Arlington County Responds to Examiner Editorial on Streetcar Planning

• Route 1: For several years, the County has pursued intensive, very public planning processes aimed at coping with expected growth in Crystal City, Potomac Yard and Columbia Pike. These planning processes build on Arlington’s vision, embraced by the community decades ago, of transit-oriented development, a vision that calls for providing an array of efficient, accessible, and environmentally-sustainable alternatives to driving cars.

• The Crystal City /Potomac Yard Transit Improvements Project (what the Examiner editorial called the “BRT”),will provide high-capacity, high-quality bus transit services in the five-mile corridor between the Pentagon and Pentagon City in Arlington County and the Braddock Road Metrorail Station in the City of Alexandria. The public process has been very inclusive, with the most recent public meeting taking place on June 27, 2011. Visit our website for the latest updates. You’ll notice the public meetings it lists and the links to presentations and documents.

• The Crystal City Sector Plan process was an extensive five-year process that addressed development, transportation and open space needs in Crystal City. The recommendations from this planning process focused on the long-term transit needs of the area. It builds on the improvements done as part of the Crystal City/Potomac Yard Corridor Transit Improvement Project.  

• Columbia Pike: For many years, both Fairfax and Arlington have been engaged in extensive planning processes to restore Columbia Pike to a vibrant, mixed-use corridor.  In 2002, the Arlington County Board approved a revitalization plan that included recommendations for transportation in the corridor.

• The goal of the Columbia Pike Multimodal Street Improvements Project is to provide a complete street that balances travel modes and supports future high-quality, high-frequency transit service. Currently the lane widths along Columbia Pike range from nine feet to 12 feet; this project will provide a consistent cross section with lane widths on the outside of 11 feet and on the inside of 10 feet, making travel safer for auto users, pedestrians, and transit users. The project will also add left turn lanes where there currently are none, improving the flow and efficiency of auto travel in the corridor. Check the website to see documents and presentations from past public meetings, as well as opportunities for future participation.

• The Columbia Pike Transit Initiative, a joint project of Arlington County and Fairfax County to make transit work better along the Columbia Pike corridor, includes broad, deep and extensive public involvement.  The purpose of the project is to accommodate growing demand for transit services along the quickly redeveloping urban corridor of Columbia Pike. Many in the local community have expressed a desire for a modern, higher capacity transit system that supports expected levels of ridership and reinforces the "Main Street" environment envisioned for the Pike. Want to know what the County is up to with the proposed street car? Check out our website. Read the Spring 2011 Update, or the FAQs offered there.