| • Science | • People | • Locations | • Timeline |
As proposed, the Orange line splits before West Falls Church, leaving 3 stations on the old branch and 12 stations on the new branch. The extension would hug the Dulles Toll Road, running above-ground at-grade, but because of the Toll Road, the train would have exclusive right-of-way. The only significant diversions from the Toll Road are the Tysons stops and the airport stop, where the Metro will alternate between subway and elevated track to maintain the exclusive right-of-way.
Locals had idly talked of a Metro extension to Dulles ever since the Washington Metro began service in 1976, but little came of it until recently. The Dulles Corridor Rapid Transit Project "scoping" process began in April 2000 with a series of meetings with local and federal officials, designed to collect the necessary authorities for the project. Local and federal law required extensive analysis of alternatives -- the two most likely being bus lanes or inaction -- and of the environmental impact. The rail-only line won out. Initial environmental hearings, which closed on August 28, 2002, were positive. The project received formal approval on June 10, 2004 and construction is set to begin in 20052005 is a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). It has been designated: The World Year of Physics The International Year of Microcredit The International Year for Sport and Physical Education The United States Year of Foreign, pending the release of the final environmental impact statement and the Preliminary Engineering orders. The first phase will end at Reston in 2009. Phase 2 will end in 2015.
Station names are not final, and their locations may change slightly during construction.