After decades of envisioning, five years of building and more than six months of delays, Metro’s Silver Line finally opens on Saturday.
The 11.4-mile extension brings a new level of public transportation to this part of Fairfax County. There will be five stops from McLean to Reston’s Wiehle Avenue. Wiehle-Reston East will be the end of the line for at least five years, when Phase 2 of the Silver Line — which will extend the service from Reston to Dulles International Airport and into Loudoun County — will open.
Wiehle-Reston East will also be the only Silver Line stop with parking. The 3,300-spot garage held a ribbon cutting and open house on Saturday.
With the Silver Line opening comes a lot of questions on cost, logistics, Reston traffic and train times, among other things. Reston Now has (or will get) the answers! Ask us your question in the comments below and we will respond there or in an additional article.
All systems are go for Saturday’s opening of Phase 1 of the Silver Line, Metro officials said in Monday’s weekly press conference call.
There are still a few punch list items remaining — among them, application of heat tape on rails as a cold-weather precaution and Certificates of Occupancy for three stations.
Metro spokesman Dan Stessel said the heat tape, along with outstanding drainage issues, is the responsibility of contractors for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, which constructed Phase 1. Those items can be done after service begins, he said. He also said he expects the Certificates of Occupancy for the McLean, Tysons Corner and Spring Hill stations to arrive this week.
“From a systems perspective, everything is running as designed and we see no issues,” Stessel said. “The last step is a couple of regulatory documents. I see no reason they will not be in hand in short order.”
Construction of the Silver Line suffered many delays as it neared the end of the five-year building period. As recently as June 9, Metro was expressing frustration at the slow pace of the work. Prior to that, MWAA and Metro reached an agreement in April that allowed MWAA to complete remaining items after the project was handed over to Metro — and avoid paying potential fines for every day the project was delayed.
Now it is just a matter of employees and trains getting used to adding thousands of riders to the rail system every day.
The Silver Line began simulated service on Sunday, with trains running every 12 minutes and without any issues, said Stessel. The trains are running on schedule but without passengers. Passenger service begins at noon on Saturday.
On Monday morning, trains ran every six minutes on a regular weekday rush hour schedule, also with no problems.
“This week is about familiarizing employyes with operation of trains on the new segment,” said Stessel. “Station managers were at their posts this morning. They opened the stations, even though they are not open for passengers. Crews will also be out prepping stations for opening day — powerwashing, painting and putting finishing touches on facilities.”
Some Blue Line riders are affected by additional wait times due to the addition of Silver Line cars, but Stessel said increased wait times affect only 10 percent of Metro riders.
“Silver Line changes mean more service and a lesser wait for 37 percent of Metro riders,” he said. “Thirty-three percent (mostly riders on the Red Line and Green Line) will see no change.”
Plans for Saturday include a ribbon cutting and remarks from local dignitaries at 10 a.m. Passengers will be able to board the first trains at noon. Comstock will also have a public reception on the Reston Station plaza from 11:45 a.m. to 2 p.m.
More Silver Line opening news:
It’s a big week for transportation in the Tysons Corner-Reston corridor as Metro’s Silver Line opens Saturday.
Rideshare app Uber is getting involved too. Through Thursday, all uberX rides from Tysons to Reston (or vice versa) and anywhere in the zone (see graphic) are free.
Visit the Uber blog for more information, but here are the basics:
- Enter the promo code SILVERLINE by logging into your account here or in the app. You only need to enter the code one time to unlock your two free uberX rides.
- Between July 21 and July 24 at 11:59 p.m, begin or end your uberX trip from Reston to Tysons and your ride will automatically be free up to $30 (limit two rides).
- Even after your two free rides, uberX fares are 25 percent cheaper the rest of the summer.
There are some other local perks too. Show your Uber receipt for discounts:
- Chef Geoff’s Tysons Corner – Free appetizer 4-8 p.m., Monday through Thursday.
- PassionFish Reston Town Center – Free glass of wine with the purchase of any menu item, Monday through Thursday.
Graphic by Uber
Reston has a new entry in its growing list of fitness options. CrossFit North Reston opened at 11503 Sunset Hills Rd. last month, and the Plaza America-area facility already has enthusiastic members.
