The Silver Spring Penguin

For almost two and a half hours on Monday, the state transit administration laid out three downtown alignments for the Purple Line, and fielded questions from developers, property managers and local residents gathered at the public library.

The three alignments involved a street-level, light-rail route on either Wayne Avenue or Bonifant Street, and a tunnel beneath Silver Spring Avenue. However, project manager Mike Madden and lead engineer Joe Romanowski adamantly expressed that they had no preference.

Purple Line project manager Mike Madden (right) speaks with residents Monday night.
Photo: N. Hammer/SSP.

Residents’ concerns ranged from future traffic models, to the impact of a cost-benefit analysis on community living. “In a lot of areas there are competing goals. That is why it’s a balancing act,” Romanowski responded.

Regarding traffic, Madden agreed that it would get worse. “Taking cars off the road is not one of the goals of this project,” he said.

Madden and Romanowski declined to provide specific numbers regarding the cost-benefit analysis or transit lane sizes. Those numbers would be made public in November, they said, though hearing dates and locations have not been set.

Since 2004, the Purple Line has lengthened from 14 to 16 miles, in part due to the elimination of the Sligo Avenue alignment. Three other projects are competing against the Purple Line for funds. The earliest the Purple Line project could break ground is 2012, assuming that it gets the funding.

The next focus-group meeting will be held at Oakview Elementary School (400 E. Wayne Ave) next Tuesday at 7:00 p.m.