Odd Pro-Purple Line Letter

Supporters of the Purple Line sent out a letter to Kensington residents arguing that the Purple Line will save Kensington residents from traffic:

How often do you find yourself stuck in Beltway traffic? If you're like me, too often. But we here in Kensington have the opportunity to do something about the gridlock and pollution that frustrate all of us.

I'm sure you've heard of the Purple Line, a new light rail Metro line that has been proposed to connect Bethesda, Silver Spring, the University of Maryland, and New Carrollton. This connection will allow commuters to take Metro between the two branches of the Red Line without going all the way downtown, providing easy access to a rejuvenated Silver Spring. It will connect us to Amtrak in New Carrollton. It will bypass the Beltway traffic jams that deny us convenient access to the academic, sports, and cultural resources of the University of Maryland. And it will provide access to the ever-more-popular restaurants of downtown Bethesda without dumping more cars onto local streets.

The enclosed fact sheet shows how the new Metro line will fit into the existing system. Kensington residents would be able to board Metro at a new Chevy Chase Lake station, directly across Connecticut Avenue from the T.W. Perry lumber yard.

. . .

Thirty years ago, the residents of Georgetown blocked construction of a Metro station. Since then, Georgetown has become choked in traffic and parking lots. Meanwhile, Bethesda has turned into a vibrant center of activity. Do we want Bethesda to go the way of Georgetown, or do we want to maintain and enhance its character?

One wonders if the author has ever driven in the area. The letter touts how the Purple Line will make it easier for Kensington residents to access Bethesda and its restaurants. However, no one in Kensington would ever drive to Chevy Chase Lake, pay for parking, and then pay to ride the light rail to Bethesda. Bethesda is such a short distance from Chevy Chase Lake that they would simply continue on to Bethesda in their car and park there. Moreover, this scenario assumes that there will be available parking at Chevy Chase Lake.

Similarly, why would people ride the Purple Line to New Carrollton when the Red Line to Union Station, where the trains originate, would undoubtedly be quicker.

Moreover, Bethesda already has a Metro stop so the situation is not exactly parallel to Georgetown. Is Ballston destined to fail if no new light rail is built there? In any case, Georgetown has hardly ceased to be a "vibrant center of activity." Indeed, Georgetown is certainly choked with traffic because of its continuing popularity. In any case, Bethesda traffic doesn't exactly move fast during high use periods even if it is not yet at Georgetown level. Of course, Bethesda's streets don't date from the colonial period either.

Is this the best argument that Purple Line supporters can come up with for the proposed light rail?