Washington Metro Mini Summer of Hell
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), the operator of the Washington, D.C., metro system, has endured several years of delays and disruptions as it attempts to maintain the system’s physical plant and improve its safety operations. It may be the most glaring example of infrastructure underinvestment existing right under the noses of Congress.
Now it’s embarking on a three-year capital project with dedicated capital funding recently approved by legislatures in Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia. It does not include any federal money, once again reinforcing our emphasis on the trend of states and localities moving forward despite federal legislative inertia of infrastructure. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) may have said it best when he said: “This is what happens when we fall decades behind on maintenance — commuters bear the brunt of the inconvenience when it finally comes time to dig out the backlog.”
by Joseph Krist
Neighborly Insights
05/24/2018
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