Extremism in Transport

A pair of transportation corridors near and within the U.S. Capital attest to the ideological extremism in transportation policy advocacy.

Cases in Point:

Virgina's Dulles Corridor and Washington, D.C.'s NE Red Line

12 vehicular lanes
0 rail tracks


4 rail tracks (2 WMATA and 2 MARC/CSX)
0 vehicular lanes- a few service roads which are non continious.


One would think that a more balanced and mult-model approach would be to yes add a WMATA transit line along the Dulles corridor, and yes add a highway along the Metropolitan Branch corridor- while acknowledging the greater needs of the latter for environmental mitigation.

But no.

Many oppose adding a rail line - and they call themselves pro-road.

And few dare support adding a freeway link- and they call themselves pro-urban providing no continious link freeway alternative to surface streets.

I've had the thought that some of the pro-highway people oppose Dulles rail out of resentment that I-95 through Washington D.C. was never completed; yet reletively few of these people dare complain about the lack of a continious DC I-95