The Potential Future of Tysons Corner

I have lived in Tysons Corner going on five years now. In that time I have come to appreciate the urban-suburban lifestyle that goes along with it. Technically I live in McLean but when people hear McLean, they mentally see visions of luxurious mansions against the backdrop of the Potomac River or Great Falls. While that is true for some parts of McLean it isn't necessarily true of the part I live in. So for the sake of simplicity I always say I live in Tysons Corner. Of course a statement like that could lead people to believe that I live in the mall itself and sleep on the beds in Macys after the mall closes which isn't true either. The beds in Nordstrom are much more comfortable. But I digress. I have lived here for five years and in that time I have constantly heard about how the Metro was coming and how there were visions of seeing Tysons become the ultimate pedestrian friendly, easily-accessible area in the region. Unfortunately the vision keeps changing every so often.

The latest votes have taken the proposed underground Metro and put it above ground. Council members and some of the engineers related to the project have indicated that costs outweigh the potential benefits of having Metro run underground. The original plan was to have the Orange Line extend from its current terminus in Vienna and continue underground to nearby Tysons. It would continue underground until it finally linked up with the toll road at which time it would pop back above ground and continue on to Dulles Airport and eventually the hinterlands of Virginia. The problem is that planners have also been touting the fact that they wish to make Tysons Corner a much more accessible area with more sidewalks and promenades that will encourage a greener lifestyle among residents and visitors. Somehow I don't think that either case is going to meet with much success.

One of the selling points that was emphasized when I was looking at homes in the Tysons area was that the Metro was to be constructed close by thus making it much more convenient for my commute. Now I work in Virginia out beyond the beltway so for me, a Metro connecting to DC is extraneous but I'm in the minority, there are probably more people who work in DC and so the Metro would be a major benefit to them. Still, the convenience of having a transit system so close by would likely encourage me to start using mass transit to the city more often on the days that I go downtown either for work or fun so as a resident that would be a benefit to me. Eventually as the line completes it would also be convenient in that I could catch the train to the airport and save time and toll by simply riding the rails. Plus fewer people working in the Tysons area would need to drive in. Or so it would seem.

One of the major dilemmas with most of the companies based in the Tysons Corner area is that very few of them actually have staffs that work permanently in that particular office. The corporate offices are located there but personnel come and go from the office to customer locations for either work or meetings. That being the case, it's much more convenient to use a car versus waiting for a train and then a bus to get to the site. The main problems is that the traffic in Tysons Corner is largely transitionary and what I mean by that is that it is there in heavy numbers for limited time in limited locations before it diminishes. The peak traffic times in the area that is to benefit the most from these improvements are in the mornings and in the evenings. During the day there is a relatively steady stream of traffic but then most people working in the area walk to where they need to go on most days.

By adding above ground tracks and re-constructing road interchanges, it's only going to make for more traffic problems. As it is, the area carries a lot more traffic during the peak hours and the reason for the backups are often that lights are out of sequence, meaning you can rush from one to the next and end up waiting again within a hundred feet. This leads to slow downs and even more delays. Some on the council argue that this problem will be diminished by the implementation of the Metro but I say it will reduce but not disappear simply because the number of people working in the corporate office and other sites outnumber those simply looking for people to come into the area. The picture included above is a classic example of the potential look to the area. This picture represents the Spring Hill Stop which will be located very close to my house. In the mornings since I go against traffic the commute isn't that bad but in the evenings, the same commute can take nearly three times as long because there aren't enough alternate routes through the area.

The picture illustrates what the area could look like and with more distractions and people moving here there and everywhere, it's going to make for a messier commute in the area. The views we currently have of natural greenery in the area are slowly disappearing. In the five years that I have lived here I have seen thick forests being levelled to make way for new homes and office complexes. The growth is outpacing the growth of the infrastructure and it's becoming increasingly difficult to cope with it. More companies coming into the area will only exaccerbate the problem. While the arguement continues over whether to make the Metro above or underground, we will continue to see traffic tie-ups and other such problems. If it's so expensive to contemplate putting the Metro underground due to lack of funds in the transportation department, how is it that we are going to manage to widen streets, add new sidewalks and such when money is so tight? Perhaps it's a case of more bang for the buck but somehow, Metro as a selling point isn't looking so hot anymore.