by Sand Box John
RandallW
The only thing that would have helped would have been tunneling through Dulles and putting the Metro closer to the terminal. Those pedestrian tunnels already existed as they were originally built to serve the parking decks on the far side of entry loop used by automobiles.
It's not that security would be an issue, it's the baggage handling under the terminal would be interfered with, so if building a short train outside that point, you are looking at a train to go at most 1500' straight with no change in elevation. I've watched people on the Silver and Red lines (Red to Union Station) and on Metro busses with large bags; it's a struggle for them and for others; generally public transit isn't the aid we hope it would be in those situations
The station was originally planed to be in subway on the north side of Commercial Drive with the entrance in the passageway to garage 1 east of where the bronze relief model of Dulles Airport is. The station It is where it is today because it cost a half billion dollars less to build it there.
The only thing that would have helped would have been tunneling through Dulles and putting the Metro closer to the terminal. Those pedestrian tunnels already existed as they were originally built to serve the parking decks on the far side of entry loop used by automobiles.
It's not that security would be an issue, it's the baggage handling under the terminal would be interfered with, so if building a short train outside that point, you are looking at a train to go at most 1500' straight with no change in elevation. I've watched people on the Silver and Red lines (Red to Union Station) and on Metro busses with large bags; it's a struggle for them and for others; generally public transit isn't the aid we hope it would be in those situations
The station was originally planed to be in subway on the north side of Commercial Drive with the entrance in the passageway to garage 1 east of where the bronze relief model of Dulles Airport is. The station It is where it is today because it cost a half billion dollars less to build it there.
John in the sand box of Maryland's eastern shore.