Washington, DC — Arlington Streetcar Impact

September 2012

The proposed five-mile Columbia Pike modern streetcar line that will link Pentagon City and DC Metrorail rapid transit in Arlington County with the Skyline area in adjacent Fairfax County will create more walkable neighborhoods, the "transportation nation" site reports. It also discloses that Arlington has just submitted its application to the Federal Transit Administration [FTA] for capital construction funding for the streetcar plan.

The evolving commercial and mixed Columbia Pike could be come more livable with help from the planned streetcar line which will connect denser areas of Fairfax at the west end of the alignment to the density at Pentagon City and Crystal City on the eastern end. The bus line currently serving the area is reportedly the heaviest in Virginia, carrying 15,000 riders daily. Planners hope for more density along the corridor with an emphasis on adding office development. Zoning changes have been implemented along the future route to double density and to ease the process of obtaining approval. To reduce the possibility of gentrification, up to a quarter of housing units will have to be affordable.