On Tuesday, the Advisory Neighborhood Commission unanimously approved a proposal to build a Metrorail station in the Georgetown area. This proposal comes in response to Metro’s recent discussions on expanding the current metrorail system.
The new station would be included on the “new Blue Line” proposed by Metro, according to the Washington Post. The proposed 22-mile track would include 11 new stations, including one which would stop in Georgetown at M Street and Wisconsin Avenue, NW.
The ANC proposal states that the “ANC 2E encourages greater access to public transportation because of its benefits both to Georgetown and the whole metropolitan region.” The ANC supports the expansion of the blue line Metrorail and the establishment of Metro station in Georgetown.
The reasons the ANC gives for its support of a metro stop in Georgetown include traffic congestion and parking shortages.
Peter Pulsifer, ANC commissioner of District 3, said that the ANC proposal was written in response to the recent discussions that Metro planners are having on possible expansions to the current Metrorail system.
“We’re drowning in cars, there are parking problems and traffic commuting problems,” Pulsifer said. “We all could use access to transportation,” he said.
Pulsifer said that this proposal is the first official proposal to establish a Metro station in Georgetown.
“It’s been brought up in idle conversation … There was never a vote taken against a Metro stop, just nobody ever proposed it before,” he said. “If Georgetown had screamed that it had wanted a Metro stop [when the system was first built], I’m pretty sure they would have gotten it,” he said.
Pulsifer said that there were technical reasons why a Metro station had not been built in the past. “If you’re going to put one in Rosslyn and one in the Foggy Bottom area, it’s going to be difficult … This new line doesn’t follow the same route … it’s more natural,” he said.
Pulsifer said that the ANC proposal received a unanimous vote in favor of establishing the Metro station. “The consensus right now is very strong,” he said.
ANC Commissioner Justin Wagner (CAS ‘03) said that the ANC believed that the proposal reflected the views of the community. “We weighed in that the Georgetown community does want a Metro station here and that it’s something that has never been expressed before,” he said.
“There is a lot of urban legend around Georgetown about why we don’t have a Metro station. In the past, the community sought one … we have never taken a position on the Metro stop,” Wagner said.
Wagner said that the proposal was “an expression of approval” and that the ANC was willing to work with the D.C. government on its application.
“I think it’s exciting. The one thing Georgetown students miss out on is the rest of the District … it’s hard to get to other parts of D.C.,” Wagner said. “I think it’s a great improvement from where we are now,” he said.
The website for D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams states that “When the Metro system was in the planning stages, they wanted to include a route in Georgetown, but the residents of the affluent neighborhood thought the subway would bring crime and would be seedy, not the technological marvel that it became.”
In a Washington Post article, D.C. Council member Jack Evans (D-Ward 2) said, “Georgetown is the premier spot in Washington that does not have a Metro stop. It should have had one and did not get one back in the ‘60s because of its own fault.” Evans said that the proposal for the new metro stop in Georgetown was it chance to correct a “tragic, major mistake.”
Jerry Miller, chief of program coordination at the Department of Transportation, said that he did not think that the building of a Georgetown Metro station was likely because of the high costs involved.
“They think that they are going to get special funds from the government … that’s optimistic,” Miller said. “It’s one of those things they put out. There have been dozens of proposals for Metro extensions … This is the latest one, and I think that it’s wishful thinking,” he said.
Miller estimated that it would take 20 or 30 years to build a new Metro line.
“I’m just being realistic. We have long term ideas about all kinds of things … It’s very expensive, and I think there are higher priorities in the region,” he said.
Miller said that he was not sure if the benefits of the new Metro station would offset the high costs it would take to build it.
“I don’t know if it would be worth it for the Georgetown area,” he said.
