Readers Weigh In on Washington Area Issues

Purple Line Planning

The Purple Line promises to reduce commuting time, take thousands of cars off the road, benefit the environment and create economic opportunities. But some people along the proposed route could find themselves priced out of their communities. We are particularly concerned with the impact that the Prince George's County's draft sector plan could have on Langley Park.

The Langley Park community includes a large immigrant population and a vibrant local business scene. Construction of the Purple Line through this community would likely spur more development, but it is important that the people who currently live there get to benefit from that development, instead of being priced out of their homes and businesses.

We join a wide variety of community groups, including CASA of Maryland, the Coalition for Smarter Growth, and the Prince George's Justice and Advocacy Council of the Archdiocese of Washington, in expressing significant concerns about Prince George's County's draft sector plan. As the draft stands, thousands of families could be displaced, and small businesses could be forced out by rising rents.

Prince George's County needs to encourage carefully selected mixed-use development, make a commitment to improving and maintaining the stock of affordable rental housing and create protections for locally owned small businesses that form the backbone of the Langley Park community. We look to William A. Campos (D-Hyattsville), the County Council member representing Langley Park, to take leadership on this issue. Only then can the Purple Line realize its promise for our entire community.

-- Jacob Feinspan, Washington

The writer is the executive director of Jews United for Justice.

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The July 12 editorial "Green-Light the Purple Line" argued for a vastly expensive light-rail option for the Purple Line over a less-expensive dedicated bus line. The July 19 editorial "Get on the Bus" said the region should develop dedicated bus lanes. Which do you prefer?

As a civil engineer who has spent more than two decades planning infrastructure in Maryland, I am convinced that the projections for Purple Line ridership from the National Institutes of Health and the Bethesda Naval Hospital were adjusted so that the Capital Crescent Trail alignment would seem as if it were the best option. Despite projecting ridership through 2030, the number of trips by employees of these facilities was limited to the number of current employees who live along the alignment today. If the bus line has a stop near the campuses, new employees will certainly locate along the route in greater numbers, provided there's an easy, direct way to get to work.

Before the alignment for the Purple Line is chosen, the ridership projections must be reworked.

-- Beth Forbes, Bethesda