The Georgetown cocktail party is no longer the derisive symbol of elitist D.C. decadence. Better symbols of Beltway excess are emerging: vanity infrastructure projects in upscale neighborhoods.
Consider a recent op-ed published in the Washington Post under the triple byline of former Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va.; Ted Leonsis; and Matt Kelly. A lobbyist, a business tycoon, and real estate mogul respectively, the three men propose one thing: “Let’s get the Georgetown gondola going.”
They want to string steel wires across the Potomac River and run a cable car between Georgetown, one of the capital’s wealthiest neighborhoods, and Rosslyn, one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in Virginia that just so happens to be located in the eighth-wealthiest county in the entire country.
According to one feasibility study, this gondola would cost upwards of $90 million to build and another $3.4 million in annual operating costs to literally zip insulated elites from one power ZIP code to another.
Alternatively, they could drive themselves; they could call an Uber, hop on bus, or rent one of those ridiculous electric scooters; or they could just stroll across the one-third-mile Francis Scott Key Bridge. But none of those options offer up gondola glamour. Cable cars are chic, environmentally friendly, and perfect for selfies with the D.C. skyline. An estimated round trip is just four minutes compared to the 17 minutes it takes to walk from the Rosslyn Metro station to Georgetown’s glittering M Street.
Normally reserved for ski slopes and amusement parks, there really is something charming about this kind of playground transportation. There is also an ugly decadence.
Rich liberals have a thing for infrastructure adventurism. For example, take the little red and yellow DC Streetcar chugging its way up and down the chic H Street corridor. The little engines ferry passengers from Union Station to Benning Road, with stops next to boutique whiskey bars, yuppie grocery stores, and a public 18-hole golf course. The little people mover is adorable. It is also a complete waste.
The delightful DC Streetcar had all the glamour of the Georgetown gondola. Then it got stuck in traffic and started breaking down. Worse still, it became an expensive novelty that no one really uses. According to the D.C. Department of Transportation, the city spent $22.95 per passenger mile in 2016, a ghastly amount to move just one passenger a single mile.
Should the gondola get off the ground, chances are good it suffers the same fate. It will be an attraction and the subject of glowing features for a while. Sooner or later, the sheen will wear off and the sky lift will just be another wasteful version of the streetcar dangling 65 feet over the water by cables — a testament to Washington’s waste.
