC and Baltimore & want to save on gas entirely.

Will be interesting to see what happens in PA and MA because they are also facing serious transportation funding shortfalls. Gas tax increase in PA would mean more capital funding for SEPTA. In MA, the T, MBTA, and the Inland Route would see a lot more funding. Last I saw it looks like VT will be raising gas taxes, NH may be blocked by the state Senate.

As for MARC, I doubt if there will any "quick" expansions to 7 day a week service on the Penn Line. Amtrak may want some NEC projects funded, started, or completed first. Even if MARC gets extra funding early on and Amtrak is willing to go along, it could take several years of planning, negotiating, logistics work to go to 7 day a week service. Meanwhile there is at least a decent frequency of Amtrak service between WAS and BAL on weekends, albeit not inexpensive on short notice.


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## Ryan (Apr 1, 2013)

I *believe* that as a part of the MARC Growth and Investment plan* (which I can't believe is over 5 years old at this point) there were already negotiations and tentative agreements with Amtrak that fell through when the finding from the state didn't happen. Obviously things have changed in the interim, but if the funding appears I'm hopeful that things could happen quickly.

True that Amtrak service is available, but MARC service would be 1/3 the price, plus parking here in Odenton is free (as opposed to $9/day in the BWI garage).

* http://mta.maryland.gov/sites/default/files/marcplanfull.pdf


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## Ryan (Apr 23, 2013)

Looks like the weekend MARC service may be a reality!

http://odenton.patch.com/articles/marc-weekend-service-coming-to-odenton



> The MARC Penn Line could add weekend service to Odenton under provisions outlined in the transportation packaged approved by Maryland lawmakers.
> Sen. Jim Rosapepe (D-21) said the Maryland Legislature gave its support for expanded MARC service during the 2013 legislative session. The plan calls for the MARC Penn Line to offer Saturday and Sunday service to Odenton, Rosapepe said.
> 
> The senator spoke Tuesday at a meeting of the West Anne Arundel County Chamber of Commerce in Gambrills.
> ...


As always the comments are entertaining...


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## battalion51 (Apr 24, 2013)

It's still amazing to me that MARC and VRE don't run weekend service, and there is a definite train culture in that area. Smash cut to South Florida and you've got 15 round trips on the weekends with hourly service (save the last train home). I'd think that you could easily support hourly service on the Penn Line between WAS and BAL. I wouldn't think service to Perryville would provide a lot of ROI, but you never know.


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## afigg (Apr 24, 2013)

Ryan said:


> Looks like the weekend MARC service may be a reality!
> http://odenton.patch.com/articles/marc-weekend-service-coming-to-odenton


Maybe there will be weekend MARC service on the Penn Line sooner than I thought. However, I noticed the State Senator did not mention a start-up date. For one, the gas tax increases are spread over 3 years, so the additional revenue stream is going to increase in increments. Given lead time for adding more personnel to run the trains, adjusting the NEC schedules, could take a while to start weekend service.

GGW had a MARC news post several days ago: MARC makes improvements, plans even more. The Halethorpe station now has a high level platform on one side and is expected to be complete by June. That will leave West Baltimore as the only low level station between WAS and BAL. West Baltimore is getting expanded parking, but a rebuild of the station could be waiting on finalization of the Red Line design. With the additional revenue and funding, we should see progress resume on the plans for Penn, Brunswick, Camden line upgrades, but MARC will be competing with the Purple and Baltimore Red Line projects for funds.

If/when they do start weekend service on the Penn Line, I would expect they would start with a light schedule. Weekend service is going to have significant operating losses in the first few years, so a staggered expansion is likely. I think weekend service passenger levels will be pretty light until the light rail Red Line is running. And the Purple Line as well. Which could be 2021 or 2022 if the projects don't slip much.


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## Ryan (Apr 24, 2013)

The articles says that it could start as early as next year.

I think that it'll be a hit, I know that I'll be on it pretty frequently.


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## afigg (Apr 24, 2013)

Ryan said:


> The articles says that it could start as early as next year.
> I think that it'll be a hit, I know that I'll be on it pretty frequently.


My bad. You are correct, the article does say he has received indications as early as next year Somehow I missed that. I might have been distracted by the comments which repeat the arguments over subsidized train services, roads, yada, yada.

I think people will take the weekend Penn Line, but I expect passenger loads will be light in the first years in large part because of the limited / poorly connected rail transit system in Baltimore. The Charm City Circulator buses will take people downtown from Baltimore Penn Station, but I don't know how many people in DC or outside of the city know about it.


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## fairviewroad (Apr 24, 2013)

BWI airport help keep Penn Line weekend traffic numbers up.


