A Metro for Tysons

I have lived in Tysons Corner, Virginia for almost four years now. At the time that I purchased my condo, the sales associate told me of the planned metro rail extension that was due to be constructed within a short time. Although I don't commute to DC all that often during rush hour it would be a convenience for going to the airport without having to drive or arrange for a taxi every time. This planned construction had been in that stage for years before I got there and it appears that it may remain there for a while longer simply because the left hand doesn't know what the right hand wants or is doing. The hands in this case being the Fairfax County Supervisors and the Virginia State Legislature.

It seems that the Supervisors are backing a plan to build the extension through Tysons underground while the state is ready to approve a plan for an above ground extension. Both plans have their positive and negative sides but it seems that the state is not backing the plan that the 'locals' are pushing for. Tysons Corner is a very busy area what with hundreds of shopping venues plus many of the major corporations that support and work with the government can be found in and around the Tysons area. It's hard to believe that a little more than ten years ago the area was considered the end of the line and nothing more than a shopping area. Since that time it's become a hub of activity whether it is shopping or work. As such the growth has not been without its pains. The largest of these being the commute in and around the area.

One of the major problems in the Tysons area is the fact that many of the roads and arteries feeding cars into the area were designed with the landscape of the time in mind. Take a drive on any of the roads in the area during a week day and you'll see literally hundreds of cars nose to tail trying to get around whereas on the weekends it is much less congested due to the fact that most of the offices are closed. The roads leading off into the surrounding neighborhoods are often not more than a lane or two wide simply because planners at the time had no idea that the suburban sprawl was going to explode out to the west and that people would seek alternate routes to get onto route 66 and the surrounding roads. The two major arteries in the Tysons area, Route 7 and Route 123 are just two examples of bad cholesterol. Traffic is the bad stuff that clogs up passage from one destination to the other. The metro is supposed to be like the angioplasty done to make the commute a bit easier.

Unfortunately this angioplasty could end up making the traffic worse rather than better. The construction of an aboveground route would not be an overnight pop-up book type of construction. There would be a great deal of work along the route where the train is proposed to be passing through. Since the train is assumed to be an elevated train running high above the normal traffic in the area there would be a great deal of work needed to get the bridges running in the Tysons area. It would disrupt traffic to the point that people will leave even earlier to avoid the traffic early on so that they can leave earlier to avoid the traffic later in the day. I've been there and done that before and I know what a pain that can be.

This is not to say that the underground option would be any better. There too there would be construction requirements that would undoubtedly disrupt traffic as well but given an option, I would choose the below ground option simply because it will not add to the 'clutter' that already exists above ground. The state is giving us here in Northern Virginia a reminder of sorts. In Northern Virginia, many residents tend to forget that the majority of the state lies south of Dale City and the like. And while it is a good sign that the state is pushing for the project, it will be difficult to get them to commit the extra revenue needed to cover the cost of an underground option unless they can be convinced of the need for it. If it is a matter of inconvenience for a few months, it would be worth it for them if it means cost savings in the long run.

Perhaps the hands do know what the other is doing. In one sense the decision making by both parties makes sense. The metro authority itself is supporting the above ground option as well simply because the state is backing it and the fact that it would mean the project gets off the ground that much sooner. Fairfax County is holding back simply because the people have spoken and like me, the majority are wary of making traffic even worse through the Tysons area. The debate continues and it seems that we may get that metro by the time I'm ready to sell my place a few decades from now. Maybe I can reuse the sales ploy they used on me that time!