Don’t get sidetracked: Light rail is the best investment in our future

In the Maryland Independent’s June 6 profile of Arthur Ellis and previous coverage of his remarks at a candidates’ forum, he suggests that extending MARC commuter rail service into Southern Maryland and putting commuter buses on highway shoulders is the answer to our traffic congestion and commuting problems.

Here’s why extending MARC isn’t likely to work here, and why our regional strategy for bringing new light rail transit service from the Branch Avenue Metro Station down the Route 5-U.S. 301 corridor to Waldorf is the best longterm solution.

The concept of a MARC route using the existing CSX rail infrastructure from Bowie into Southern Maryland isn’t a new idea. It’s been studied by the state, with doubtful feasibility, and has some serious disadvantages.

First and foremost, the vast majority of our 46,000 daily commuters don’t want to go to Bowie. They want to go to Washington, D.C., by the most direct and fastest route possible, and then be able to make connections they need across the tri-state D.C. region.

The existing CSX railroad alignment from Charles County northeast to Bowie would require our commuters to make a connection there with AMTRAK and travel back south to Washington to get to their final destinations — which would mean a longer commute than the one they’re making now. To be successful, a rapid transit system has to be a faster alternative than driving, not slower.

The state’s recent Southern Maryland Rapid Transit (SMRT) study estimates a 37 to 42 minute trip by light rail from White Plains to the Branch Avenue Metro Station, cutting almost an hour off average daily commutes from Charles County.

Between 24,000 and 28,000 riders are expected to board the trains when the system opens, significantly reducing traffic on our highways. As ridership increases on the light rail system, capacity can be easily increased by adding more rail cars. The same can’t be said for adding more lanes to highways.

Second, rail experts have said that the configuration of CSX and AMTRAK rail lines in Bowie would make a passenger rail interface there very complex and expensive to construct.

Third, the difficulty of getting the necessary approvals from CSX to share their freight rail infrastructure is almost legendary and can’t merely be assumed or taken for granted in planning new passenger rail service. We know from local experience that it has taken years for communities along CSX routes to get approvals for simple street crossings and resolve safety issues.

Any proposed extension of MARC into Southern Maryland would require CSX’s cooperation and approval, adding a whole new layer of complexity and risk to the project. And on top of that, AMTRAK’s approval for the scheme would also be needed to create a viable route into Washington.

SMRT light rail would have the advantage of being built parallel to CSX’s railroad right-of-way from White Plains through Waldorf to the Prince George’s County line, but completely separate from CSX’s property, alleviating the need for CSX’s approval of the project.

SMRT light rail trains would operate in their own dedicated 70-foot wide transitway, separate from highway traffic and CSX freight operations that could reduce the speed and reliability of transit service.

The planners of the Purple Line — now under construction — could only wish they had a pathway as clear and direct as our 18.7 mile alignment when they were mapping their circuitous light rail route from Bethesda to New Carrollton.

The remaining two-thirds of the SMRT alignment continues north, along the east side of U.S. 301 and Route 5 to the Branch Avenue Metrorail Station, and access to the whole Mid-Atlantic passenger rail network.

After five separate state studies, SMRT light rail has passed all the key benchmarks of feasibility, projected ridership and positive economic impact with flying colors. The alignment and station locations have been mapped. The next steps required to position the project for future construction are clearly defined and ready for state action. Communities like ours are reaping the benefits of light rail all over the country.

After five major state studies, light rail has emerged as best longterm solution and the preferred rapid transit option for the almost half a million residents of the Route5-U.S. 301 corridor. With state action now to put this project into the new six-year capital program, and complete the formal Project Planning-NEPA phase, our citizens could be boarding trains bound for Washington in the next decade.

We need elected leaders who will persevere in delivering a clear and consistent message to the state, and pursue relentlessly this vitally important transportation priority.

We need a state commitment now to invest in a real solution, not an illusory one, that will deliver quality of life benefits to our people for decades to come: Faster commutes, longterm relief from traffic congestion, and a proven catalyst for our future economic growth and prosperity.

Don’t let yourself be sidetracked by “red herrings,” “quick and easy fixes” or fatally-flawed transit options. Light rail is the best investment in Charles County’s future.

Gary V. Hodge, White Plains The writer is the president of Southern Maryland Alliance for Rapid Transit (SMART).