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## battalion51 (Apr 24, 2013)

I think it's like everything else, if you put it out there, advertise it's there, and make it affordable, people will use it. For example, Tri-Rail runs a fare zone system during the week when the system is at peak demand and you can maximize revenue. On the weekends when your primary demographic shifts to more families and folks going out for pleasure they switch to a day pass that's good all day for a flat fare. I would think MARC would benefit from making a similar move to encourage folks to get off of 95/295 and on to the rails.


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## afigg (Apr 24, 2013)

battalion51 said:


> It's still amazing to me that MARC and VRE don't run weekend service, and there is a definite train culture in that area. Smash cut to South Florida and you've got 15 round trips on the weekends with hourly service (save the last train home). I'd think that you could easily support hourly service on the Penn Line between WAS and BAL. I wouldn't think service to Perryville would provide a lot of ROI, but you never know.


There are a number of factors in play with regards to weekend MARC and VRE service. A major one is that VRE and MARC, except for the Penn Line, operate on active NS and CSX freight lines. NS and CSX are willing to work around weekday peak hour commuter traffic, but a 7 day a week regional rail system would require a lot more capacity and additional tracks. For VRE, that means replacing or supplementing the Long Bridge across the Potomac River and expanding to 4 tracks in Arlington & Alexandria for starters. There are long term plans for MARC and VRE, but it will take cooperation from CSX and NS and considerable funds.

Another factor is the DC Metrorail system. It is a 106 mile long system which is a hybrid intercity transit and commuter heavy rail rapid transit system. The outer stations with the large parking garages provide the functionality of a commuter rail station for trips to the metro core in the evenings and on weekends. The DC Metro is expanding by 23 miles with the Silver Line which will run to Tysons Corner, Reston, Herndon, and well outside the urban core to Dulles Airport and Ashburn. The 11.5 miles of Phase 1 is approaching completion. I saw a 2 car test train running on 3rd rail power on the Phase 1 Silver Line several weeks ago. Bids were unsealed last Friday for the primary construction contract for Phase 2 to Dulles & Ashburn. When the Silver Line is completed by 2018, DC Metro will be a 129 mile system with 98 stations (assuming the Potomac Yards infill station is completed).

MARC and VRE fill in the weekday commuter system outside of the DC Metro areas, but Amtrak provides varying levels of weekend service on several of those lines. All of the above means not that much immediate pressure for 7 day VRE and MARC service

Baltimore has the more limited rail transit system. Back in the late 1960s - early 70s, there were plans for a 71 mile rapid transit system, similar in concept to the DC Metro. Unfortunately budget cuts, politics, racial issues, meant that Baltimore ended up with only one 15.5 mile subway line from Owings Mills to John Hopkins Medical center. In the 90s, the state under Governor William Donald Shaffer managed to build a 30 mile north-south light rail line, but it runs mostly along former industrial railroad ROWs, missing many of the population centers. It runs in the street to the west of the city business center. Baltimore Penn Station is off on a stub line of the LRT. The 2 lines don't connect except for a ~1 block apart "connection" at Lexington Center. Only the MARC Penn Line (aka the NEC) and the Camden line which ends at, tada, Camden Yards, serve Baltimore. And neither go downtown.

Baltimore has plans to build a true transit system, mostly light rail, not heavy, but they have spent the past decade trying to get the light rail Red Line to advance. I see the Red Line as the critical project because it will connect to the current subway line downtown via an underground passageway and connect to the MARC Penn Line at West Baltimore and Bayview (future planned station). It will provide the foundation for a integrated transit system in Baltimore for evening and weekend MARC service to connect to. But the Red Line has a 2021 projected start of service date which is optimistic IMHO.


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## battalion51 (Apr 24, 2013)

While there is plenty of Amtrak service, they're also not stopping at stations like Odenton, Bowie, Lorton, Woodbridge, and others. Additionally, it is not to Amtrak's advantage to sacrifice a large number of seats to folks going WAS-ALX or WAS-BAL when they could be getting a longer fare from someone going WAS-RVR, or WAS-PHL, or WAS-NYP, etc. The same is true in Chicagoland where there is overlap between Metra and Amtrak. You could take Amtrak, but it's not in Amtrak's best financial interests.


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## Ryan (Apr 24, 2013)

Absolutely - anything north of Seabrook on the Penn line (which is the only line we're talking about for weekend service, so the freight concerns aren't valid) is outside of WMATA's area. In the time it takes me to drive to New Carrollton or Greenbelt, I can already be downtown on a train from Odenton a mile and a half from my house.

Add in the free parking, and the fact that the fare is about the same, and it's a sure winner.


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## Anderson (Apr 25, 2013)

There's 2x daily Amtrak trains stopping at Woodbridge on weekdays and weekends. But I'll agree...at the very least, adding another Regional or two on weekends (and dumping some more stops onto 66/67...though I'd do that all along the NEC simply to make some decent use of the pad in the schedule) would make sense to me.


