Montgomery County transportation officials may be encouraging County Executive Ike Leggett to endorse using buses rather than light rail for the so-called Purple Line to link eastern and western parts of the county, an internal report obtained by The Examiner indicates.
The Purple Line is to run parallel to the Capital Beltway, tie together four other Metro lines and extend from Bethesda in Montgomery County to New Carrollton in Prince George’s County. A major part of the debate, yet to be resolved, is whether the transit route will be light rail or a bus line.
Leggett publicly pledged to back light rail while running for office in 2006, but since being elected has been mum on the topic. He is expected to announce his position within a month.
A policy document authored by county transportation officials last month initially listed six ways in which buses would be better for the county than light rail and only one in which rail was superior to buses.
A bus rapid transit route, the document also said, could cost the county $72.5 million if it paid for 12.5 percent of the project, while 12.5 percent of a light rail system would set Montgomery back $152.5 million.
Councilman George Leventhal, who backs light rail, said there were concerns the initial analysis was “very inaccurate, biased and it selectively quoted certain numbers while ignoring others.”
Edgar Gonzalez, deputy director of the County Transportation Department, said his office was “not favoring one over the other” and gave The Examiner an updated version of the document that showed five benefits for light rail compared with six for bus rapid transit.
“In some areas, they are somewhat similar in nature, and then there is the issue of the cost of the facilities,” Gonzalez said. “How much of that money will have to be repaid by taxpayers of Montgomery County?”
Gonzalez said Leggett would meet with Maryland Transportation Secretary John Porcari in the next few weeks to discuss cost commitments from the state. “If somebody else is paying, given the difference between a VW and a Lamborghini, I mean, hey, I know what I favor,” Gonzalez said, “but if I’m paying for it, other things are considered.”
