Benning Road isn’t the only Streetcar construction underway in DC–the “Anacostia Operations & Maintenance Facility & Initial Line Segment” is underway along Firth Sterling Street SE and South Capitol Street SE, adjacent to the Anacostia Metro.

Between South Capitol Street and the Suitland Parkway, Firth Sterling street is under construction: this is looking west:

The tracks are in place on the south side of the street while construction continues on the north. Looking back east from South Capitol Street:

At South Capitol Street and Firth Sterling Street, we see the official sign for this project:

Interestingly, the portion of the CSX tracks, which early in the planning were going to be used for streetcars, that used to cross South Capitol street have now been removed:

This break in the CSX tracks joins several similar trackage removals inside the Navy and Air Force complexes that make the last industrial purpose of this line–moving chlorine tank cars to the Blue Plains sewage treatment plant–impossible.
The new tracks continue across South Capitol Street:

Some of which are set in concrete:

The tracks continue several hundred yards to the south, but end far short of the main entrance to Bolling Air Force Base.

I find it somewhat interesting that the tracks have been laid on the west side of South Capitol Street. There is a pocket of industrial-ish land between 295 and South Capitol Street–on the east side of the street–that DC presently uses for maintenance vehicles and commercial drivers’ license testing which one might have thought would be a reasonable location for the maintenance facility. There is not very much space between Bolling Air Force base’s fence and South Capitol Street–presumably the tracks under construction here are intended to go all the way to Bolling’s main gate.
One final view, looking north at the end of the tracks. Note the extant CSX tracks on the left.

In an October 14th press release, the District Department of Transportation announced that over the coming weeks the agency will launch a “public outreach tour,” holding open houses in all eight wards to “engage residents and businesses in the implementation of improvements proposed for the transit system for the city, including streetcars.”

At these meetings, DDOT will present its DC’s Transit Future study, which studied short- and long-term transit improvements to enhance the District’s existing transit network, including streetcars, bus rapid transit (BRT) and limited-stop rapid bus such as the Metrobus Express routes already running on Georgia Avenue/7th Street, 16th Street, and on the 30’s line.  DDOT will also update residents on construction of the first two streetcar lines on H Street-Benning Road NE and in Anacostia, which is already in progress.

According to the press release, the program for the open house meetings will consist of “display boards, maps, information about the proposed system, and opportunities for participants to speak individually with and ask questions of project team members.”

Open House Schedule:

Ward 6: Thursday, October 22, 2009, 7 pm – 8:30 pm

J.O. Wilson Elementary, 660 K Street, NE

Ward 1: Monday, October 26, 2009, 7 pm – 8:30 pm

Columbia Heights Education Campus, 3101 16th Street, NW

Ward 4: Tuesday, October 27, 2009, 7 pm – 8:30 pm

Brightwood Elementary, 1300 Nicholson Street, NW

Ward 2: Wednesday, October 28, 2009, 7 pm – 8:30 pm

NEW LOCATION: Hyde Elementary at 3219 O Street NW

Ward 7: Thursday, October 29, 2009, 7 pm – 8:30 pm

Thomas Elementary, 650 Anacostia Avenue, NE

Ward 8: Monday, November 2, 2009, 7 pm – 8:30 pm

Savoy Elementary, 2400 Shannon Place, SE

Ward 5: Tuesday, November 3, 2009, 7 pm – 8:30 pm

Luke Moore Academy , 1001 Monroe Street, NE

Ward 3: Wednesday, November 4, 2009, 7 pm – 8:30 pm

Stoddert Elementary, 4001 Calvert Street, NW

For more information about the streetcar project and the upcoming open house meetings, you may visit DDOT’s Streetcar webpage or call the project hotline at 703-682-5060.

