144-676: The Red Line is a proposed light rail line for Baltimore , Maryland . The original project was granted federal approval to enter the preliminary engineering phase and the Maryland Transit Administration had spent roughly $ 300 million in planning, design and land acquisition, until Maryland Governor Larry Hogan declared his intent to not provide state funds for the project and shift state funding to roads in suburban areas. The original Red Line had been projected to cost roughly $ 1.6 billion, $ 900 million of which would have been guaranteed federal funding. Its construction had been estimated to begin in late 2015–early 2016, subject to funding, with
288-459: A Kennedyesque way. He's considered something of a loose cannon at City Council meetings, where the sight of him rising from his chair and clearing his through causes half the room to lean forward in anticipation O'Malley announced his decision to run for Mayor of Baltimore in 1999, after incumbent Kurt Schmoke decided not to seek re-election to a third term. His entrance into the race was greatly unexpected, and he faced initial difficulties as
432-429: A bus rapid transit (BRT) solution with separate right-of-way components like Boston 's Silver Line , while the city officials favored a light rail or heavy rail line and insisted that both modes of rail transit be included in studies. Heavy rail was dismissed by Flanagan as an alternative, due to an estimated cost of $ 2.2 billion to $ 2.6 billion. With ridership of Baltimore's existing Metro system at only 45,000 at
576-724: A "light rail" vehicle (it is a heavy rail vehicle), and is only included for comparison purposes. Low-floor LRVs have the advantage of a low-floor design, allowing them to load passengers directly from low-rise platforms that can be little more than raised curbs. High-floor light rail systems also exist, featuring larger stations. Historically, the track gauge has had considerable variations, with narrow gauge common in many early systems. However, most light rail systems are now standard gauge . Older standard-gauge vehicles could not negotiate sharp turns as easily as narrow-gauge ones, but modern light rail systems achieve tighter turning radii by using articulated cars . An important advantage of
720-687: A 2011 lawsuit filed by the Waterkeeper Alliance, Inc. against Perdue Farms , a poultry agribusiness corporation based in Maryland. The lawsuit accused Perdue of allowing run-off phosphorus pollution from one of its contact farms into Chesapeake Bay . In 2014, he also promised to veto the Poultry Fair Share Act which would require poultry companies in Maryland to pay taxes to clean up the Chesapeake Bay equal to
864-429: A Zero-Waste future for Maryland, but the plan was later cancelled by O'Malley's successor Larry Hogan in 2017 "in response to complaints from local governments. O'Malley, a long-time opponent of capital punishment , signed a bill on May 2, 2013, that repealed capital punishment in Maryland for all future offenders. Although the repeal did not affect the five inmates then on death row in Maryland, O'Malley commuted
1008-411: A budget ax, he is attacking America's cities. He is attacking our metropolitan core." For this he was criticized by not only Republicans but fellow Democrats, and in a subsequent interview said he "in no way intended to equate these budget cuts, however bad, to a terrorist attack." O'Malley's data-forward approach extended beyond policing, affecting many other areas of city management. An example of this
1152-458: A bus, there will be even more capacity when there is a combination of cars and light rail. Table 3 shows an example of peak passenger capacity. The cost of light rail construction varies widely, largely depending on the amount of tunneling and elevated structures required. A survey of North American light rail projects shows that costs of most LRT systems range from $ 15 million to over $ 100 million per mile. Seattle's new light rail system
1296-403: A chaotic breakdown inflow and a dramatic drop in speed (a traffic jam ) if they exceed about 2,000 vehicles per hour per lane (each car roughly two seconds behind another). Since most people who drive to work or on business trips do so alone, studies show that the average car occupancy on many roads carrying commuters is only about 1.5 people per car during the high-demand rush hour periods of
1440-571: A collaborative effort between the MTA and the public in finding the best ways to invest over a billion dollars in Baltimore's transportation infrastructure in keeping with the vision of the 2002 Plan." A recommendation for Alternative 4C (light rail with a downtown tunnel and a Cooks Lane tunnel) was approved by a vote of five to two at the Citizens' Advisory Council meeting on December 11, 2008. Two of
