D.C. Officials Dramatically Scale Back Streetcar System

In a recent move, officials from Mayor Vincent C. Gray's administration shortened DC's streetcar system to a much-shorter eight miles.

1 minute read

October 26, 2014, 9:00 AM PDT

By Maayan Dembo @DJ_Mayjahn

David Wilson / Flickr

Instead of the grand 20-plus-mile system officials planned to construct within a decade to crisscross through Washington D.C., the streetcar lines will only be eight miles, costing about $800 million dollars.

As reported in the Washington Post by Michael Laris, "Gray’s team blamed the D.C. Council for the reduced goal, saying the council’s vote in May to cut future funding was misguided and left no other responsible choice," while members from the City Council argued Gray is unable to collaborate in solving these problems.

As Councilmember Mary Cheh (Ward 3) shared with Laris, "We had a vision. We had a plan... We should try to stick to it. Of course, financing can prove to be difficult, but we’ve worked our way through things before, and I think we can do it again. We shouldn’t give up on this."

FULL STORY: D.C. officials radically scale back streetcar plans

Thursday, October 23, 2014 in The Washington Post

Government / Politics Infrastructure Transportation District of Columbia Washington D.C. DDOT Streetcars Streetcar Transit Funding D.C. Streetcar View More

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