County Government doesn’t want a Metro Station in Waldorf.  Instead, the Board of Commissioners, Maryland State and Prince George’s County prefer to create a new Light Rail line from White Plains/Waldorf to Metro’s Branch Avenue station for the tens of thousands of area residents who commute into the District daily. 

“What we are trying to do is fine tune a solution to our commuters’ needs without exacerbating the [growth] situation,” Commissioner Gary Hodge (D) told media representatives on Tuesday.

According to Hodge, the arrival of any sort of “heavy rail” project (like a Metro or MARC) into the county would launch a level of growth and development that neither our infrastructure nor services are ready to handle. 

The commissioner is heavily involved with local transportation studies, and recommends that Light Rail (like Baltimore’s line), with its limited passenger capacity, will carry a useful quantity of southern Maryland commuters without encouraging rampant development.  Light Rail is also a less expensive option than a heavy rail extension. 

Although Light Rail is a cheaper project, funding is still an issue according to Board of Commissioners President, Wayne Cooper (D).  At this point, the Maryland Department of Transportation is only funding a study of the Rt. 301 corridor to identify potential routes for the commuter rail.

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