Thank you for your feedback to our newsletter - we hope you continue to find the information useful and proactive! Along with the construction issues noted below, we have an exciting event coming up on Monday, July 23 in Riverdale Park (scroll down for more information).

If you find the information contained in our newsletter useful, please consider a donation to us (we are a not-for-profit organization). 

As always, if you have any feedback on how we can improve the newsletter, drop us a line at [email protected]. 

CONSTRUCTION NEWS TO KNOW

First Glimpse of the Plymouth Street Tunnel

This week, we are excited to bring you the first look at the Plymouth Street tunnel in Silver Spring! The construction team is excavating from the eastern portal on Arliss Street, next to the Giant Food parking lot, and moving west towards Wayne Avenue.

The Purple Line Transit Constructors (PLTC) team is using the New Austrian Tunneling Method (NATM) to excavate the 40-foot-deep tunnel for the Purple Line. PLTC crews are working 24-hours-a-day, six-days-a-week to excavate and build the tunnel using specialized equipment that would make a toddler giddy including the Liebherr 950 knuckle-boom excavator, Epiroc E2-C 2-boom hydraulic drill jumbo, Normet twin-boom man-lift and Epiroc Scooptram ST-14 for hauling material out of the tunnel.

As of last week, the excavation was approximately 30 feet into the tunnel. To give you some perspective on how much work remains to be done, the tunnel will be roughly 1,400 feet once complete!

Demolition of Mega Super Market

On July 6, crews began demolishing the former Mega Super Market at the intersection of University Boulevard and Piney Branch Road. If you’re old enough, you may also remember this building as the home of Fontana’s Bowlarama, a duckpin bowling alley, which closed its doors in 1994.

The property is being demolished in order to accommodate the future Piney Branch Road station stop. The station will be located in the median of University Boulevard, directly across from where the Mega Super Market stood.

Work Begins on Wayne Avenue

A few days before Independence Day, PLTC began clearing trees at the site of the Silver Spring International Middle School on Wayne Avenue in order to reconfigure and reconstruct the parking lots at the school.

In addition to the parking lot reconstruction, PLTC will be locating a traction power substation (TPSS) on the property which will provide power to the Purple Line trains. TPSSs are used to convert electrical power supplied by Pepco to a form suitable for the trains. The TPSSs will be located approximately every two miles along the Purple Line route. Interestingly enough, PLTC’s design allowed for fewer TPSSs than were originally planned by the state.

Once the trees are removed, crews will begin excavating and grading the middle parking lot area at the school. The parking lots are expected to reopen before students return to school in the fall, and construction will resume in the summer of 2019.

Want More Construction News?

As you know, Purple Line NOW is a nonprofit advocacy organization - we are not the entity constructing the project (that would be the Purple Line Transit Partners), though we do work closely with them to keep abreast of the latest news. Our mission is to help get answers for you as questions bubble up. Send us an email at [email protected] and we'll connect you with the folks who can give you the information you need. In the meantime, if you haven't already done so, you should sign up for Purple Line construction updates from MTA - you'll receive timely and location specific information for your residence or place of work.

PURPLE LINE NOW NEWS AND EVENTS

Have You Reserved Your Seat for the Next Purple Line NOW Forum?

The next forum is at the Park and Planning Building in Riverdale Park on Monday, July 23, 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm. The event is free and open to the public and media, but you'll need to reserve your seat as space is limited to the first 100 folks. We are thrilled that the new CEO of the Purple Line Transit Partners, Fred Craig, will join us as a speaker, along with Prince George's County Council Chair, Dannielle Glaros, and Director of the Purple Line Corridor Coalition, Gerrit Knaap. 

PURPLE LINE NOW ACTION

Become a Sponsor

Please take a moment, especially if you haven't given this year, to become a sponsor of our Envisioning the Purple Line series. Your name or your business name will be highlighted at all of the fora in the Envisioning the Purple Line series, as well on our website, for one year following your donation. Sponsoring is easy - and we are appreciative of all donations, large and small. Here's the link to get you started: Yes, I'll help Purple Line NOW!

Get Connected!

Make sure you are signed up for timely alerts from Purple Line NOW via our Twitter and Facebook pages, and at our website: Purple Line NOW.

The next forum is at the Park and Planning Building in Riverdale Park (6600 Kenilworth Avenue, Riverdale Park, MD 20737) on Monday, July 23, 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm.

We have a terrific slate of speakers for this educational event including the new CEO of the Purple Line Transit Partners, Fred Craig, Prince George's County Council Chair, Dannielle Glaros, and the Director of the Purple Line Corridor Coalition, Dr. Gerrit-Jan Knaap.

Please forward this email to anyone who may be interested in attending - it promises to be a very informative evening!

The event is free and open to the public and media, but you'll need to reserve your seat as space is limited to the first 100 folks. You can reserve your seat by clicking on this link: Save Me a Seat!

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Please take a moment to become a sponsor.

In order for us to continue this informative series, we rely on your donations. Your sponsorship of this signature series is an ideal opportunity to connect with project stakeholders, as well as key leaders and community organizers.

If you support the Purple Line - this is a terrific way to let the community know it!

As you know, Purple Line NOW operates on a bare bones budget - and we spend every dime we raise to make sure the project is the best it can be by providing educational opportunities along with many other efforts for those communities along the Purple Line route. These efforts include testifying before local, state, and federal entities as well as providing regular information regarding the progress and any major developments through our website, Twitter, and Facebook.

