Transformation through transit

Martin Luther King Boulevard in Seattle. Photo from the Seattle Times.

As recalled in an entry earlier in the summer, a number of Anacostia residents are questioning the value of the demonstration streetcar line coming to Anacostia. It's a demonstration of a sort, because it's possible it would likely be technology not used elsewhere. It's true that construction causes strife. Certainly U Street was death valley for a long time while the Green Line was being constructed there.

The Pacific Northwest Magazine of the Seattle Times has an interesting article about the construction of a streetcar line in a neighborhood similar to Anacostia. "MLK Way: More than a highway or a piece of the next grand plan, it's home." Change is painful and the pain is undeniable.




Max Light Rail in Portland, Oregon. Photo from Portland Ground.


The Baltimore Light Rail system seems to deaden the street. What is it about its design that does this? Photo by Jon Bell.