My First: Carpool
June 5, 2008
I carpooled to work this week for the first time. I feel pretty good about it, knowing that my co-worker and I saved a little bit of fossil fuel - about 75 miles’ worth, roundtrip. (We both live in Bethesda and commute to Baltimore.) Unfortunately we’ll only be able to do this about once per week.
Even as gas prices have been skyrocketing around me, only recently did I consider major changes to my commute.
Trust me, if I could use public transit efficiently, I would. But I’d have to Metro from Bethesda to Union Station, D.C.; hop an hourlong MARC train to Baltimore; then grab a Baltimore City bus from the MARC station to my office. Two trains, one bus, and almost two hours later, I’d arrive. Call me crazy, but that’s just not appealing, even with gas at $4-plus per gallon.
Still, I figure there has to be something I can do - besides begging to work from home.
Last week I heard an NPR piece on “slugging,” which is intriguing. Participating drivers and hopeful passengers have formed a symbiotic relationship; they meet in parking lots and share a ride to the office, shaving up to a half hour from their commute by zipping along the HOV lane.
Alas, there aren’t any HOV lanes on my commute, and therefore probably not any drivers willing to pick up a “slug”. Also, something about catching a ride with a complete stranger - even in daylight - rubs me the wrong way.
We’re considering reducing the number of cars in my household from two to one in an effort to save on car insurance and maintenance. Heck, I’d bike to work if it wouldn’t take me all day … and we weren’t in the middle of Maryland’s rainy season.
Anyone else out there debating whether to make a commuting change?
JACKIE SAUTER, Web Editor
Sphere: Related ContentState considers commuter rail from D.C. to St. Mary’s
January 8, 2008
One of our visitors recently suggested mass transit for St. Mary’s county in a comment on commuting improvements.
Looks like that wish may be granted: Maryland transit officials will study the feasibility of commuter rail service between D.C. and St. Mary’s County this spring. (This is in addition to a separate analysis of possible bus rapid transit or light rail service in the southern part of our state).
JACKIE SAUTER, Multimedia Editor
Sphere: Related ContentMissing your commute over the weekend?
December 23, 2007
There’s been a lot of talk about the pros and cons of BRAC on Maryland’s roadways lately.
While BRAC will recapture some Maryland workers who have been lost to jobs in Washington and Virginia, many commuters are hoping the state’s real BRAC gain could come in the form of speedier commutes — that is, if mass-transit projects result.
The number of workers commuting from the Baltimore region to Washington grew by 26 percent between 1990 and 2000, according to a recent story in the Baltimore Examiner. And Virginia gets about 116,000 Maryland workers every day (most of them from PG and MoCo, but about 13,000 come from Baltimore).
From the story:
More and more, Baltimore-area commuters are taking long commutes toward Washington’s suburbs in southern Maryland and Northern Virginia. But planners are hoping that growth tied to military bases near Baltimore and suburban Virginia will reverse some of those trends.
Some suggestions on the table: Anne Arundel County would like an extension of the Metro’s Green Line to BWI airport. Harford County has gotten funds for a new MARC station in Edgewood and has proposed a new transit center in Aberdeen.
Do you employ public transit in your daily commute, or is it too time-consuming or inefficient for you? Do you think Maryland needs to shape up its transit systems - and is BRAC its only chance to do it?
JACKIE SAUTER, Multimedia Editor
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