Please take a moment to join these amazing and generous sponsors, especially if you haven't given this year. Your name or your business name will be highlighted at all of the fora in the Envisioning the Purple Line series, as well as on our website, for one year following your donation.

Sponsorship is easy - and we are appreciative of all donations, large and small!  Here's the link to get you started: Yes, I'll help Purple Line NOW!

With sincere thanks for all you do for us!

The next forum is at the Park and Planning Building in Riverdale Park (6600 Kenilworth Avenue, Riverdale Park, MD 20737) on Monday, July 23, 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm.

We have a terrific slate of speakers for this educational event including the new CEO of the Purple Line Transit Partners, Fred Craig, Prince George's County Council Chair, Dannielle Glaros, and the Director of the Purple Line Corridor Coalition, Dr. Gerrit-Jan Knaap. Please feel free to forward this email to anyone who may be interested in attending - it promises to be a very informative evening!

The event is free and open to the public and media, but you'll need to reserve your seat as space is limited to the first 100 folks.

You can reserve your seat by clicking on this link: Save Me a Seat!

*************

Will You Be a Sponsor?

In order for us to continue this informative series, we rely on your donations. Your sponsorship of this signature series is an ideal opportunity to connect with project stakeholders, as well as key leaders and community organizers.

If you support the Purple Line - this is a terrific way to let the community know it!

As you know, Purple Line NOW operates on a bare bones budget - and we spend every dime we raise to make sure the project is the best it can be by providing educational opportunities along with many other efforts for those communities along the Purple Line route. These efforts include testifying before local, state, and federal entities as well as providing regular information regarding the progress and any major developments through our website, Twitter, and Facebook.

Please take a moment, especially if you haven't given this year, to become a sponsor. Your name or your business name will be highlighted at all of the fora in the Envisioning the Purple Line series, as well as on our website, for one year following your donation.

Sponsorship is easy - and we are appreciative of all donations, large and small! Here's the link to get you started: Yes, I'll help Purple Line NOW!

With sincere thanks for all you do for us!

After yesterday's Maryland primary, much of the focus of the news these past few weeks has been on the candidates, campaigns, and the results. We know there's a lot to read today for those tracking local news, so we will focus mainly on construction, which has been making strides since our first update.

We have been glad to hear back from our readers, particularly those nearby construction areas, and will keep working to connect community members with existing information when available or government or concessionaire officials when helpful. As ever, if you have any feedback on how we can improve the newsletter, drop us a line at [email protected]. 

CONSTRUCTION NEWS TO KNOW

Manchester Place Station, Today and Tomorrow

Excavation is proceeding for the three-tenths of a mile Plymouth Street tunnel. The tunnel, necessary because of the significant hills in the area, will also serve as the location of the Manchester Place Station, allowing easy access to the Purple Line for the wide range of housing nearby.

The picture above shows the present dig site while the artist rendering below shows the planned station once the line has begun operations in 2022.

For more artist renderings, maps, and efforts to minimize disruption, see this focused briefing from 2017, and for the bigger picture see the Community Advisory Team presentation notes for Long Branch.

Work to Replace Lyttonsville Place Bridge has Begun

The 6-month closure of Lyttonsville bridge began on June 18th. As pictures show, demolition work is already underway and the concessionaire has announced that the demolition work will continue into the weekend this Saturday, June 30 from 9 am-5 pm.

Replacing the bridge is necessary to allow for the construction of the Lyttonsville Purple Line station and to allow for trains and the Capital Crescent Trail, as well as improving pedestrian access. For more pictures, see Dave Dildine's coverage at WTOP and for details about next steps and the final result, see the Community Advisory Team for Woodside/Lyttonsville.

During the construction of the replacement bridge, drivers are encouraged to use the detour pictured below to get around the closure.

Want More Construction News?

As you know, Purple Line NOW is a nonprofit advocacy organization - we are not the entity constructing the project (that would be the Purple Line Transit Partners), though we do work closely with them to keep abreast of the latest news. Our mission is to help get answers for you as questions bubble up. Send us an email at [email protected] and we'll connect you with the folks who can give you the information you need. In the meantime, if you haven't already done so, you should sign up for Purple Line construction updates from MTA - you'll receive timely and location specific information for your residence or place of work.

PURPLE LINE NOW NEWS AND EVENTS

Next Envisioning the Purple Line Forum Announced!

The next forum is at the Park and Planning Building in Riverdale Park on Monday, July 23, 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm. Watch your email for a special invitation coming soon - the event is free and open to the public, but you'll need to reserve your seat as space is limited to the first 100 folks. We are thrilled that the new CEO of the Purple Line Transit Partners, Fred Craig, will join us as a speaker along with Prince George's County Council Chair, Dannielle Glaros, and Director of the Purple Line Corridor Coalition, Gerrit Knaap. We are working on the full slate of speakers right now and will announce them soon, but do put the date on your calendar now!

PURPLE LINE NOW ACTION

Get Connected!

Make sure you are signed up for timely alerts from Purple Line NOW via our Twitter and Facebook pages, and at our website: Purple Line NOW.

Become a Sponsor

Please take a moment, especially if you haven't given this year, to become a sponsor of our Envisioning the Purple Line series. Your name or your business name will be highlighted at all of the fora in the Envisioning the Purple Line series this year, as well on our website. Sponsoring is easy - and we are appreciative of all donations, large and small. Here's the link to get you started: Yes, I'll help Purple Line NOW!