Response from State Senator David Harrington

A fellow Cheverly resident received the following from Senator Harrington in response to her concerns about the Cheverly Metro situation:

Hi Katherine,

Having received your message, I contacted the Secretary of Transportation and a member of the board of WMATA regarding the proposed weekend closure of the Cheverly and Morgan Blvd. metro stations. Initially, the Secretary of Transportation was unaware of any closure, but after further review she indicated that there is a proposal and that the department will fight it.

I also contacted one of the two Prince George's County WMATA board members, who indicated that there is no formal proposal, just a collection of staff brainstorming on ways to reduce expenditures. That staff list must be endorsed by the board, after which it would be a serious proposal.

The board member assured me that it was highly unlikely that the weekend Cheverly closure would move from proposal to actual practice. In addition, given the regional makeup of the boards and its practice that any regional board member can veto a proposed service reduction in its area, she further assured me that the Prince George's WMATA members would oppose such a closure.

I hope this is helpful in determining any strategy for addressing this situation. I will certainly work with the Secretary of Transportation and the WMATA board to resist and hopefully defeat any closure proposal.

Sincerely,

David Harrington