Solution To Old Hechinger's Filling Up

Admin: I think a separate 14th/18th/LEF line at 95/123 would be fine too, but I doubt a 14th/18th/LEF line at 95/123 will be able to compete head-to-head with OH at the same time. OH is simply more convenient and established. That is why I suggested that at a certain time (at which OH will typically be filled) slugs and drivers switch over to 95/123.

To add to my earlier post, and to respond to an earlier post, I don't think is a good solution at all for slugs to park at 95/123 and walk to OH to get a ride. Too dangerous.

I am a regular OH driver in the AM. I think the change at Potomac Mills has casued a lot of folks who might normally slug to start driving. I have noticed a lot more cars in line at OH around 8:00 and after. I usually pick up b/w 8:00 8:15. I would be happy to go straight the 95/123 lot and get slugs instead of waiting in a long line at OH for random slugs to trickle in even when there is no parking left. I would guess at around 8:30, no drivers are getting slugs at OH. Maybe the best solution is to state a time, say 8 AM, at which the OH slug line switches to 95/123. The trick seems to be get a system in place so slugs/drivers know what to do and don't continue to cling to OH at times when it clearly won't work becasue all the spots are gone.

Yes, the message board was down almost all day yesterday as a result of an "upgrade" to a newer server. It appears that all the kinks have been worked out now!

Sorry for the inconvenience!

Checkers,

You're "spot on" with the history of sluggin' at Springfield.

Once upon a time, there was a bus stop across Old Keene Mill Rd from the old Bob's Big Boy Restaurant, the 1970's oil crisis hit, Virginia opened the bus-only express lanes to 4-person carpools during rush hours, drivers wanting to use these lanes to save commuting time stopped at the bus stop and offered rides to the bus commuters to meet the 4-in-a-car carpool requirement --- and sluggin' was borne!

The offering of morning rides concept spread to other bus stops further west in Springfield and Burke. Commuter lots (like Rolling Valley) were built with bus service -- and sluggin' expanded to them.

As the I-95 HOV lanes extended southward, more commuter lots with bus service were established; in the early 90s the 4-person requirement was changed to 3-people-in a car; and somewhere in the history, certain vehicles (motorcycles, law enforcement, taxis with a fare, some SOV clean fuel vehicles, etc.) were given exemptions to use the HOV lanes during rush hours with less than 3 aboard -- and we now have sluggin' as it exists today. [:)]

(As a side note - There's a similar history about drivers originally getting riders from the afternoon bus lines at the Pentagon and downtown for the evening rides home. Later, there were increases in the number and some formal designations of afternoon slug lines, and there have also been some relocations of some of these slug lines.)

Not a perfect system -- but pretty dang efficient.

I-95 High-Occupancy Toll (HOT) lanes (where 3-person carpools are supposed to ride at no charge) will be the next chapter in this history. Stay tuned.

A disclaimer: That's the history as passed to me by other Burke/Springfield commuters who have been commuting as long as, or longer than, I have (since early 1986). If it's not accurate, please post any corrections.

(By the way, what happened to this Message Board yesterday? It wouldn't open for most of the day and displayed an error message.)

I would love to park over there and slug to either 14th or 18th street. But no drivers want pick up or drop off there to really get it started.

quote:

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Originally posted by Admin

Even with leaving the 14th/18th/L'Enfant at Potomac Mills we (slugging community) may need to expand to the 123 lot. As you said, it is very very close.

So, do you 14th/18th/L'Enfant slugs support that? We can set a date and I can help promote it, but only if slugs want to do this.

Let me know how I can help!

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