Prince George’s wants Purple Line to be extended

Prince George’s County (Map, News) - The Purple Line hasn’t even been approved, much less built, and Prince George’s County already wants it extended.

The light-rail route has been proposed to run from Bethesda to New Carrollton, but the Prince George’s County Council this week approved a letter to Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley asking his administration to “examine the feasibility of extending the Purple Line to Largo, including possible stops at major destinations such as FedEx Field, Capital Centre Boulevard and Prince George’s Community College.”

As conceived, the 14-mile Purple Line would connect four other Metro lines at a cost of more than $1 billion. Council Member Eric Olson, who proposed the letter, said he doesn’t expect rail to Largo to be part of the initial project.

Earlier this year, the project was delayed again by state officials who said more time was needed to determine ridership and cost-effectiveness figures.

“Obviously, the first segment is to New Carrollton, but we don’t want to lose sight of what else it can do for the county in serving a greater population in the future,” said Olson, who noted that Largo is a “jobs and entertainment center.”

“Traffic is very congested on our roads and we want to serve as many people as possible,” Olson said.

The letter, dated Tuesday, also calls for the state to explore bringing the line to Andrews Air Force Base, National Harbor and across the Woodrow Wilson Bridge.

“... We hope you will work with us to chart a course for the future of Metro service that will continue beyond New Carrollton and Largo,” the letter states.

Purple primer

» The “Purple Line” is the name attached to a proposed rapid-transit bus or light-rail route that would run from Bethesda to New Carrollton. A Maryland transportation figure estimated this week that about 50,000 people would use the service daily.

dfowler@dcexaminer.com

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