1584-1142: A common right-of-way (however, Link converted to full separation in 2019). Some systems, such as the AirTrain JFK in New York City, the DLR in London, and Kelana Jaya Line in Kuala Lumpur , have dispensed with the need for an operator. The Vancouver SkyTrain was an early adopter of driverless vehicles, while the Toronto Scarborough rapid transit operated the same trains as Vancouver, but used drivers. In most discussions and comparisons, these specialized systems are generally not considered light rail but as light metro systems. Around Karlsruhe , Kassel , and Saarbrücken in Germany, dual-voltage light rail trains partly use mainline railroad tracks, sharing these tracks with heavy rail trains. In
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#17327831715761728-545: A completion date set for late 2021–early 2022. While campaigning for governor, Hogan characterized the project as a " boondoggle ". Hogan's shift of state priorities to road funding has resulted in the construction of several major projects near properties owned by his company, leading to allegations of corruption. The Red Line cancellation was briefly investigated by the United States Department of Transportation for being in possible violation of Title VI of
1872-505: A councilman, O'Malley advocated for many reforms. During the 1992 Democratic Party presidential primaries , he served as the Maryland coordinator for the presidential campaign of Nebraska U.S. Senator Bob Kerrey . In 1996, O'Malley became a chief ally of City Council President Lawrence Bell at a time when Bell was engaged in a power-struggle with Mayor Kurt Schmoke . Fellow 3rd district councilor Joan Carter Conway joined O'Malley in aligning with Bell's positions on key votes. However,
2016-466: A few days after being diagnosed with clinical depression and endorsed O'Malley, who thus became the Democratic Party nominee with no primary opposition, challenging incumbent Bob Ehrlich . He selected Delegate Anthony Brown of Prince George's County as his running mate for lieutenant governor . The Baltimore Sun endorsed O'Malley, saying: "When he was first elected mayor in 1999,
2160-411: A high school in Maryland for three years, and if they or their parents have paid state income taxes during that time. In response, Delegate Neil Parrott created an online petition to suspend the law pending a referendum to be voted on in the 2012 general election . On November 6, 2012, a majority (58%) of state voters passed referendum Question 4 in support of the law O'Malley had signed. During
2304-439: A key swing state in recent presidential elections. O'Malley's prominence at the convention generated both support for, and criticism of, his record. U.S. Senator Ben Cardin and Howard County Executive Ken Ulman praised his speech, with Ulman saying, "To borrow a catchphrase from his address, his career is moving forward, not back." O'Malley publicly expressed interest in a presidential run in 2016 on multiple occasions. At
2448-525: A landslide 56%-42%, receiving just over a million votes. Due to term limits , he was unable to run for a third term in 2014. O'Malley called a special session of the General Assembly in November 2007 to close a projected budget deficit of $ 1.7 billion for 2008–2009, in which he and other lawmakers passed a tax plan that would raise total state tax collections by 14%. In April 2009, he signed
2592-416: A light rail train may have three to four cars of much larger capacity in one train under the control of one driver, or no driver at all in fully automated systems, increasing the labor costs of BRT systems compared to LRT systems. BRT systems are also usually less fuel-efficient as they use non-electrified vehicles. The peak passenger capacity per lane per hour depends on which types of vehicles are allowed on
2736-435: A live rail. In outer areas, the trams switch to conventional overhead wires . The Bordeaux power system costs about three times as much as a conventional overhead wire system and took 24 months to achieve acceptable levels of reliability, requiring the replacement of all the main cables and power supplies. Operating and maintenance costs of the innovative power system still remain high. However, despite numerous service outages,
2880-543: A longer distance. Light rail cars are often coupled into multiple units of two to four cars. Light rail systems may also exhibit attributes of heavy rail systems, including having downtown subways, as in San Francisco and Seattle . Light rail is designed to address a gap in interurban transportation between heavy rail and bus services, carrying high passenger numbers more quickly than local buses and more cheaply than heavy rail. It serves corridors in which heavy rail
3024-570: A lower capacity and speed than a long heavy rail passenger train or rapid transit system. Narrowly defined, light rail transit uses rolling stock that is similar to that of a traditional tram, while operating at a higher capacity and speed, often on an exclusive right-of-way. In broader use, it includes tram-like operations mostly on streets. A few light rail networks have characteristics closer to rapid transit or even commuter rail , yet only when these systems are fully grade-separated are they referred to as light metros . The term light rail