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## Tracktwentynine (Apr 25, 2013)

I have 2 main issues* with using Amtrak on the weekend. (1) If I need to go up to Baltimore or something, Amtrak is significantly more expensive than MARC would be. And (2) the trains are reserved. For a weekend trip, things might need to be more flexible. Like, maybe I want to spend a little more time in the city to have dinner with friends. Well, gotta rebook on Amtrak, and - oh great the fare's in a higher bucket.

For casual intra-regional trips, people need to have flexibility. The MARC fare from Washington to Baltimore is $7 whether I book 12 months in advance or 30 seconds in advance. And I can take any train I feel like taking, not the particular one I reserved.

I hope that we will soon see 7-day a week all-day service on the Penn Line. I also hope that MTA replaces the later trains that were cancelled in 2008 (cutting an hour off the span of service on the Penn Line). I would also like to see midday service on the Camden Line and reverse-commute service on the Brunswick Line.

But we also need more frequent weekday trains, too. I'm not a regular MARC commuter, but I do occasionally use the service. And I've been on several crush-loaded Penn Line trains. One of my colleagues used to live in Severn and the primary reason he wouldn't use MARC was because he didn't appreciate the sardine-can experience.

_*Note: The aforementioned issue about local stopping generally doesn't apply to me because I live near New Carrollton, where Regionals stop._


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## Anderson (Apr 26, 2013)

I'd like to echo your sentiments on MARC with the VRE. On the Fredericksburg Line, there's workable Amtrak coverage (though it tends to be lousy if you want to head home after a casual Friday dinner, for example); on the Manassas Line? Sorry, but the Cardinal, Crescent, and a Regional (walk into a bar and blame CSX...) don't quite cut it. Reverse commute options also...really don't exist. You've basically got 66/67 on the Fredericksburg Line, and that's it.

Edit: I've got to admit that I'm intrigued by the idea of extending the Green Line, too. Has there been any talk of actually _doing_ that?

Also, on the scope of the DC Metro: In the 15-20 year plans, it seems that they want to extend one line to Woodbridge and another to Lorton on the VA side, and there's the longer-distance BRT project along the I-270 corridor (though I can't help but wonder if simply boosting the heck out of the MARC service out to Frederick wouldn't do just as well, if not better). Of course, that brings up the need to seriously work on integrating the transit agencies in the DC area more.


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## Ryan (Apr 26, 2013)

The problem with extending service to Frederick is that you have to go out of your way to Point of Rocks, and it's ssssllllloooooowwwwwwww.......

(aside from the capacity issues between DC and PofR)


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## afigg (Apr 28, 2013)

Anderson said:


> Edit: I've got to admit that I'm intrigued by the idea of extending the Green Line, too. Has there been any talk of actually _doing_ that?
> Also, on the scope of the DC Metro: In the 15-20 year plans, it seems that they want to extend one line to Woodbridge and another to Lorton on the VA side, and there's the longer-distance BRT project along the I-270 corridor (though I can't help but wonder if simply boosting the heck out of the MARC service out to Frederick wouldn't do just as well, if not better). Of course, that brings up the need to seriously work on integrating the transit agencies in the DC area more.


There have been preliminary studies on extending almost all the Metro lines, the traffic analysis summary findings can be found in viewgraphs presentations from 2010 to 2012 to the Technical Advisory Group (TAG) on the www.planitmetro.com website. The more prominent extensions in the early rounds included extending the Orange Line to Centreville on the Virginia end and to Bowie on the other end, Blue Line to Dale City, Green Line to BWI and to White Plains on the southern end. IIRC, extending the Red Line a stop or 2 beyond Silver Spring got good ridership numbers. They even modeled extending the Silver Line to Leesburg. The various traffic level analysis were done assuming the Silver Line, Purple Line, core DC streetcar system, Columbia Pike & Crystal City streetcar/transitways are completed/

The possible extensions that made it into the Metro Momentum Strategic plan were extending the Orange Line to Bowie, to Centreville, and the Blue Line to Potomac Mills. But the strategic plan puts the priority into expanding the core capacity first before extending the current lines with the possible Blue Line re-route to Georgetown and along M Street to Union Station, seperated Yellow line under 10th St. the interline connectors at Rosslyn, and just north of the Pentagon station.

There is going to be a tug of war between the suburban Virginia politicians who think extending the Orange Line westward along I-66 and the Blue Line southward should be the next big Metro expansion project and the planners who think that that the core capacity crunch with interline connectors, a new Blue Line route, a possible new separated Yellow Line under 10th street should be tackled before extending the lines much further in Virginia. Who pays for new routes through the DC core will be a tough challenge. Extending the Orange Line to Bowie probably could be done with the current system & planned station upgrades as much of the peak traffic from Bowie would get off by L'Enfant Plaza, so it would not overload the system.