CrossFit is a back-to-basics strength and fitness program that combines weightlifting and high-intensity interval training into a constantly changing hour-long “Workout of the Day (WOD).”
The program was founded in 2000, and today there are more than 10,000 gyms, or “boxes” as they are called in CrossFit-speak, nationwide.
Two of the local boxes are owned by Todd and Melissa Katz and additional partners. Todd Katz, a marathon runner, began doing CrossFit in 2008, and soon was teaching workouts from his garage. After Melissa, a lawyer, became hooked on CrossFit too, they opened up Hammer Down CrossFit in Chantilly in 2009.
They opened CrossFit North Reston in June because this area was lacking CrossFit options, even though there has been a CrossFit Reston (located at 310 Victory Dr. in Herndon) for several years, Todd Katz said.
The Katzes says CrossFit is appealing to people of all fitness levels and ages for many reasons. There is the camaraderie they get from group exercise. Participants say they like the coaching and the ability to challenge oneself but still go at their own pace. CrossFit also includes a Paleo Diet nutritional component, which one CrossFit North Reston member says was life-changing.
Crystal Armes, 35, of Oakton has lost about 60 lbs. in the year since she began CrossFit, first at Hammer Down and now at North Reston as well.
“I lost about 15 lbs. at first, and then when I added Paleo I lost the rest in about three months,” said Armes, a former Division I college athlete who is at the box five to seven times a week now.
Cheryl Lawson of Herndon, has been doing CrossFit about four years. She says she was in “so-so” shape when she started, but the group workouts and the ever-changing WOD have kept her interested and motivated.
The 56-year-old Lawson can now power clean lift 115 lbs. — almost as much as her body weight.
CrossFit North Reston is open daily. For class times and open workout times, visit CrossfitNorthReston.com or call 757-774-8983. Rates start at $139 a month for three classes a week.
No Parking — As the Silver Line prepares to open, many private property owners, such as office buildings in Tysons Corner and Reston, are warning drivers not to park there. [Fairfax Times]
More Tolls, Less Tolerance? — Virginia Department of Transportation officials last week proposed widening I-66 and adding toll lanes outside the Beltway. This story takes a look at how that project would fit in to national transportation strategy and whether drivers would have tolerance for any more tolls. [WAMU]
Birds’ Eye View — Check out this video that takes a look at the Silver Line from way up high. [Washington Post]
Keep Training Centers Open — Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va 11) joined other House members from Virginia in appealing to Gov. Terry McAuliffe to keep the Commonwealth’s residential training center’s for disabled adults open. All but one of centers are slated to be closed over the next several years. [Lynchburg News Advance]
Photo: Check out some ice cream and the facilities at Wiehle-Reston East Open House on July 19.
Reston’s future as a transit-oriented community officially gets started next week, when the first Silver Line Metro train departs from the Wiehle-Reston East station.
But for Restonians and other nearby residents, accessing the station is nearly important as the riding the trains. Visitors got a look on Saturday at where the bikes will go, where the buses will drop off and depart, and other logistics at a Fairfax County open house.
Hunter Mill Supervisor Cathy Hudgins, who was one of many local dignitaries who worked for many years to get rail to Reston, says the seven-level, 3,300-space garage and Comstock’s mixed-use development above it is a great example of a public-private partnership that will benefit the entire community.
The county and Comstock teamed to build the $90 million parking structure, which will feature a bicycle repair room, parking for 200 bikes and 10 bus bays. It is the only station on the five-stop, 11-mile Silver Line Phase 1 that features parking. Wiehle-Reston East will be the end of the Silver Line for at least five years, when Phase 2 will take passengers to Reston Parkway, Herndon, Dulles International Airport and Loudoun County.
Hudgins says she hopes residents will look at the many ways to access the Metro station.
“Yes, we are celebrating the garage,” she said prior to a ceremonial ribbon cutting. “But we want our neighbors to get out of their cars and get on Metro. “A lot of folks can ride their bikes here if they chose. We’ve improved bus services.”
