4 ms·
I’m very familiar with DC, and this article is largely accurate. That said, some context: - this is the whole DC area, not DC itself, which is quite expensive
by curiousllama 3y ago
I’m very familiar with DC, and this article is largely accurate. That said, some context:
- this is the whole DC area, not DC itself, which is quite expensive (think SF vs Bay Area). “DC” here is actually a collection of cities surrounding DC.
- the Metro is largely a commuter rail, not a day-to-day transit option. If you live outside DC proper, you need a car.
- DC is remarkably economically stable because of the government. Imagine if Tech in SF reliably paid exactly 75k-150k for every role, with 99% job security, regardless of economic conditions. That’s the DC economy.
- this article ignores the fact that municipal fragmentation keeps costs low too. If Alexandria doesn’t build, Tysons and Arlington will.
All that to say, transit isn’t the only answer. DC is v unique in the US.
- cowsandmilk 3y ago> the Metro is largely a commuter rail, not a day-to-day transit option Going to disagree on this statement. MARC and VRE are commuter rail. Metro is higher frequency than any commuter rail system and has high frequency in all directions even outside of rush hour. DC is unique in how far into the suburbs they have high frequency transit. The orange line and blue lines already reached pretty far from the city before the silver line was built, which goes ridiculously far out from the city.
- easton 3y agoI just moved here and I see people use Metro to go get groceries in Arlington. Which seems super weird to me because all of the Metro stations in the corridor between Rosslyn and Ballston are really close to grocery stores and then you have to pay $4 (at least) round trip, but I think that proves people use it as rapid transit...
- nathancahill 3y agoGovernment starts lower than 75k but your sentiment stands.
- rsynnott 3y ago> the Metro is largely a commuter rail, not a day-to-day transit option. Looks like every 3/4 minutes, which would be very unusually frequent for a commuter line. Also, er, commuter rail _is_ a day-to-day option; that's why it's called commuter rail. It is, literally, what it is for.