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#17327831715763168-642: A more diverse range of design characteristics than LRT, depending on the demand and constraints that exist, and BRT using dedicated lanes can have a theoretical capacity of over 30,000 passengers per hour per direction (for example, the Guangzhou Bus Rapid Transit system operates up to 350 buses per hour per direction). For the effective operation of a bus or BRT system, buses must have priority at traffic lights and have their dedicated lanes, especially as bus frequencies exceed 30 buses per hour per direction. The higher theoretical of BRT relates to
3312-688: A press conference in Milwaukee, Wisconsin , and at a National Governors Association meeting in August 2013, he admitted he was laying "the framework" for a presidential run. In October 2014, he discussed some of his potential policies as president during a panel discussion with Paul Hawken and Tom Steyer . In April 2015, he said he expected to make a decision on the race by the end of May. After months of consideration, O'Malley indicated on Twitter that he would announce his candidacy on May 30, 2015, at Baltimore's historic Federal Hill Park , overlooking
3456-407: A result, has many of the operating characteristics of a metro system rather than a light rail system. A capacity of 1,350 passengers per train is more similar to the heavy rail than light rail. Bus rapid transit (BRT) is an alternative to LRT and many planning studies undertake a comparison of each mode when considering appropriate investments in transit corridor development. BRT systems can exhibit
3600-709: A routine mission. Thomas later became a Montgomery County –based criminal defense lawyer, and an assistant United States Attorney for the District of Columbia . O'Malley attended the Our Lady of Lourdes School in Bethesda and Gonzaga College High School . He graduated from the Catholic University of America in 1985. Later that year, he enrolled in the University of Maryland School of Law , on
3744-808: A small parking lot from the original Alternative 4C plans, but included an expansion of parking at the West Baltimore MARC station. Two features of the original Alternative 4C plan, considered important by the Citizens Advisory Council, remained part of the Locally Preferred Alternative: With the Federal Transit Administration's approval in June 2011 to start preliminary engineering, the project made its first step beyond
3888-445: A statistics-based tracking system called "CitiStat", modeled after Compstat , a crime-management program first employed in the mid-1990s in New York City. The system logged every call for service into a database for analysis. The Washington Post wrote in 2006 that Baltimore's "homicide rate remains stubbornly high and its public school test scores disappointingly low. But CitiStat has saved an estimated $ 350 million and helped generate
4032-534: A top speed of 55–71.5 miles per hour (88.51–115.1 km/h) depending on the system, while the trains on the all-underground Montreal Metro can only reach a top speed of 72 kilometres per hour (44.74 mph). LACMTA light rail vehicles have higher top and average speeds than Montreal Metro or New York City Subway trains. Many light rail systems—even fairly old ones—have a combination of both on- and off-road sections. In some countries (especially in Europe), only
4176-481: A tramway, a light metro, and, in a narrow sense, rapid transit. This is especially common in the United States, where there is not a popularly perceived distinction between these different types of urban rail systems. The development of technology for low-floor and catenary-free trams facilitates the construction of such mixed systems with only short and shallow underground sections below critical intersections as
4320-477: A unified branding scheme for the existing lines and the proposed new lines, identifying each line by a color, as the Washington Metro and many other transit agencies do. The suggested system was composed of six color-coded lines with an overall length of 109 miles (175 km) and 122 stations, including Baltimore's existing Metro SubwayLink and Light RailLink systems. In the commission's report,
4464-432: Is "very much like Bill Clinton in being slow and deliberative and calculating in everything he does." Speculation about O'Malley's plans was further fueled by his high profile at the 2012 Democratic National Convention , where he was given a prime-time speaking slot on the second night and spoke to delegations from several states including Iowa , where the first presidential caucuses are held in election years, and Ohio ,
Red Line (Baltimore) - Misplaced Pages Continue
4608-565: Is a form of passenger urban rail transit that uses rolling stock derived from tram technology while also having some features from heavy rapid transit . The term was coined in 1972 in the United States as an English equivalent for the German word Stadtbahn , meaning "city railway". Different definitions exist in some countries, but in the United States, light rail operates primarily along exclusive rights-of-way and uses either individual tramcars or multiple units coupled together, with
