Відео

I think it would also have been cool if they kept period advertising from the 1940s inside. But that’s better for a heritage line and this is just a normal streetcar line that happens to use PCC’s, so I do like the clean no-ads look!

Prince George’s Plaza does have nice ring to it!

NYC Subway, I assume? I have yet to ride it, so I have no frame of reference!

@@Shortline819 Well we’ll see. I’m hoping WMATA improves service along these corridors! But I agree that a full on absorption of the Circulator would be unlikely.

@@connecticutmultimodaltrans8226 It’s just sad because it wishes it was a light rail vehicle

I didn’t know this happened in other places as well! Not sure why the buttons do this, but it’s kinda fun!

@@29downtheline I think they need to replace them with a talking pedestrian button that says “wait” when you press them if people think they’re broken.

There’s actually some of those on this stretch of road as well!

@@29downtheline I think the button in this video needs to be replaced with a talking button because I think it might be broken so the walk signal wouldn’t come on if that button is still there.

⁠@@Trafficlightsiosandmore Interestingly enough, there are a bunch along this road, and they’ve all worked fine in my experience. They’ve been like this for at least a couple of years, so I’m wondering if they’re designed that way on purpose. Maybe for less electricity usage or something?

It’s just gonna stop running; there will be no more Circulator service to Rosslyn. There will still be Metrobus service to Rosslyn from DC, however.

Seconded

@@29downtheline all in favor?

@@joshriutta546 Aye

@@29downtheline Aye

@@joshriutta546 The motion passes unanimously!

It’s a nicely-designed network; definitely not the best part of the budget to cut.

Is that normal?

@@ange34 Thanks for watching! I think that’s a pretty realistic expectation, but I could see them going for any of the options: express bus is probably the favorite option for the budget-conscious, light rail is probably the best option for those who actually want high quality rapid transit, and BRT is somewhere in the middle. However, I really don’t think BRT is that fast compared to rail transit, and I’d almost prefer an express bus with signal priority over BRT. Light rail is still my #1 choice though. Also, NSU probably has the best transit connections of any 4 year school in Hampton Roads: you’re only a short light rail ride away from the Norfolk Amtrak station, downtown Norfolk, and the Elizabeth River Ferry to Portsmouth. Naturally, NSU beats out everything on the peninsula in terms of transit access because Newport News and Hampton only have buses and Amtrak trains (HU has easy access to the 961 express bus, but CNU has multiple one-seat local bus connections to the Newport News Amtrak station). ODU, Regent, and Virginia Wesleyan all have nearby buses, but it’s still not rail!

Hopefully service on WMATA’s 33 is improved; it’s already really busy and will likely only get more crowded once the Georgetown-Union Station route ceases to exist.

Well, some of the routes will be sticking around until December!

I’m sure there were much less important things in the budget that could have gone, but they unfortunately chose the buses.

I’m glad WV still has commuter service!

Rail transit on the peninsula would be amazing (and relatively easily, as you pointed out)! I would love a Denbigh-Downtown light rail, and I’d even like to see it go northeast from downtown into Hampton!

I feel like Alexandria is even quirkier, in that it has tracks 2 & 3. There is a track 1, but it’s behind a fence and mostly just used by freight trains. Thanks for watching!

The sidewalk (and basically everything else at the new station) is a plus, but I actually like the old location better. As someone who doesn’t have a car, I miss the better bus connections at the old station. There are a lot of buses a 10-15 minute walk away from the new one, but it’s nothing like the old, where the 106 & 107 stopped right out front. Also, someone else commented that the only bus serving the new station directly will be the 108 (which runs hourly). Newport News claims the new station is more conveniently located, but now no downtown buses will serve the new station directly. No easy connection from the Newport News Transit Center means it will be harder for Hampton and downtown Newport News residents to get to the station. I really think HRT should look into a new route from the downtown transit center to the train station, passing CNU, Riverside Hospital, and Patrick Henry Mall on the way.

I’ve seen pictures of Norfolk’s old train station. Truly a shame it’s gone. The new one doesn’t even compare. I’m not at all surprised more rail transit was once a thing here. Even Newport News had a couple streetcar lines! As for tram lines, my philosophy depends. If the trams are in the middle of streets or in their own right of way, away from parked cars, and not stuck in traffic, I like them a lot. If they get stuck in traffic or behind parked vehicles constantly, I prefer buses. Basically, if there’s a dedicated lane or right of way, I prefer rail over bus.

@@29downtheline you can find old transit maps of the area and it is amazing how perfectly it was layed out for today's current population centers. The traffic problems of today would most likely not exist with the transit system of 1948.

​​⁠Hopefully we’ll see some more rail transit in the future! More frequent buses would be great, too!

No, the new station was under construction while the old station was still open. I simply took the last train out of the old station before it closed, and rode on the first train into the new station the next day once it opened to the public. It sat unopened for a while after it was substantially completed!

Totally agreed!

Bizarre, but functional!

Glad you enjoyed! Hyattsville Crossing has one of the most interesting station designs!

Hopefully that upswing continues!

@@29downtheline that's the goal- I think the immediate hurtle is going to be getting WMATA sustainable funding because if that falls apart it's gonna affect a lot of transit downstream

Honestly it depends

Well it was substantially built for a long time; it just took them forever to open it!

Any kind of rail across the James would most likely be an improvement to what we have now (buses running down the interstate), but intercity ferries are more likely (and a little more practical) for Hampton Roads. Still, an integrated regional rail system would be awesome! And hopefully there will be some more video-essay style videos in the future, but I’m not sure exactly when!

Also still bummed that they didn't pursue a western extension of the Tide. It could have ran on Colley Ave (closing the most core part of the main street to thru-traffic would be huge), ran parallel to the NS tracks to elevate and cross over onto Hampton Blvd connecting ODU, and then continuing up to the Navy base.

I don’t think HRT has a lack of ambition, but I think their ideas too often get stopped in their tracks before they can get far. They are missing a couple of obvious things, like the connection to ORF you mentioned and more frequent buses, but that doesn’t really seem to stop them from proposing new projects. I definitely think they need to do a better job with the little things as well!

Well better transit would partially solve this issue. Maybe running regular ferries to Harbor Park? HRT has the infrastructure to run more ferries, but I’m not sure if they have the staffing for it. Secondly, they could heavily restrict parking around the station for passengers only. Regardless, it’ll probably still be less than ideal! Hopefully they don’t just add tons more surface parking!

@@29downtheline maybe a parking garage

​@@29downtheline it seems that they would likely build up rather than out

The thing is we already have so many rail rights of way… it’s almost too easy…

Thats an interesting method of funding, for sure! Perhaps Norfolk is willing to pay more than VA Beach because its population is more spread out, whereas rural Virginia Beach residents may not support more transit because it doesn’t really serve them.

Thanks for saying that! I’m glad it’s starting to take off! A lot of the growth has been centered around a few videos, but it’s been otherwise growing little by little!

Agreed!

Vending machines, but they weren’t yet installed when I was there.

@@29downtheline oh ok

A cafe probably won't happen until Newport News is used more regularly with more Northeast Regional and Commonwealth Corridor services. The station only sees two round trips so it would be kind of hard for a cafe to provide regular service there when people are only there for so long.

@@ajmtravel4856 Thank you so much!