Slugging to Potomac from 14th & NY Ave

Apparently, there was some controversy last night (Wed. Sept. 22) regarding slugs travelling to Potomac Mills from 14th & New York. In recent weeks, the afternoon slug line (at 5 p.m.) at 14th and New York going to the Horner Road commuter lot has been anywhere from 15 to 30 people long, sometimes extending to the corner of the block. For the handful of slugs attempting to get to Potomac Mills this poses serious obstacles: (1) drivers may assume most of the riders in the line are going to Horner Rd. because there is no way to distinguish Potomac Mills riders, (2) drivers may call out for Potomac Mills riders, but because they do not see people immediately come out of the line - whether it be because they didn't hear or it just takes them a minute to get to the front - they may change their mind and take the first two Horner Rd. riders, (3) if riders at the back of the line do hear a driver call Potomac Mills it takes time for those riders to assemble a pair and walk to the front and board the vehicle - where by holding up the line of cars waiting for Horner Road riders. It only seems logical that with the Horner Road line growing longer every week, the Potomac Mills riders should be given the opportunity to stand next to the Horner Road line in their own separate line without being criticized or scolded. After all, they are going to an entirely separate lot, off a separate exit ramp from Horner. Its not like Potomac Mills riders are butting the Horner Road line. And, remember that it may be more convenient for some drivers to drop off at Potomac Mills than Horner Road. Please take these statements into consideration before yelling at fellow slugs for trying to be innovative by keeping up with the ever-changing demands of commuting from the 14th and New York line. We all have the same goal; to get home quickly as possible with as little headache as possible.

Two weeks ago I switched from commuting to and from Horner to Potomac Mills because of the parking situation at Horner. Contrary to popular belief getting a ride from DC to Potomac in the afernoon has been easy. I get a ride at around 5 p.m. from 14th and NY with no problems. I am usually at the lot by 5:40 and then I dont have to deal with lines to get out of the lot like I would if I went to Horner Rd. So I may wait to few miutes for a ride in the morning, but the quick afternoon commute is much easier.

I think the idea of having a separate slug line at 14th and NY for Potomac Mills riders is good, for all the reasons koakui stated in the email. I'd love to avoid the parking and traffic problems involved in the Horner lot, if I could be sure of getting rides to Potomac. How do we make it happen?

I agree WB. Until there is a higher volume of people using Potomac it might be a good idea to move the Pentagon line to the same side as the other lines. For example, I arrived looking for a ride to DC this morning. I had to wait a few minutes for a car. But, there was a line of cars (at least 5) waiting for riders to Pentagon. If the Pent line was close to the DC line I would have been flexible to get in a car with two people going to the Pent and then taking the metro into the city.

Does anyone know how to go about a reorganization of the lines at PM? I know when Horner reorganized this summer, this site, PWC officials and the slugs themselves collaborated to determine how to reorganize the lines? Could we get the same initiative going for PM lot? And then promote it on this site? Perhaps by doing this we would relieve some of the congestion at Horner by encouraging use of PM.