4752-470: Is a generic international English phrase for types of rail systems using modern streetcars/trams, which means more or less the same thing throughout the English-speaking world . Light rail systems can range from trams runnig in streets along with other traffic, to semi-metro systems having portions of grade separated track. People movers are even "lighter", in terms of capacity. Monorail
4896-632: Is a reasonable likelihood of the fetus' sustained survival outside the uterus, which on average is 22–24 weeks. After O'Malley stood in for 2008 Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton at a Democratic campaign event on June 2, 2007, in New Hampshire , Maryland's Republican House Minority Leader Tony O'Donnell said in response, "It's the worst-kept secret in Maryland that the governor has national ambitions." State Senate President Thomas V. Miller Jr. said O'Malley's political future "comes into play in everything he does", adding O'Malley
5040-575: Is a separate technology that has been more successful in specialized services than in a commuter transit role. The use of the generic term light rail avoids some serious incompatibilities between British and American English . The word tram , for instance, is generally used in the UK and many former British colonies to refer to what is known in North America as a streetcar , but in North America tram can instead refer to an aerial tramway , or, in
5184-602: Is a significant amount of overlap between the technologies; similar rolling stock may be used for either, and it is common to classify streetcars or trams as a subcategory of light rail rather than as a distinct type of transportation. However, some distinctions can be made, though systems may combine elements of both. Low-floor light rail lines tend to follow a reserved right-of-way and with trains receiving priority at intersections, and tend not to operate in mixed traffic, enabling higher operating speeds. Light rail lines tend to have less frequent stops than tramways, and operate over
5328-563: Is by far the most expensive in the US, at $ 179 million per mile, since it includes extensive tunneling in poor soil conditions, elevated sections, and stations as deep as 180 feet (55 m) below ground level. This results in costs more typical of subways or rapid transit systems than light rail. At the other end of the scale, four systems (Baltimore, Maryland; Camden, New Jersey; Sacramento, California; and Salt Lake City, Utah) incurred construction costs of less than $ 20 million per mile. Over
5472-426: Is especially important for wheelchair access, as narrower gauges (e.g. metre gauge) can make it challenging or impossible to pass the tram's wheels. Furthermore, standard-gauge rolling stock can be switched between networks either temporarily or permanently, and both newly built and used standard-gauge rolling stock tends to be cheaper to buy, as more companies offer such vehicles. Overhead lines supply electricity to
5616-502: Is expensive. Similarly, the most expensive US highway expansion project was the " Big Dig " in Boston, Massachusetts, which cost $ 200 million per lane mile for a total cost of $ 14.6 billion. A light rail track can carry up to 20,000 people per hour as compared with 2,000–2,200 vehicles per hour for one freeway lane. For example, in Boston and San Francisco, light rail lines carry 9,600 and 13,100 passengers per hour, respectively, in
5760-575: Is hard to distinguish between what is called light rail, and other forms of urban and commuter rail. A system described as a light rail in one city may be considered to be a streetcar or tram system in another. Conversely, some lines that are called "light rail" are very similar to rapid transit ; in recent years, new terms such as light metro have been used to describe these medium-capacity systems. Some "light rail" systems, such as Sprinter , bear little similarity to urban rail, and could alternatively be classified as commuter rail or even inter-city rail. In
5904-559: Is impractical. Light metro systems are essentially hybrids of light rail and rapid transit. Metro trains are larger and faster than light rail trains, with stops being further apart. Many systems have mixed characteristics. Indeed, with proper engineering, a rail line could run along a street, then go underground, and then run along an elevated viaduct. For example, the Los Angeles Metro Rail 's A Line "light rail" has sections that could alternatively be described as
Red Line (Baltimore) - Misplaced Pages Continue
6048-484: Is one of the highest capacity ones, having been upgraded in a series of expansions to handle 40,000 passengers per hour per direction, and having carried as many as 582,989 passengers in a single day on its Line 1 . It achieves this volume by running four-car trains with a capacity of up to 1,350 passengers each at a frequency of up to 30 trains per hour. However, the Manila light rail system has full grade separation and as
6192-522: The Civil Rights Act of 1964 , since his decision shifted a large quantity of state money from predominantly Black and low-income neighborhoods into affluent and predominantly white areas, but the investigation was closed with no finding. The project was classed as inactive; however, after several groups continued to campaign for its construction, the State, under Governor Wes Moore , brought back