Don't know why extending the Green Line northward did not make it pass the analysis. If CSX is not going to allow regional rail level service on the Camden Line, maybe extending the Green Line alongside the ROW (IF, this is a big IF, there is room) to Laurel MD would be a worthwhile extension.

A search for "TAG meeting" on the planitmetro.com website does a good job of turning up the links to the Tag meeting #1 to #9 presentations which cover a HUGE range of Metro expansion and revised system options that were considered. As for cooperation between the transit agencies, I would say there is a pretty good level of cooperation between them already, even as they pursue their own projects and interests.


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## benjibear (Apr 29, 2013)

Extending the green line to BWI would interesting as you could link Baltimore and Washinton with Subway/Light Rail.


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## Anderson (Apr 29, 2013)

That's a lot of why it gets suggested. The other key is that it would take a good deal of BWI business off of Amtrak/MARC (and indeed increase that business, in all likelihood, due to the times available), linking all three of DC's airports to the Metro system.


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## Tracktwentynine (Apr 29, 2013)

benjibear said:


> Extending the green line to BWI would interesting as you could link Baltimore and Washinton with Subway/Light Rail.


Spending billions* to extend the Green Line is not the right investment choice. Especially considering the lack of density in northern Prince George's and western Anne Arundel. Running empty trains every 6 minutes on a line that costs billions (and a trip that would probably take longer than the B30 express bus connection does today) doesn't make much sense.

The better choice would be to invest in upgrades to the Penn Line so that we could have frequent, fast trains between Washington and Baltimore. I envision something like Philadelphia's Regional Rail, except that MARC's trains are capable of 125 mph, and wouldn't need to serve as much of a role in urban circulation in either Baltimore or Washington.

If the Penn Line ran every 20 minutes all day, we wouldn't need to worry about extending the Green Line. And we could make that happen for a lot cheaper.

*_Note: The Silver Line to Tysons/Dulles will cost over $6 billion for 23 miles._


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## Anderson (Apr 30, 2013)

Tracktwentynine said:


> benjibear said:
> 
> 
> > Extending the green line to BWI would interesting as you could link Baltimore and Washinton with Subway/Light Rail.
> ...


I'm just wondering, but how much would it take to run the Penn Line at 20-minute frequencies for most or all of the day WAS-BAL? I don't mind that idea, if for no other reason than you'd probably get a natural migration of WAS-BWI (and BAL-BWI) traffic from Amtrak to MARC, likely clearing at least some room for longer-haul riders.


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## Ryan (Apr 30, 2013)

Unsurprisingly, I agree completely with T29.

I would think that you would only need more equipment to handle that kind of volume. You have it now during the rush hour peaks, I'm not sure if 3 tracks could handle that at the same time in both directions though. A 4th track would be an expensive affair to be sure.


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## benjibear (Apr 30, 2013)

I beleive light rail runs every 20-30 minutes to BWI from Baltimore. It probably be more bennificial to utilize existing infrastructure and increase frequency and add Saturday/Sunday to MARC. Maybe just have survice between BWI and New Carolton to transfer to the Metro there.


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## Ryan (Apr 30, 2013)

2 good reasons not to do that:

1. Nowhere to stop and turn a train at either one of those stations, and no good reason not to serve WAS, Halethorpe, W. Baltimore and BAL.

2. The transfer from Amtrak to light rail involves a bus ride, and then the light rail is SLOW into downtown. It's much faster to just stay on the MARC train and take it the rest of the way into Baltimore.


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## Anderson (Apr 30, 2013)

Ryan said:


> Unsurprisingly, I agree completely with T29.
> I would think that you would only need more equipment to handle that kind of volume. You have it now during the rush hour peaks, I'm not sure if 3 tracks could handle that at the same time in both directions though. A 4th track would be an expensive affair to be sure.


That's what I was thinking. Equipment has a cost, but the potential damage there is limited, especially since you can often pool orders with someone else (i.e. NJT, SEPTA, etc.). But as you noted, I'm not sure that you could handle those frequencies in both directions simultaneously.

I'm also wondering about equipment storage. How much spare space is there at BAL (or WAS) to stash additional sets, and would some frequencies need to get extended just to accommodate the turns without clogging platforms? In the same vein, I can't help but wonder if adding some parking to accommodate that level of service wouldn't be necessary.


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## battalion51 (Apr 30, 2013)

Well don't forget with higher frequencies usually come shorter sets. Sure you'll need to buy some more road power and cab cars, but you wouldn't need every set to be six to eight cars long if you have frequent trains. You could probably get away with running three or four car sets if you're going to run trains every 20 minutes. Additionally if you take advantage of running more trains to Perryville or Martin Airport there is a lot more room there to create a large layover facility. Even if you had hourly service to one of those spots you'd be able to free up a lot of room at BAL for overnight storage.


