Retro Metro -- December 4, 1979 -- Orange Line

[coneyraven]

ORANGE LINE OPENING IS SMOOTH
The Washington Star (Remember this paper?)

For Brent Cooley of Arlington, yesterday's opening of the new Ballston Metro station mean 20 more minutes of sleep.

It means spending less money and avoiding more irritation for Martin Shane of Falls Church, who yesterday ran smiling from the family car to the station in the early morning chill.  Because the station is much closer to home than the Rosslyn station, he said, his wife finally agreed to drop him off "kiss and ride" style.

And for Patricia Raynor, a neighbor of the new Ballston stop, it was a happy day because she would no longer have to take that long escalator at the Rosslyn station.  "It gave me claustrophobia," she explained.

For these three and the thousands of others who boarded the Arlington leg of the Metro Orange Line for its first rush-hour run, in fact, there was very little to complain about yesterday morning.

Sure, the farecard machines didn't work very well -- but that's hardly new, and attendants were on hand to help out.

And yes, some commuters were confused because the Metro bus routes have not yet been adjusted to take advantage of the four new Orange Line stops.  But they will be by Jan. 6, when Ballston will become a full-fledged -- though temporary -- terminal station.

So while the morning rush hour was still winding down, the happy verdict was already coming in:  Metro officials were relieved and pleased that the start of service was good, and commuters were relieved and excited that they would not have to fight the crowds at Rosslyn again.

The only significant tie-up of day occurred about 8:20 a.m., much farther down the Orange Line, when trains jammed up in both directions for up to 15 minutes while a sick woman was taken from a train at Metro Center.  The woman was on an inbound train from Potomac Avenue on the combined Blue-Orange Line when she was stricken, Metro said.

Yesterday's Arlington opening was part of a general "system shakedown" in preparation for the big day when connecting buses start coming to Ballston Jan. 6.  While yesterday's ridership was described by Metro officials as a "medium-heavy load," they say projections show ridership will more than double when the buses come to Ballston.

Although no precise ridership figures for yesterday were immedately avaiable, Metro planners have projected that the Ballston spur will add an estimated 10,000 new riders to the system.

The four-week shakedown will test not only equipment, such as the farecard machines and gates, but planning projections, as well.  For instance, a Metro spokesman said first-day bicycle ridership was so high at he Ballston station -- despite the cold -- that additional bike racks are already being planned.

While Mtro will help out with parking bicycles, no similar accomodations are beng made for cars.  Apparently aware of this fact, motorists appear to have shied away from the Metro stations yesterday, leaving commercial lots unfilled and some side street parking available.

But even that should change soon.  Arlington County Traffic Engineer Joe Durkee said he expects most of those streets to be reserved soon for resident permit parking.

"Nobody," said Durkee, "is encouraging people to drive to Arlington Metro stops."

With few people making connections by car or bus, then, the station was left largely for neighborhood walkers.  And despite the cold, most loved the walk.

Said one local resident while running for a train, "This is just great.  I just never thought it could feel so good to live in Ballston."

[Perry]

The Rosslyn-Ballston corridor is a classic case of what to do right with transit oriented development.  Many times when I lived in Ballston I would just walk to Clarendon rather than taking the bus or the train.  It was such a nice walkable community.