Representatives from Fairfax Connector, Fairfax Advocates for Better Biking, Metro, Washington Flyer and other transportation-related groups were on hand to answer questions from potential Metro users. On the plaza above the garage, visitors could check out the construction of Comstock’s BLVD apartments.
Some of the open house visitors were making plans on how Metro will fit into their lives on a daily basis. Others said they plan to take it occasionally to get into D.C.
Bob Whiteman of Oak Hill said he moved to Reston in 1980, and even then his Realtor told him “a train to Dulles would be here in five years.”
“I believed [rail] would never happen,” he said. But now that he is two years from retirement, the federal employee said he will most likely stick to his usual commute.
“It is actually cheaper to carpool downtown and pay for parking,” he said.”But I will take Metro at some point, like during a snowstorm.”
Denver Lovett, a retiree who has lived in Reston since 1974, said he is looking forward to the convenience on a lot of levels.
“I won’t have to drive to the Vienna Metro at Nutley,” he said. “When my daughter comes to visit from New York, she can just ride Metro here from downtown. It is going to make the trip so much better. Hopefully traffic around the station won’t be too bad.”
The garage officially opens on Saturday, July 26, the same day as Silver Line trains start running. Parking at Wiehle-Reston East will be $4.85 a day; $65 a month for reserved parking. Spaces in the bike room will be $65 annually (with a $10 charge for the key fob). For more details, read this previous Reston Now story.
Repairs have been completed and Lake Newport Pool will reopen on Saturday, July 19, Reston Association officials said.
The pool will have a modified schedule this weekend:
Saturday, July 19 – 1-8 p.m.; Sunday, July 20 – Noon – 5:30 p.m.; Monday, July 21 – normal operating hours.
The pool has been closed for more than a week in order to repair a mechanical failure with the main pool pump.
Lake Newport, located at 11601 Lake Newport Rd. in North Reston, is Reston Association’s only 50-meter pool. It is the site of many community events, all of which were canceled or moved this week.
This is a sponsored post by veterinarian Elizabeth Arguelles, owner of Just Cats Clinic at Lake Anne Plaza. She writes weekly on Reston Now.
Disaster can strike at any moment, and it’s important to develop an emergency evacuation plan and kit in case of flood, fire, tornado, hurricane or other disasters for you and your family. As you prepare your emergency plans, don’t forget to include your furry felines as well! It’s important to have a location planned out and a disaster preparedness kit ready to go in the event of an emergency to keep your family and furry friends safe.
Due to local and state regulations, evacuation shelters often cannot take pets when families in the surrounding area are evacuated from their homes, with the exception of service animals. Make sure to have a list with phone numbers and directions of any shelters that will accept pets during emergencies, any surrounding hotels that will house pets, any family members or friends outside the area that would be willing to house you and your pets, and any boarding facilities. Frequently when emergency shelters do allow pets, they need to be housed in a crate, so you’ll want to be sure to have a crate large enough to fit your cat, a litter box, and food/water.
Next, you’ll want to have a disaster preparedness kit for your pets. The kit should include the following items stored in waterproof pouches or bags:
- Prepared list of pet friendly evacuation locations with phone numbers and directions
- Complete medical and vaccination records, including current microchip numbers (if applicable)
- Any medications that your cat is taking and a prescription from your veterinarian in case your evacuation goes on longer than anticipated (including any prescription diets) Read More
Experts from Children’s National Medical Center told the Fairfax County School Board this week that Option 1 or Option 3, with modifications, would be the best of four options for changing high school start times.
Option 1 starts high school at 8:30 a.m. and middle school at 9:30 a.m. Option 3 essentially flips high school (7:20 a.m.)and middle school (8 a.m.) start times. Both leave elementary bells essentially the same.
The high school start time proposals came after the FCPS Board voted in 2012 to change the bell schedule because teens are not getting enough sleep. Superintendent Karen Garza, who joined FCPS in 2013, said she supports moving high school start times past 8 a.m.
The board hired sleep experts from Children’s National Medical Center, who prepared a report detailing how moving to later bell times would enable students to get needed rest.