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## Anderson (Apr 30, 2013)

True, though you'd probably need at least a few cars on top of that to handle rush-hour service (I could see going to 5-6 car sets at the peak and 3-4 car sets outside of it. It does seem likely that frequent service will beget a good deal of casual demand, to say nothing of added flow to/from the expanding metro systems.

Of course, one way to deal with the equipment demands would be to work a deal with the VRE to run a set or two out of WAS, letting them either seriously look at using their last slot or extending one or more of the existing trains.


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## afigg (Apr 30, 2013)

benjibear said:


> Extending the green line to BWI would interesting as you could link Baltimore and Washinton with Subway/Light Rail.


I agree with the posts that it does not make sense to do this. I measured the distance from the Greenbelt Metro station to the BWI terminals as around 20 miles, figuring the route would follow the CSX ROW and/or Rt. 1 for most of the distance then cut over to BWI, approaching it from the east or NE to get around the runways to the main terminal. That would be a $5 or $6 billion extension at least, probably considerably more with substantial ROW acquisition costs. The Silver Line is a 23 mile extension with a $5.8 billion price tag, but it follows a route passing through multiple major job centers and residential areas to Dulles (and beyond) which do not have a rail access option. A Green Line extension to BWI would be a long slow expensive way to the airport and to connect to the Baltimore light rail line.

If one looks at the map on the cover page of the 2002 Baltimore Region Rail System report available on this webpage, it shows the MARC Penn Line/NEC as the main higher speed spine the transit lines connect to. The Baltimore Red Line, while changed from the 2002 plan, still connects to the Penn Line at West Baltimore and a new station at Bayview. The Green Line subway would connect to the Penn Line at a new station at Madison Sq and if it is ever extended that far, at Martin State Airport. The plan calls for a Yellow Line extension west from BWI to the BWI MARC/Amtrak station to Columbia MD. Which would make the BWI MARC/Amtrak stop the connection for light rail trips to Columbia, Merriweather Post Pavilion or other stops south of Baltimore. Or a short light rail hop to the airport terminal.

On the DC end, the Purple Line will connect at New Carrolton. Maryland has long planned to make the MARC Penn Line into a regional system with frequent service. There should be state funding coming for incremental NEC upgrade projects. The depressing aspect of the 2002 plan is that the 11 years since then have been spent inching the Red Line project forward which is only now in the later engineering design stages. Progress has been slowed by the lack of adequate state transportation funding, but with the increased tax revenue, MD should be able to consider follow-on transit projects after the Red and Purple Lines are built - if the state leadership is there.

Besides extending or new Baltimore transit lines, those projects could also include extending Metro lines a couple of stops or a few miles: Orange to Bowie, Green Line to Bowie or Laurel, a Green Line branch to the National Harbor, Purple Line LRT to National Harbor, etc. With National Harbor getting a casino, there will be interest in someday extending a transit line of some sort to it. But 10 or 20 mile extensions of the Metro lines on the MD side are not good investments compared to the NEC and connecting light rail options. On the Virginia side, on the other hand, significant Metro line extensions may make sense.


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## afigg (Apr 30, 2013)

Anderson said:


> I'm also wondering about equipment storage. How much spare space is there at BAL (or WAS) to stash additional sets, and would some frequencies need to get extended just to accommodate the turns without clogging platforms? In the same vein, I can't help but wonder if adding some parking to accommodate that level of service wouldn't be necessary.


The 2007 MARC Growth & Investment Plan presentation has increased mid-day storage at WAS by 2012 (costing $47 million) to support current service levels, additional storage at BAL, then a new storage and maintenance facility around Edgewood by 2015 (obviously not going to make 2015). There should be space east and northeast of Baltimore for a new maintenance yard in all the abandoned industrial areas and brownfield sites.

The long term objectives in the viewgraphs were to achieve 15 minute headways on the Penn Line for peak service, 30 minutes for off-peak service. To provide that, the NEC would be upgraded with 4 tracks from south of New Carrolton all the way to Perryville with 3 tracks leading into DC Union Station. Yes, that would be a substantial number of upgrade projects, B&P tunnel & bridge replacements, taking many years and dollars to complete.


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## AlanB (Apr 30, 2013)

Tracktwentynine said:


> Spending billions* to extend the Green Line is not the right investment choice. Especially considering the lack of density in northern Prince George's and western Anne Arundel. Running empty trains every 6 minutes on a line that costs billions (and a trip that would probably take longer than the B30 express bus connection does today) doesn't make much sense.


You don't have to run the trains every 6 minutes. It's a pretty simple matter, with a bit of planning, to drop out every other train well before the end of the line and turn it short. DC's Metro does this on the Red line for example.

This is not to suggest that your other points aren't valid, but the 6 minute problem is easily solved.


