What are some of your qualms about the current public transit situation in Prince George’s and Montgomery County?
I took this picture of a metro bus that leaves from campus and brings passengers to Silver Spring. There are a few other bus routes that bring students to destinations outside of College Park, but these buses only run on weekdays. However, there is a slew of Metrobuses that run through campus. Most students were satisfied with public transportation, although some had issues with security and metro noise.
The other day I was taking a bike ride around Lake Artemesia and noticed that the metro basically ran right next to the lake - quite ugly. Was this the best place to put a metro line? I see a lot of empty, unused space around where the metro is located, and I wonder why it couldn't have been placed elsewhere. I wonder if the noise and vibrations bother any of the animals that live by the lake.
College Park in general seems to employ Nietzchean uses of space; catered to the individual rather than the community. The individual will benefit from a rail line without necessarily caring where it is placed. The area near Lake Artemesia is a confusing mix of public and private space with unclear boundaries. How could we improve this area to better serve the community?
3 comments:
I actually think that the university does a really good job with the transportation system on and around campus. The university could totally leave us on our own to get around the area - its not really their responsibility since there are Metrobuses and Metro access on and around campus. Yet there are many free buses that we can take to Silver Spring, Bethesda, around the campus, down 193, to the metro stop, etc. Not only does it make travel and commutes easier, but it's also much safer than walking around, especially at night. It is too bad that the buses do not run on the weekends out to Silver Spring and Bethesda, but again, we do have Metrobuses on campus that run all the time. I think alot of students, myself included, are just too lazy to figure out their routes and how to use them. On the weekends, I usually just take the metro itself, which is more time consuming. As far as the metro routes go, it is too bad that they sometimes run through parks and other potentially nice spaces. But then again, thats not really a College Park problem, just a poor decision made years ago by WMATA. I'm assuming that it was the most direct route from point A to point B and that's why the rail was placed there.
I agree with Emily. It was probably just the fastest route.
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