Dulles Airport Metro Station location

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because Americans are too cheap to build functioning infrastructure.

Yup. OP, that was a bad decision made years and years ago. A station actually at the terminal would have cost another $330 million, and evidently that was too much to pay for a station that was actually convenient for travelers.

Hah. No. The airport metro is for staff and commuters to use. Actual travelers are not taking a 70 minute train ride from DC with luggage.

The original problem was where Dulles was built.

That's absurd. Of course actual travelers will do that. Maybe not you, but there are plenty of people who aren't you.

I definitely plan to - especially for long international flights.

Walking to the metro from my DC house and then getting on a flight to Paris or Hong Kong after sitting on a train (for just $3!) is going to be so sweet.

Reagan is nice but international flights need a bigger airport.

This is going to change how I see Dulles for regular flights. DCA is my first choice; BWI my second. But as soon as the metro opens up to Dulles, it will be my second choice. I can take the silver line all the way out there without changing. Beats the "metro to MARC/Amtrak to a bus" slog to BWI.

Completely agree.

Also the BWI Amtrak stop isn't anywhere NEAR the airport, and is creepy as f at night. I avoid anytime after dark falls.

Not to mention the fact that Amtrak trains back to DC are really limited -- so I've ended up waiting an hour for the next one.

Dulles (after the Spring 2020 completion of the station) will be my #2 flight stop. Maybe even #1, I just found a RT ticket to Paris for $350 from there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because Americans are too cheap to build functioning infrastructure.

Yup. OP, that was a bad decision made years and years ago. A station actually at the terminal would have cost another $330 million, and evidently that was too much to pay for a station that was actually convenient for travelers.

Hah. No. The airport metro is for staff and commuters to use. Actual travelers are not taking a 70 minute train ride from DC with luggage.

The original problem was where Dulles was built.

That's absurd. Of course actual travelers will do that. Maybe not you, but there are plenty of people who aren't you.

I definitely plan to - especially for long international flights.

Walking to the metro from my DC house and then getting on a flight to Paris or Hong Kong after sitting on a train (for just $3!) is going to be so sweet.

Reagan is nice but international flights need a bigger airport.

This is going to change how I see Dulles for regular flights. DCA is my first choice; BWI my second. But as soon as the metro opens up to Dulles, it will be my second choice. I can take the silver line all the way out there without changing. Beats the "metro to MARC/Amtrak to a bus" slog to BWI.

Completely agree.

Also the BWI Amtrak stop isn't anywhere NEAR the airport, and is creepy as f at night. I avoid anytime after dark falls.

Not to mention the fact that Amtrak trains back to DC are really limited -- so I've ended up waiting an hour for the next one.

Dulles (after the Spring 2020 completion of the station) will be my #2 flight stop. Maybe even #1, I just found a RT ticket to Paris for $350 from there.

Sorry I meant MARC trains are really limited. But Amtrak trains aren't much better and even then they go up $70 for a trip which is ridiculous. Defeats the purpose of flying out of BWI.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So I've been away for many years and just flew into Dulles on a business trip back to DC for the first time in nearly a decade. I saw the new construction for the Metro station, but was utterly shocked to see the location.

Why the heck is it so far from the terminal? That's an absolutely ridiculous hike with luggage. I'm shocked it's not on top of the hourly parking or even directly linked into the terminal. Was there any controversy when they build this?

Just makes no sense.

Because Virginia doesn't want to pay for anything. Specifically, they not only didn't want to pay for the Silver Line to run underground through Tysons and they didn't want to pay any more to have the Dulles metro station within walking distance.

Because Virginia blows.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Hah. No. The airport metro is for staff and commuters to use. Actual travelers are not taking a 70 minute train ride from DC with luggage.

Yes, they will, moron.

[Anonymous]

When Dulles was built, it was anticipated that mass transit would terminate there, like it does in Cleveland.

Alas.

[Anonymous]

If you work downtown, this makes Dulles a much more reasonable option. Still won’t be like National, but a 40 minute train ride, mostly outside, is better than fighting traffic until you get on the access road.

[Anonymous]

And BWI is practically in Baltimore and Amtrak is expensive.
We used to fly constantly [family, individual, business] etc and some of us still fly multiple times per month.

Dulles has a major advantage over National for take-offs and landings. More airspace for flight paths which equates to less steep and curving ascents and descents. We've had Dulles flights on small jets and props smoother than great weather days at National. Flew so much that anecdotally on FL flights could gage the screaming children for airports.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/lists/revealed-the-hardest-us-airports-to-land-at/

[Anonymous]

They should have made the station closer. The amount that would have cost compared to the amount for the whole project. Just do it right.

[Anonymous]

Where are you folks getting 40 minutes on metro?

Right now at 6 am, it’s a 40 min metro ride from metro center to Reston.

At rush hour, it will easily be 70 minutes.

So a family of 4 is going to schlep their luggage on a crowded train? No.

Business travelers whose business will pay for an Uber from downtown? No.

I drive to Dulles all the time. With HOT lanes 66 is never crowded and access road is fast.

Young singletons that used to take the 5A? Sure they will be on the train.

Agree though, Amtrak at BWI is the stuff of nightmares.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:And BWI is practically in Baltimore and Amtrak is expensive.
We used to fly constantly [family, individual, business] etc and some of us still fly multiple times per month.

Dulles has a major advantage over National for take-offs and landings. More airspace for flight paths which equates to less steep and curving ascents and descents. We've had Dulles flights on small jets and props smoother than great weather days at National. Flew so much that anecdotally on FL flights could gage the screaming children for airports.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/lists/revealed-the-hardest-us-airports-to-land-at/

BWI is 33 miles. Dulles is 27 miles. Neither is close.

[Anonymous]

Because the entire process to plan and build the metro took so long the float exploded. The initial plan was to have the metro underground, then they waivered on it and there was.m a big public push to have it underground (remember the slogan “it’s not over until it’s under”). Then there was some allegations about a consultant who was related to one of the board members being awarded a contract to analyze this project being paid to much. It was just a complete governmental shitshow.


We moved here in 2000 and that was when they were discussing the potential for a silver line to Dulles. And here we are in 2019 and it still isn’t finished.

[Anonymous]

PP here, sorry for typos. My autocorrect blows.

[Anonymous]

It should have been a VRE commuter line. Stop in Tysons, Arlington and L’Enfant

Bigger trains lots of seats and 20 min ride every 20 minutes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Because the entire process to plan and build the metro took so long the float exploded. The initial plan was to have the metro underground, then they waivered on it and there was.m a big public push to have it underground (remember the slogan “it’s not over until it’s under”). Then there was some allegations about a consultant who was related to one of the board members being awarded a contract to analyze this project being paid to much. It was just a complete governmental shitshow.


We moved here in 2000 and that was when they were discussing the potential for a silver line to Dulles. And here we are in 2019 and it still isn’t finished.

I do wonder why this W&OD "park" wasn't simply reactivated as a rail line with connectors built to hook in to metro and Dulles. Would it have been more cost effective? https://www.novaparks.com/parks/washington-and-old-dominion-railroad-regional-park

https://www.novaparks.com/sites/default/files/styles/full_width/public/maps/W%26OD.jpg?itok=521m3s86

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They should have made the station closer. The amount that would have cost compared to the amount for the whole project. Just do it right.

Have you ever even been in Dulles? You do 20x the walking inside of it. The station is remarkably close. I completely don't understand your claim.

Also, I've learned there are two types of people:
1) the people who go to the gate and just sit and wait.
2) the people who know they're going to be sitting on a plane for a couple of hours, and want to move as much as they can before hours of sitting, choosing to walk more when they don't.