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## Tracktwentynine (May 1, 2013)

AlanB said:


> Tracktwentynine said:
> 
> 
> > Spending billions* to extend the Green Line is not the right investment choice. Especially considering the lack of density in northern Prince George's and western Anne Arundel. Running empty trains every 6 minutes on a line that costs billions (and a trip that would probably take longer than the B30 express bus connection does today) doesn't make much sense.
> ...


I'm well aware of the idea of short-turning trains.

The basic point is that heavy rail is not the appropriate mode for the corridor. And even turning every other train would be a waste, because the ridership still wouldn't be worth it.

Spending over $6 billion to build a line unlikely to generate any transit-oriented development (little return on investment), doesn't run very frequently, and takes an excessive amount of time to cover the distance, especially when there's already fast train service connecting the areas in question is a very silly investment.

The point I was making with the frequency argument was that heavy rail was too investment- and service-intense for the corridor.

Yes, we could reduce the investment by short-turning trains, single-tracking parts of the system, building shorter station platforms (like Bankhead station in Atlanta - 2 cars), and so on. But it would likely still be more expensive to construct and operate, and mean a longer trip for the customer, than it would be to simply improve the MARC system.


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## Anderson (May 1, 2013)

Well, to be fair the MARC Penn plan lists at $3 billion, and will likely end up closer to $4 billion when the dust settles from inflation and "standard" overruns while the Camden Line plan is another half-billion as well. But I do see your point (namely, that the extra $1-1.5 billion obviously available there could get you one or two Metro extensions of note).


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## afigg (May 2, 2013)

Anderson said:


> Well, to be fair the MARC Penn plan lists at $3 billion, and will likely end up closer to $4 billion when the dust settles from inflation and "standard" overruns while the Camden Line plan is another half-billion as well. But I do see your point (namely, that the extra $1-1.5 billion obviously available there could get you one or two Metro extensions of note).


Maryland of course would be looking for a lot of federal funding for NEC upgrades to cover the majority of the $3+ billion in MARC Penn Line upgrades. However, to put $3 billion into perspective, the current projected costs in Year of Expenditure (YOE) dollars for the Baltimore Red Line is $2.5 billion and the Purple Line is $2.2 billion. If MD can pay for 1/2 the cost of the 2 LRT lines with the FTA picking up most of the other half, putting up a billion plus spread over 10-12 years for NEC upgrades should be manageable. If MD provides 25% - 35% for NEC/Penn Line projects, then they can look for a mix of Amtrak, federal grants and maybe a NEC funding pool paid into by all the NEC states to provide the rest. Having Senator Mikulski (D-MD/Baltimore) as the Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee should be a big advantage when MD comes looking for federal infrastructure funds.

Another comparison is the DC Metro Silver Line which has a projected YOE cost of $5.8 billion. The FTA is only providing $900 million for Phase 1. No federal funding for Phase 2. The state, local governments, local commercial property tax assessments, the MWAA (airport authority) and the Dulles toll road users are paying for the rest. There are ways to pay for $3 and $4 billion dolor transportation projects, if there are revenue streams to tap.

The bids were recently announced for the core part of Phase 2 which provides insight into the actual cost of Metro line extensions. The announcement of the Intent to Award for Phase 2 construction for the low bidder at $1.17 billion. This is for 11.4 miles of track, power, and 6 stations (with about 3 miles of elevated track through Dulles Airport and the rest in the median strip of the highway). This does not include the storage and maintenance yard, the parking garages at the stations, or rolling stock. So the core cost of a Metro line extension with stations every ~1.5 miles is about $100 million a mile excluding property acquisition, engineering studies & design, utility relocation, local road rebuilds, parking garages, etc. A 3-4 mile extension of one of the Metro lines out a highway ROW that does not require a new rail yard or a lot of additional rolling stock could possibly be done for $600 to $800 million.


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## Ryan (May 16, 2013)

More details on the good stuff (by our very own Tracktwentynine):

http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post/18903/omalley-announces-first-projects-using-new-gas-tax-money/



> Transit projects:
> $100 million for MARC enhancements, including Penn Line weekend service, 2 new Camden Line weekday roundtrips, and new locomotives.


Since we're just done buying MP36's, I wonder if new locomotives means we're going to tag onto the ACS-64 order after all...


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## jis (May 16, 2013)

If MARC is serious about providing SEPTA like service they really ought to consider getting EMUs for the Penn Line. You can only put so much lipstick on a pig, but you can never get with push pull what you can with 125mph EMUs which are not that hard to get these days.


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## Tracktwentynine (May 16, 2013)

I'd love to see some MARC ACS-64s. But I also know that MARC management would prefer to have a uniform fleet of locomotives (meaning all MP-36s).

On the other hand, I don't think there's any way MARC can get the accelleration it needs for corridor ops with those MP36s. And, yes, I do know that they run some MP36s on the corridor, but I think those tend to be off-peak

But I also agree with jis that MARC needs to start thinking about MU trains.