6336-542: The Cádiz TramBahia , where trams share track with commuter and long-distance trains from the main terminus in the city and curve off to serve cities without a railway connection. Some of the issues involved in such schemes are: There is a history of what would now be considered light rail vehicles operating on heavy rail rapid transit tracks in the US, especially in the case of interurban streetcars . Notable examples are Lehigh Valley Transit trains running on
6480-740: The Democratic National Committee in 2025 , seeking to succeed Jaime Harrison . Martin Joseph O'Malley was born on January 18, 1963, in Washington, D.C., the son of Barbara (née Suelzer) and Thomas Martin O'Malley. Martin's father served as a bombardier in the U.S. Army Air Force in the Pacific theater during the Second World War , and recalled witnessing the mushroom cloud rise over Hiroshima while on
6624-706: The Iowa caucuses . He endorsed Hillary Clinton four months later. Since his presidential campaign, he has lectured at Georgetown University and Boston College Law School , and written two books about the use of technology in government. In July 2023, President Joe Biden nominated O'Malley to lead the Social Security Administration . He was confirmed by the United States Senate with a 50–11 vote on December 18, 2023. In November 2024, O'Malley announced that he would run for chair of
6768-758: The London Underground and the New York City Subway . Conventional rail technologies including high-speed , freight, commuter , and rapid transit urban transit systems are considered "heavy rail". The main difference between light rail and heavy rail rapid transit is the ability for a light rail vehicle to operate in mixed traffic if the routing requires it. The world's first electric tram operated in Sestroretsk near Saint Petersburg , Russia , invented and operated on an experimental basis by Fyodor Pirotsky in 1880. The first tramway
6912-644: The Maryland General Assembly , had moved too far to the left. O'Malley led by margins of several points in most polls during the campaign , but polls tightened significantly in the last week of the campaign. He ultimately defeated Ehrlich 53%-46% in the November 7, 2006, general election. Major land developer Edward St. John was fined $ 55,000 by the Maryland Office of the State Prosecutor for making illegal contributions to
7056-638: The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), together with the American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland and Baltimore Regional Initiative Developing Genuine Equality (BRIDGE) filed a complaint pursuant to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the U.S. Department of Transportation Departmental Office of Civil Rights. The complaint challenged Governor Hogan's decision to cancel
7200-637: The Netherlands , this concept was first applied on the RijnGouweLijn . This allows commuters to ride directly into the city center, rather than taking a mainline train only as far as a central station and then having to change to a tram. In France, similar tram-trains are planned for Paris, Mulhouse , and Strasbourg ; further projects exist. In some cases, tram trains use previously abandoned or lightly used heavy rail lines in addition to or instead of still in use mainline tracks. In 2022, Spain opened
7344-874: The O-Train Trillium Line in Ottawa, Ontario , Canada, the River Line in New Jersey , United States, and the Sprinter in California , United States, which use diesel multiple unit (DMU) cars. Light rail is different from the British English term light railway , long-used to distinguish railway operations carried out under a less rigorous set of regulations using lighter equipment at lower speeds from mainline railways. Light rail
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#17327831715767488-703: The Philadelphia and Western Railroad high-speed third rail line (now the Norristown High-Speed Line ). Such arrangements are almost impossible now, due to the Federal Railroad Administration refusing (for crash safety reasons) to allow non-FRA compliant railcars (i.e., subway and light rail vehicles) to run on the same tracks at the same times as compliant railcars, which includes locomotives and standard railroad passenger and freight equipment. Notable exceptions in
7632-530: The medians of roads . If run in streets , trains are usually limited by city block lengths to about four 180-passenger vehicles (720 passengers). Operating on two-minute headways using traffic signal progression, a well-designed two-track system can handle up to 30 trains per hour per track, achieving peak rates of over 20,000 passengers per hour in each direction. More advanced systems with separate rights-of-way using moving block signaling can exceed 25,000 passengers per hour per track. Most light rail systems in