CNMC doctors said teens need eight hours of sleep or more for optimum health. Sleep deprivation leads to shortened attention span, decreased higher level cognitive skills, reduced ability to learn and remember new information, decreased efficiency in completing tasks, lower standardized test scores and decreased school achievement, says CNMC’s Project Smart Sleep website.
Garza said at the work session she would like to modify Option 3 so that middle schools could start later than 7:20 a.m. and use Option 3 as a framework to develop an administrative recommendation to take to the Board in September, said FCPS spokesman John Torre.
Under Option 3, high schools, which currently begin at 7:20 a.m., would start at 8 or 8:10 a.m. and end at 2:40 or 2:50 p.m. Middle schools, which currently begin at 8 a.m., would go from 7:20 a.m. to 2 p.m. Elementary Schools would stay on their current schedules, which vary from opening bells from 8 to 9:20 a.m. and dismissal from 2:40 to 4 p.m.
Option 3 will cost an estimated $5,583,005, mostly for 45 new buses, the school system said.
In Option 1, high schools would run from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.; middle schools from 9:30 a.m. to 4:20 p.m.; and elementary schools anywhere from 7:50 to 9:15 a.m. to 2:25 to 3:50 p.m. Option 1 would cost $7,645,208.
Other options included middle school starting at 9:30 a.m. and high school at 8:30 a.m.; a system where all three school levels change starting times (with high school at 8:10-8:20 a.m.); or high school starting at 9:15 and elementary schools starting at 7:20 a.m.
There was not an option for “no change.” At a series of community meetings this spring, school board members said the change is going to happen for the 2015-16 school year. Community members gave the board a wide variety of feedback on all the options. Some included “no change” as part of their feedback.
The school board will make its final vote on the matter in October.
Photo: FCPS Superintendent Karen Garza/Reston Now file photo
The countdown has begun to the July 26 opening of Metro’s Silver Line. Reston Now will bring you updates on what you need to know as Wiehle-Reston East prepares to open.
Saturday’s ribbon cutting and open house will feature a lineup of VIP speakers, including Hunter Mill District Supervisor Cathy Hudgins; Gov. Terry McAuliffe; Rep. Gerry Connolly; Peter Rogoff, U.S. Under Secretary of Transportation; State Sen. Janet Howell; Del. Ken Plum; Del. Tom Rust; Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Sharon Bulova; Dranesville District Supervisor John Foust.
The ribbon cutting takes place at 10 a.m. The open house will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Visitors can check out 3,300-space parking garage and dedicated bike room. For more details, read this previous Reston Now article.
Sunday, July 20 begins six days of simulated service, which will familiarize Metro employees and finalize train schedules under real-time conditions. Here is an overview from Fairfax County and Metro of how simulation trains will operate:
- Simulation trains will run between Wiehle-Reston East and Largo Town Center stations at all hours that the Metrorail system is open.
- Simulation trains will run every 6 minutes during rush hour and every 12 to 20 minutes during off-peak times, consistent with the schedule for Silver Line trains once the line opens.
- Simulation trains trains will not carry passengers to or from the five new Silver Line stations. However, passengers will be able to board these trains for travel between East Falls Church and Largo Town Center, in either direction, including all stops along the Orange and Blue lines in Downtown DC.
- Between July 20 and noon July 26, simulation trains will be labeled as Orange Line trains showing a destination of either East Falls Church or Largo Town Center.
- Westbound trains will offload any remaining passengers at East Falls Church and then continue to Wiehle-Reston East without passengers aboard.
The 11-mile rail extension officially opens when the first car will leave Wiehle-Reston East at noon on July 26. More details about opening day can be found in this previous Reston Now post.
Photo: Hunter Mill Supervisor Cathy Hudgins (left) and Gov. Terry McAuliffe will be among the VIPs at Saturday’s open house at Wiehle-Reston East/Reston Now file photo
A maintenance worker at Hunters Woods Fellowship House was badly burned by hot grease as he assisted a resident at the senior housing building Thursday afternoon, Fairfax County Fire and Rescue officials said.
Deputy Fire Chief Chuck Ryan said units were called to the building at 2231 Colts Neck Rd. about 4:30 p.m.