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## Ryan (May 16, 2013)

That's an interesting thought... MARC has already tagged onto the NJT MLV car order - aren't some of the ones that NJT getting powered EMUs?

Maybe Maryland can get on that bandwagon instead...


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## afigg (May 16, 2013)

Good news for transit in Maryland. Already stated in the GGW blog posts that the new locomotives are to be diesels, according to a handout at the signing ceremony.

As for MARC going with EMUs, they have the same constraint that MBTA has, although with far fewer lines with 1 electrified line and 2 that are not. EMUs would be limited to the Penn Line and limit fleet flexibility. The Governor's press release states that MD will review project needs and issue a new 6 year transportation budget. Maryland DOT and MARC have to update and revise their 2008 long term plans in the light of current NEC planning and what CSX is willing to allow.

The other significant transit funding in the announcement is for final design with $170 million for the Baltimore Red Line, $280 million for the Purple Line, and $100 million for the Montgomery County Transitway BRT. For the Red and Purple Lines, that is a lot of money for final design, so it likely includes funds for property acquisition, maybe ROW preparation, initial utility relocation? Enough money that the Red and Purple LRT projects have become real.

Busy day for transit news in the DC region as MWAA announced the official award of the major construction contract for Phase 2 of the DC Metro Silver Line for the extension to Herndon, Dulles airport and Ashburn to be completed by 2018. Phase 1 should start revenue service in December.


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## jis (May 16, 2013)

Ryan said:


> That's an interesting thought... MARC has already tagged onto the NJT MLV car order - aren't some of the ones that NJT getting powered EMUs?
> Maybe Maryland can get on that bandwagon instead...


Not those ones. They are all trailers. But NJT does have a scheme of doing a separate order for a bunch of what they call Multi-level Power Cars, which when combined with these trailers can form EMU units, that can then be connected together to form longer trains.
The specification says that an MPC should have enough power to operate with two trailer MLVs and perform as well as EMUs in the New York area.

That whole project is currently stalled by recovery from Sandy.


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## Ryan (May 16, 2013)

afigg said:


> Already stated in the GGW blog posts that the new locomotives are to be diesels, according to a handout at the signing ceremony.


That wasn't in the comments earlier, that's disappointing. I understand the drive for uniformity, but diesels under catenary aren't my idea of a good time. No point in having 125 MPH capable passenger cars if you don't have any motive power that'll pull them that fast.


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## Ryan (Sep 4, 2013)

Ryan said:


> The articles says that it could start as early as next year.
> I think that it'll be a hit, I know that I'll be on it pretty frequently.


By "early next year", I really meant THIS DECEMBER!!! 

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/south-baltimore/bs-md-red-line-20130903,0,7808835,full.story



> Gov. Martin O'Malley plans to announce $1.5 billion in new state funding for the Baltimore Red Line and more than a dozen other transportation projects in the area Wednesday, officials said, outlining for the first time how the state's gas tax increase will be tapped to improve local infrastructure and mass transit here.
> O'Malley also plans to discuss the state's interest in attracting public-private partnerships to help fund the Red Line project, and a Dec. 7 start date for weekend MARC train service between Baltimore and Washington, which has never been offered before.


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## afigg (Sep 4, 2013)

The report in the Washington Post was that MARC service would be 9 trains on Saturday and 6 on Sunday. So it will be a long way from a hourly service but it is a start. With all the funding MD is committing projects for the next 6-8 years, may not be that much left to be a major contributor for NEC upgrades in MD.

The major news is that MD is committing $519 million for construction of the Baltimore Red Line in addition to the $170 million set aside previously for final design and property acquisition. Will need to line up more funding and possible private-public partnerships to offset the upfront costs, but $689 million says the state is serious about advancing the Red Line LRT project.


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## Anderson (Sep 4, 2013)

Well, there will also likely be federal funding for the Red Line...and it also seems possible that the state might issue some bonds secured with that tax revenue to cover construction as well.


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## afigg (Sep 4, 2013)

Anderson said:


> Well, there will also likely be federal funding for the Red Line...and it also seems possible that the state might issue some bonds secured with that tax revenue to cover construction as well.


The Baltimore Red Line won't be built without federal funding from the FTA. IIRC, Maryland is likely to seek for close to 50% federal funding for the $2.6 billion Baltimore Red Line.

The most recent number mentioned for the Purple Line were around $800 million or close to 40% federal contribution. But the Purple Line federal portion might be reduced if MD goes with a full private-public arrangement with 1 company or consortium responsible for building, operating, and maintaining the entire Purple Line under a 20 to 30 year contract. That is a viable option for the Purple Line because it will be a self contained line. The Baltimore Red Line is more expensive and will be connected via a pedestrian tunnel to the Baltimore Metro line, so MD is not looking at a single company to build and operate it.

