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Why the streetcar from Union Station to Georgetown died (mostly)
"DC Streetcar to Georgetown is dead," read the headline. But the once-proposed DC Streetcar extension, likely in dedicated lanes, from Union Station to Georgetown didn't just die. It died a long time ago. It's just that reporters saw the death certificate, and that lent a certain finality to what many suspected and others already knew.
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Video: How are downtown DC’s red hot summer bus lanes working out?
What’s black and white but red all summer? DC’s H and I street pilot bus-only lanes are getting more publicity, now from a short film produced by TransitCenter and Streetfilms.
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Road trip! DC Councilmembers try out the H & I pilot bus lanes
DC’s dedicated bus lanes need long-term political commitment to thrive amid the jungle of competing demands for our street space. That commitment had a visible boost Monday, as a group of DC councilmembers gamely tried out the H & I pilot bus lanes, and shared their thoughts on the value of bus priority in the District.
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DC will build a tunnel from the NoMa Metro, delay the K Street Transitway, replace lead pipes, and fund more affordable housing
A long-awaited moment in budget season comes when DC Council Chairman Phil Mendelson releases his package of budget changes, which combine, reconcile, and sometimes reverse things from the individual committees. Here are some of the changes most connected to issues we cover.
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DC may require ride-hailing companies to share data, but won’t encourage pooling
Cities have required taxis to give logs of their rides to regulators for a long time. New York, Toronto, Chicago, Seattle, and others ask for taxi-like data from ride-hailing companies such as Uber, Lyft, and Via. Now, DC might join them. However, it won't follow through on an earlier proposal to encourage carpooling on these ride-hailing services.
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A letter from DC Council chairman Phil Mendelson and five colleagues could imperil the Metro funding deal
A letter, released yesterday from DC Council chairman Phil Mendelson and five other council members, argues DC shouldn't pay what Virginia expects. That could lead Virginia or Maryland to pull back on their own contributions, leaving Metro with not enough money for needed repairs and upgrades.
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Phil Mendelson restores some, but not all, streetcar and solar funding
For the first vote on DC's budget on May 30, DC Council Chairman Phil Mendelson slashed streetcar funding and a program that provides incentives for more solar power in DC. The budget lacked money necessary to extend the streetcar to Benning Road, never mind downtown. Now, he's proposing to bring back some but not all of the lost funding.
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DC Council Chairman Mendelson says he didn’t cut the Benning Road streetcar extension. DDOT says “that’s false.”
When a final budget came out of the DC Council the night after Memorial Day, I reported that it cut $60 million from the DC Streetcar and that would significant delay, or permanently scuttle, extending the line to Benning Road Metro in Ward 7. Chairman Phil Mendelson is disputing that's the effect of his cuts, but transportation officials re-confirmed to me that is exactly what will happen if the cuts stay.
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DC Council Chairman Mendelson’s budget slashes the streetcar to Benning Road
Residents of DC's Ward 7, who have long awaited new investment in their community and support extending the H Street streetcar line to Benning Road, will have to wait six years or forever if the budget released last night by Chairman Phil Mendelson passes. That budget cuts about $97 million from transportation capital projects.
Blog Phil Mendelson
Image by Sam Kittner / DDOT used with permission.