A resident had been cooking and smoke set off the smoke alarm. When the maintenance worker, whose name was not released, went to assist the resident, he was accidentally splashed with hot grease from the stove.
The employee was taken by medical helicopter to the burn unit at Washington Hospital Center in D.C., Ryan said. He is being treated for non life-threatening injuries.
There was no actual fire, just grease and smoke in the kitchen accident, fire officials said.
Toll Lanes For I-66? — State transportation officials are looking into toll lanes in addition to free lanes on I-66 outside the Beltway as a way to manage traffic. The plan would include lanes from Vienna to Haymarket. It would not go into effect until 2017. [WJLA]
A Little Jazz At The Airport — Reagan National and Dulles International Airports will be holding live jazz afternoon concerts through August. [MWAA]
Helping Dogwood’s Garden Grow – Employees at BB&T recently helped Reston’s Dogwood Elementary School build a teaching garden. [FCPS]
Rain Runoff Or $2.9 Billion Fountain? — During the recent heavy rainstorms, water has been spilling over the sides of the elevated Silver Line tracks at Tysons Corner. [The Tysons Corner]
Photo of finishing touches at Silver Line station/Credit: Metro
Mark Gibson, who hoped to challenge incumbent Gerry Connolly (D) in Virginia’s 11th Congressional District, has fallen short in his attempt to get on November’s general election ballot.
Gibson announced he fell 43 signatures short of the required 1,000 needed from qualified voters. He said hesubmitted 1,259 signatures, but only 957 were verified as qualified 11th District voters by Virginia’s State Board of Elections.
“We had a small dedicated group of community volunteers collecting ballot petition signatures, but it just wasn’t enough,” Gibson said in a statement. “And the demands of my day job this year meant that I couldn’t devote the time necessary to make this bid a success.”
Gibson, 53, is a U.S. Government contractor and the chief operating officer for a Fairfax-based small business. He was on the ballot in 2012 and finished third in a field of six as Connolly won re-election. He has never held public office.
Gibson’s office says that of the 302 disqualified signatures, about half were from outside the District — primarily from areas that were formerly in the District prior to the 2012 Congressional redistricting. Other voters were disqualified because the general registrars in the counties of Fairfax and Prince William as well as the City of Fairfax could not identify a signature as a registered voter from the 11th District.
Connolly’s remaining opponents will be Republican Suzanne Scholte, Green Party candidate Joe Galdo and Libertarian Marc Harrold.
Reston Community Center (RCC) is looking for candidates to run for three seats on its Board of Governors.
The Board of Governors is a nine-member group that is responsible for oversight and guidance of RCC, which serves the people of Small Tax District 5 (Reston).
Candidates must be residents of Small District 5, age 18 or older, and complete a candidacy statement in order to have their names placed on the Preference Poll ballot.
Candidacy statements will be available at the RCC locations or on RCC’s website beginning at 9:00 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 1. The deadline for candidacy filing is 5:00 p.m. on Friday, August 15.
The RCC Preference Poll is a community event held annually to select members to serve on the board. The Board of Governors establishes the overall policies for RCC priorities for its programs and budget.
There has been increased focus on RCC the last few years as it seeks to expand by building a new 50-meter indoor pool in Reston. That proposal been met with mixed reaction from the community.
This year’s Preference Poll will fill three positions for three-year terms. The terms of board members Bill Penniman, Cathy Vivona and Vicky Wingert are expiring.
Online and mail-in balloting and walk-in voting will be available Sept. 12 to Oct. 3 until 5:00 p.m. Mail-in ballots must be received by Oct. 2 at 5:00 p.m.
For more information on the 2014 RCC Preference Poll or Board of Governors, visit www.restoncommunitycenter.com or call (703) 476-4500.
A man was injured in Reston when two suspects robbed and assaulted him early Wednesday, Fairfax County Police said.
The man was walking at 12:20 a.m. in the 11700 block of Sunset Hills Road, near Plaza America, when the two suspects approached him, police said.
The suspects assaulted the victim and took property, police said..
The victim was transported to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Both suspects were described as black males, about 17 to 22 years old and about 5 feet 6 inches tall.
