Proposed Grosvenor Metro Closure Met with Strong Opposition
As a result of a sharp decline of Metrorail ridership over the past 11 months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, unless they receive more federal funding, Metro will need to make service cuts, including 22 station closures. Metro is dealing with a budget deficit of about $210 million, with rail ridership down 90% due to the pandemic.
Rockville Metro Pedestrian Bridge Closed Through Fall
The Rockville Metro Pedestrian Bridge above Rockville Pike is now expected to remain closed through this fall. The bridge has been closed since June 2020, when damaged glass panels along the bridge posed a significant safety concern.
Now, beginning on or about March 1, 2021, Metro is beginning a monthslong rehabilitation of the bridge. In addition to the bridge closure, during construction the accessible parking spaces in the west Kiss & Ride will be temporarily relocated to the south section of the lot.
Metro is providing free shuttle service during the bridge closure. The Shuttle runs between Rockville Station Bus Bay D in the West Bus Loop and the intersection of Monroe Street and East Montgomery Ave (map below). The shuttle runs every 5-10 minutes during Metrorail hours.
Metro reminds all drivers and pedestrians to obey all work zone and parking signage and stay alert so no one gets hurt.
Driver Crashes onto Metrorail Red Line Tracks in Rockville
Featured Photo Courtesy of the Rockville City Police Department
Around 10:20AM Thursday, a driver was trying to turn their Volkswagen into a parking spot in the 1100 block of Rockville Pike when they hit the gas pedal instead of the brake.
Their SUV partially went through a chain link fence and hung, with part of the vehicle blocking the Red Line track from Rockville to Twinbrook.
The driver was assisted by bystanders as well as a Metrorail train operator operating a Red Line train (WMATA Train 104) in the other direction, from Twinbrook to Rockville.
No injuries were reported, however Red Line rail service was impacted.
Rockville City Police and Clarksburg-based Morton’s Towing & Recovery were coordinating with WMATA Metrorail Supervisors for vehicle removal.
As of 11:30 Thursday morning, Red Line Metrorail service was only operational between Glenmont and Grosvenor. Metrorail shuttle buses and Ride On buses were serving as alternate transportation in the MD-355 corridor between Grosvenor and Shady Grove.
Photo Courtesy of Jordan Stubbs
The City of Rockville has moved closer to approving a new Chase Bank with a drive-thru at the site previously occupied by Meixin Supermarket. Meixin Supermarket was a popular Asian market in the area, but it closed about two years ago; the site, located at 460 Hungerford Dr, Rockville, MD 20850, has been vacant ever since.
In August of 2019, Bohler Engineering initially submitted the site plan and pre-application for the proposed Chase Bank at the Meixin site. Planning and development are gradual processes, and last week, Rockville’s Planning Department formally accepted the site plan for the bank, deeming it complete.
The City of Rockville’s Development Review Committee is set to meet in December to continue to formalize the development approval, but it looks like Rockville residents will have one more option for their banking needs in the not-too-distant future.
