Renovation of King Street Metro station

[peterw_diy]

IIUC the CaBi station is moving onto the renovated station, no more crossing Diagonal & walking uphill. I sure hope that’s right.

[PotomacCyclist]

It might be part of the map on the 2012 article, but it’s so small that I can’t read any of the details.

[bobco85]

I found a map of the 2012 design for the King Street station on the Alexandria website: https://alexandriava.gov/localmotion/info/default.aspx?id=29706

Scroll down and click on the March 7, 2012 presentation. The King Street Station section starts on slide 21 of the presentation. Hopefully it is a little easier to read.

The 2012 design shown does not mention bikeshare, but I do not think CaBi had expanded to there at the time. Overall it looks to be an improvement for pedestrians, though.

[GovernorSilver]

I’ve gotten off at this station during evening rush hour on several occasions. The pedestrian walkway between the metro station and Diagonal Rd. does indeed cross several car/bus lanes, but the majority of motorists seem to behave responsibly there. I have yet to see any reckless driving in that lot. The stream of pedestrians along that walkway to Diagonal can get pretty thick though, so I think motorists don’t have much choice but to be slow and wait out the stream.

I do like the idea of separating the bus and car lanes.

You do indeed have to cross Diagonal to get to the CaBi station. Moving the CaBi station closer to the Metro station entrance might seem more convenient but where it is right now, you could immediately hop onto Diagonal on your CaBi bike instead of having to get your bike through pedestrians, cars, and buses to get to the road, unless they thought up of a clever place to which the CaBi station would be relocated that I didn’t think of.

Semi-random thought: King St. is busy during evening rush hour, but it’s only 1 lane each direction, and there are “trolley” buses and other buses that stop frequently. The combination of the frequently stopping buses and the traffic lights slow down the traffic enough that I suspect King St. might actually be the safer ride all the way to the waterfront than Prince St. (marked as a “bike path” by Google Maps), which is one direction only and two-lanes – lots of commuting drivers, especially from the offices on Eisenhower, use it as a shortcut during rush hour to get to Rt. 1.

[PotomacCyclist]

What about parked cars? Is there a lot of demand for parking at this station? I doubt that people are driving to this station and leaving their cars parked all day, mostly because there is no parking garage there. Based on the Google Maps Street View, there appear to be about 60 car parking spaces, but some of them have already been fenced off.

Has there been an outcry from certain driver groups? I wouldn’t think so, because the station has never been built to provide large amounts of parking for all-day parkers.

[CaseyKane50]

@PotomacCyclist 118679 wrote:

What about parked cars? Is there a lot of demand for parking at this station? I doubt that people are driving to this station and leaving their cars parked all day, mostly because there is no parking garage there. Based on the Google Maps Street View, there appear to be about 60 car parking spaces, but some of them have already been fenced off.

Has there been an outcry from certain driver groups? I wouldn’t think so, because the station has never been built to provide large amounts of parking for all-day parkers.

I have used the parking lot while waiting for my wife when she has taken the subway into the city. I have noticed some cars parked in some of the spaces. The spaces do have meters, but I have not paid attention to how long you can park or the cost.

[PotomacCyclist]

Is the parking lot usually full? Near full?

[GovernorSilver]

@PotomacCyclist 118679 wrote:

What about parked cars? Is there a lot of demand for parking at this station? I doubt that people are driving to this station and leaving their cars parked all day, mostly because there is no parking garage there. Based on the Google Maps Street View, there appear to be about 60 car parking spaces, but some of them have already been fenced off.

Has there been an outcry from certain driver groups? I wouldn’t think so, because the station has never been built to provide large amounts of parking for all-day parkers.

The majority of cars I see there are taxis. The few private cars I’ve seen appear to be there just to pick up people, like a regular Kiss and Ride.

There is a fair amount of on-street parking, albeit with meters, near the station, as well as a parking garage or two. I know there’s one on Diagonal with the entrance/exit right by the pedestrian crosswalk, but I forgot where the next closest one might be.

[CaseyKane50]

@PotomacCyclist 118593 wrote:

The King Street Metro station will be renovated and reconfigured to improve pedestrian safety and the efficiency of transit connections (rail/bus). Construction may not begin until next spring.

I’m not aware of how cyclists would be affected specifically. Any comments on the project?

http://alextimes.com/2015/06/king-street-metro-station-to-undergo-renovation/
“Alexandria Times”, June 19, 2015 article

https://www.alexandrianews.org/2012/alexandria-city-council-approves-king-street-metro-station-re-do/
Alexandria News.org, Mar. 28, 2012 article

Maybe it will include a Bike and Ride Facility as noted in Justin’s video on the College Park facility
http://www.wmata.com/getting_around/bike_ride/bike_and_ride.cfm

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