MWAA debates tunnel vs. aerial station at IAD. Cost difference would be $640 million.

[DarkWolf]

They should have just built a VRE line form Fairfax Station to Dulles Airport probably wouldn't have cost that much... Electrify it and blame you got yourself a cheap Airport line.

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by Nexis4Jersey

They should have just built a VRE line form Fairfax Station to Dulles Airport probably wouldn't have cost that much... Electrify it and blame you got yourself a cheap Airport line.

Hmmm, interesting idea. Actually I'd like to see that done in addition to the metro line to Dulles.

[brooklynborndad]

Is there an existing rail line from FFX station to Dulles? I dont think so.

Commuter rail almost always runs in existing rail rights of way (or actually shares tracks, either with freight or intercity passenger rail) Commuter rail almost never has enough passengers to justify the substantial costs of constructing a new line.

And of course the real purpose of the Silver Line is to serve the major employment centers in Tysons, Reston and Herndon, not to serve the airport alone.

[South Jersey Styx]

Originally Posted by cdmurphy

Also, there is nothing sadder than getting off a long miserable flight late at night, heading down the escalators, and seeing that long tunnel with no moving sidewalks working. Every bone in your body aches, and it's like "The Shining" - that hallway gets longer and longer with every step you take, and you start to wonder if you'll ever get home again.

This was the case last time I landed there this past summer. We landed in late afternoon/evening and the moving sidewalks weren't, well, moving. It wasn't too crowded for us. However, on the opposite side where people were trying to get to their gates, there was this huge group of people running to the gate area. They were running so fast they ran over each other and were tripping over suitcases, etc. I've never seen anything like it. I was so exhausted and couldn't think straight and just that I figured people were just late for their flights?

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by cdmurphy

Every bone in your body aches, and it's like "The Shining" - that hallway gets longer and longer with every step you take, and you start to wonder if you'll ever get home again.

LOL, love this image... yes, that long hallway does seem to stretch forever, just like in "The Shining."

[seiketsu]

In my fantasy world there is an express train / Skytrain / monorail called Dulles Express that connects the airport to, say, Rosslyn in fifteen minutes. If cities like Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok can squeeze in elevated trains on top of a chaotic, unplanned urban core, I call shenanigans on not being able to do anything without an existing right-of-way, and on not being able to do a poorly-designed extension for under $4 billion.

I'm just bitter because I have to factor in an extra $120 to my ticket cost (to get to the airport by taxi when Super Shuttle -- itself an extra $70 or so rt -- doesn't show up) when I fly out of IAD.

[normie]

Comments on the project can be submitted at Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project. The comment period ends October 1.