Maryland legislators debated the Purple Line in the Sun. Sen. James Rosapepe and Sen. Gwendolyn Britt from Prince George's were quoted as supporting the light-rail link:
"During the last four years, money has unfortunately been sucked away from the Purple Line," Sen. James C. Rosapepe, a College Park Democrat, said at an Annapolis rally yesterday. "Now with Gov. O'Malley, I think there's a need to expand our commitment to it."However, Sen. Richard Madaleno and Del. Jane Lawton, both from District 18 in Montgomery, supported burying or moving the proposed line:
Sen. Gwendolyn T. Britt, a Prince George's Democrat, said the project is especially important to minorities and low-income families who often need to commute from one suburb to another, a pattern not well-served by the Metro system.
"In my district, there are families and hard-working individuals who must take 2 1/2 hours on the bus, on several buses, getting to work," Britt said.
But Sen. Richard K. Madaleno, another Montgomery County Democrat, said the light rail plan is a mistake. "You want to expand transit in places where you take people out of cars and put them on rail," Madaleno said. "This takes people out of buses and puts them on rail."
The Purple Line has also generated opposition from users of the Capital Crescent Trail, a recreational amenity adjacent to part of the proposed light rail route. They petitioned to move the tracks or build the line underground as part of the Metro.
Doing so will "increase ridership, expand Metro's ability to run alternate routes in emergencies and protect the trail," Del. Jane E. Lawton, a Montgomery Democrat said in a news release.