It was not noted in this thread, but MD committed $400 million to the Purple Line a month or so back in addition to $280 million for final design and property acquisition. So the Purple Line has $680 million in state funding commitments. Which is almost the same as the total for the Baltimore Red Line as Gov. O'Malley is obviously working to keep both the Red and Purple Line backers satisfied.

edit PS. With the big announcement by Gov. O'Malley, the state transportation department posted their 6 year budget projection. Skimmed the transit budget section. The state is planning on $900 million in federal funding for each project, the Red Line and Purple Line. The question is whether the FTA with the federal budget cuts will have enough to cover both projects at the same time.


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## Andrew (Sep 4, 2013)

How will this impact a new Baltimore Tunnel for Amtrak and MARC Trains?


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## afigg (Sep 5, 2013)

Andrew said:


> How will this impact a new Baltimore Tunnel for Amtrak and MARC Trains?


At this point, has little to do with it. There is a $60 million HSIPR stimulus funded project to perform the preliminary engineering (PE), design, environmental studies for the B&P tunnel replacement, although it really more of a new 2 track tunnel for NEC traffic. The scope of the work, I believe, was expanded to include the PE for the rebuild/refurb of the B&P tunnel after the new tunnel is complete to provide 4 tracks from Baltimore Penn Station to West Baltimore. The PE and environmental work is all that is funded at present. This is a tunnel under a city, so I expect the study includes core samples, geological surveys, analysis of the building structures, search for utility and water tunnels to make sure there are no surprises when the tunnel is dug or bored out.

AFAIK, the engineering and environmental study project has started, but is still in the very early stages. Once there is a design, EIS, and a valid cost projection, then the discussions can begin on how to and who pays for the new tunnel.


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## The Davy Crockett (Sep 10, 2013)

Greater Greater Washington has an article - linked here - about the Purple Line and the status of 'finishing' the Capital Crescent Trail. a hiker-biker 'rail trail' which follows the former Georgetown Branch off CSX's Metropolitan Sub.

From the article:



> The Purple Line is necessary to finish the Capital Crescent Trail, which currently ends over a mile west of its planned terminus at the Silver Spring Metro station. But if CSXT doesn't agree to give up the land where the trail would go, Maryland may simply give up on it. Last week, the Maryland Transit Administration released its final environmental impact study (FEIS) for the Purple Line, explaining in detail how the light rail line between Bethesda and New Carrollton will work and what impacts it will have.



And



> The FEIS raises a major issue about completing the Capital Crescent Trail into downtown Silver Spring that has not drawn much attention before. Today, the trail runs between Georgetown, Bethesda and Lyttonsville, 1.5 miles west of the Silver Spring Metro station, with an interim trail along local streets for the rest of the way. Current plans call for building the Purple Line alongside the trail between Bethesda and Lyttonsville, then extending the trail to Silver Spring along the east side of the [metropolitan sub and Metro's] Red Line tracks. Most of the land required for this is already publicly owned, but there are a few sections where it would need to use CSXT owned right-of-way. However, CSXT's general policy is to not allow trails in its right-of-way. MTA sent CSXT a letter last November requesting that they make an exception for this project, but CSXT has still not granted one to date. The FEIS says that if CSXT doesn't want to let the state use the right-of-way, the CCT won't be built.



The article goes on to propose an alternative route, with a couple of nice up-close-and-personal photos of the building Mrs. Crockett and I lived in for over 20 years! We had a great view of the metropolitan sub,  as we lived on an upper floor at the southwest corner of the building most of that time. Sigh. :wub: How I miss hearing the loaded freights starting up from a red signal at 3AM - especially the ones going up grade!  :wacko: :blink:

At least most folks here understand that! :giggle:

^_^


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## Ryan (Sep 24, 2013)

And we have schedules!

http://mta.maryland.gov/marc-begins-weekend-service-december-2013

9 roundtrips on Saturday, 6 on Sunday. Trains leave Baltimore from 7:35AM to 9:15PM on Saturday, 9:15 to 5:30 on Sunday.

Also, better Holiday service:



> Holiday Service: MARC will operate this Saturday schedule on the following “observed” holidays, Memorial, Independence, Labor, Columbus, Veteran’s, Thanksgiving and the Friday after Thanksgiving day.
> 
> Holiday Service: MARC will operate this Sunday schedule on the following "observed" holidays, Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Presidents Day.


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## afigg (Sep 26, 2013)

With the new gas tax revenue, the Maryland Transit Administration is updating the long range plans for MARC investments. The Greater Greater Washington blog has a post today with a link to a viewgraph presentation of the updated long range plans for the Penn Line (NEC), Camden and Brunswick lines: MARC plan calls for new stations, more service.

The 2020 to 2029 and beyond plans for MD spending on the NEC are summarized at the viewgraph bullet level and obviously are placeholder funding levels at this juncture, but $1.29 billion from 2020-2029 for the NEC including MARC stations is a good start.


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