Purple Line Officials Launch Community Work Sessions

No one knows yet how the proposed $1.6 billion Purple Line will be funded, but that hasn’t stopped the Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) from launching a community outreach campaign that encourages local input on design and engineering. 

Thursday MTA officials, and designated consultants of the “Purple Line Team,” met with Bonifant Street property owners in Silver Spring to begin a dialogue they say will last for years. A two-lane Light rail will run along Bonifant Street providing access to the proposed Silver Spring Library Station.

“As a team working together, we can develop a system that will enhance the community.  I have a good understanding of engineering, but these folks know their neighborhoods.  We rely on the community to help us come up with workable solutions,” said Joseph Romanowski, Jr., a Purple Line consultant.

At least two dozen business owners and residents attended the meeting.  Many were concerned about the potential loss of revenue during the construction phase and the loss of street parking. Bonifant would lose one of its two current parking lanes and become a one-way street for two blocks on each side of Georgia Avenue.

Business owners asked about economic compensation, preferential parking and “bonuses” for restaurants to stay open, but the Purple Line team said they were years away from dealing those scenarios.

“The state has ordered us to find replacement parking.  It is crucial to your businesses,” Romanowski said.  “The only commitment we can make today [about potential losses] is that we are going to continue to work with you.”

County transportation official, Gary Erenrich, told the crowd there would be an opportunity to work with MTA to decide how the street would look.  “You will get a brand new street and sidewalk.”

Pedestrian safety was another area of concern.  The proposed rail track will cross over some pedestrian sidewalks. The Purple Line team’s short response was that an education campaign would have to be put in place.

Montgomery County Police Traffic Sergeant, T.L. Harmon, said he was worried about accident mitigation problems.  

“When they start planning and designing, I hope they get the police department folks involved. We have a good understanding of traffic and pedestrian patterns.  The police want to be a part of this plan. We want to know how traffic situation conflicts will be mitigated, whether there are crashes involving the light rail or road closures which may interrupt service.”

The 16-mile east-west light rail is expected to take between three to five years to complete, Romanowski said. Construction is slated to begin in 2014, assuming the project is funded. 

The first major benchmark begins with approval of the FTA’s New Starts application process, which would grant permission and some federal funding to the state to begin preliminary engineering work, Purple Line Communications Director Marsha Kaiser said.  A response is expected by late spring.     

There will be at least 21 small group meetings scheduled this year and business groups are encouraged to request individual meetings with the purple team.

“We are just getting started,” Kaiser said.