At a well-attended community meeting hosted by ANCs 5B, 6A and 6C on Thursday, August 6, District Department of Transportation (DDOT) Director Gabe Klein updated the community on the H Street-Benning Road streetcar line, the Anacostia line and the plans for a larger network of streetcars envisioned to improve transit service in the District in the years to come.  He announced at the meeting that he is tapping Scott Kubly, his chief of staff, to take on a new role leading the streetcar effort and reporting directly to him.  Although Kubly stated that he is currently a “team of one,” Klein said that he is working to assemble a larger team under Kubly that will be dedicated to making faster progress on implementing D.C.’s plans for streetcars.  Up until now, DDOT’s Mass Transit Administration has been leading the effort.

Some in the audience expressed frustration that the city has been slow to implement its streetcar plans and others complained that DDOT has not done a good job communicating with the community about the H Street-Benning Road streetcar project even as tracks are being laid as part of the Great Streets project.  One man commented that there is “pent up interest bordering on angst” in the community.  Klein acknowledged that DDOT can do a better job communicating with the community.  When ANC 6A Chair Joseph Fengler asked him to commit to quarterly meetings to continue to update the communities in Wards 5, 6 and 7 about the H Street-Benning Road streetcar project, Klein agreed that he will do this.  ANC 5B Chair William Shelton agreed to organize the next meeting in Ward 5 in the fall.

Klein told the more than 100 people assembled for the meeting that he has talked with U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood about streetcars, and he said that LaHood is enthusiastic about the idea of streetcars in D.C.  Klein also expressed optimism that the Obama Adminstration will make federal funding more available for development of streetcars and other transit projects.

Several audience members asked Klein how DDOT plans to power the streetcars.  He said that DDOT is looking at overhead wires as the most feasible power source for streetcars, but he said that the agency is examining emerging battery technology that also could be used to power streetcars in certain areas of the city.  He said that on H Street, they are hedging their bets by installing the infrastructure that would be necessary for overhead wires.  He added that the 1889 law prohibiting overhead wires in much of downtown Washington could be changed to accommodate streetcars, and he suggested that this could be on policymakers’ agenda in the months ahead.

For those who are eager to ride streetcars in D.C. soon, the worst news of the evening is that DDOT now estimates that the Anacostia streetcar line will not be in operation until at least fall 2012, and Klein and Kubly would not venture a guess as to when the H Street-Benning Road line will be operational.

UPDATE: For additional coverage of the meeting, visit the blog posts about the meeting at GreaterGreaterWashington (“Streetcars now on the front burner“) and Rebuilding Place in the Urban Space (“Streetcars for DC“).

Photo credit: Press-Office, City of Munster, Germany, 2001

The City of Munster, Germany started a Bicycle Friendly campaign and created a poster to promote riding bikes and transit instead of cars to reduce congestion, pollution, and generally improve the quality of life in Munster. This image is based on the poster they created.

Please note that this image is primarily to show how much space cars take up compared to other modes, although not pictured here streetcars (or trams as they’re usually called in European cities) are quieter and cleaner than buses.

Think about it… do people need to carry around cars with them just to get around their city?

And what about all the usable land needed to move and park cars? Dr. Donald Shoup of UCLA in his book “The High Cost of Free Parking” points out that most cars are parked at home, work, school, etc. about 85-90% of the day. So planners have to allocate valuable land not only once, but some multiple so people can park their cars in various places around the city as they carry an 8×10 foot box around with them.

About 85% of most U.S. cities is impervious surface (pavement, concrete, etc.), this contributes to stormwater runoff, and non-point pollution of surface waters. How much urban space would be available for parks or buildings if we didn’t need that space for cars?

In an article in The Washington Post on Thursday (4/2), Lena Sun reports that for a variety or reasons, the District Department of Transportation’s plans to complete the Anacostia streetcar line have been delayed.  Instead of finishing construction of the line in late 2009, the project is now estimated to be completed by 2012.

One can only wonder what effect this delay will have on the streetcar line planned for the H Street-Benning Road NE corridor, but it is certainly not good news that the first streetcar line has faced so many difficulties and now apparently a three-year delay.  One can only hope that DDOT works out the bugs in Anacostia, learns from the experience and rolls out future streetcar lines more quickly and efficiently.