7776-624: The 1970s was proven to have been a technical failure by the following decade. After World War II, the Germans retained many of their streetcar networks and evolved them into model light rail systems ( Stadtbahnen ). With the exception of Hamburg , all large and most medium-sized German cities maintain light rail networks. The concept of a "limited tramway" was proposed by American transport planner H. Dean Quinby in 1962. Quinby distinguished this new concept in rail transportation from historic streetcar or tram systems as: The term light rail transit
7920-572: The 2006 O'Malley gubernatorial campaign. The Washington Times reported later that the Governor's administration had issued a press release touting a new $ 28-million highway interchange leading from Interstate 795 to one of St. John's properties. Governor O'Malley's spokesman said there was no " quid pro quo ," and a spokesman for the County Executive said the project had been a county transportation priority since before both O'Malley and
8064-736: The 2008 Citizens Advisory Council annual report commented on the opposition of community groups to surface rail alignments through residential neighborhoods. A letter from the Allendale Community Association, read at a meeting of the Citizens Advisory Council on December 11, 2008, expressed the Association's opposition to Alternative 4C and any surface rail construction along Edmondson Avenue. The West–East Coalition (WEC) Against Red Line Alternative 4C, established in June 2009, represented community associations, homeowners groups, businesses, and religious groups opposed to
8208-477: The 2014 crisis involving undocumented immigrant children from Central America crossing the border, O'Malley refused to open a facility in Westminster, Maryland, to house them. The White House criticized his decision as hypocritical given his prior comments that he thought deporting all these children was wrong, but he protested that his remarks had been mischaracterized. O'Malley supported a bill considered by
8352-476: The 43rd State Senate District in northeast Baltimore. He challenged one-term incumbent John A. Pica in the Democratic Party primary, and lost by just 44 votes. He was considered an underdog when he first filed to run, but "came out of nowhere" to lead Pica on election night. The loss was narrow enough that his loss could only be projected after absentee ballots were counted subsequent to the night of
8496-563: The Alternative 4C. Its now-defunct website explained that the organization considered the proposed light rail alignment to be a detriment to communities on both the East and West sides of Baltimore. In a letter to Governor Martin O'Malley, Senator Barbara Mikulski , Senator Benjamin Cardin, Congressman Elijah Cummings , Congressman John P. Sarbanes , and Mayor Sheila Dixon on July 13, 2009,
8640-469: The District of Columbia. In a debate during the 2010 campaign, O'Malley referred to undocumented immigrants as "new Americans" while endorsing stricter enforcement against illegal immigration by the federal government. In May 2011, he signed a law making the children of undocumented immigrants eligible for in-state college tuition under certain conditions. The law provides that undocumented immigrants can be eligible for in-state tuition if they have attended
8784-495: The French city of Bordeaux , the tramway network is powered by a third rail in the city center, where the tracks are not always segregated from pedestrians and cars. The third rail (actually two closely spaced rails) is placed in the middle of the track and divided into eight-metre sections, each of which is powered only while it is completely covered by a tram. This minimizes the risk of a person or animal coming into contact with
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#17327831715768928-501: The General Assembly sole power to set primary election dates, and the General Assembly refused to move the mayoral primary. In the November 4, 2004, general election, he was reelected with 87% of the vote. Due to the conflict, he was only elected to a three-year term rather than the usual four-year term. During his first mayoral campaign, O'Malley focused on a message of reducing crime. In his first year in office, he adopted
9072-490: The General Assembly to legalize same-sex marriage in Maryland in 2011, even though Archbishop of Baltimore Edwin O'Brien had urged him as a Catholic not to support the bill in a private letter sent two days before O'Malley voiced his support. "I am well aware that the recent events in New York have intensified pressure on you to lend your active support to legislation to redefine marriage," O'Brien wrote. "As advocates for
9216-567: The Internet. O'Malley and his wife had previously held a highly publicized press conference to deny the rumors and accuse Republicans of partisan politics, although discussions in which Steffen posted the rumors were initiated by an anonymous user under the pseudonym "MD4Bush" who was later found to be Maryland Democratic Party official Ryan O'Doherty. During a 2005 conference at the National Press Club , where mayors from across
9360-931: The Legislature also had 15 members, but only two could be appointed by the Governor. Five of the other Council members were appointed by the Senate President, five by the Speaker of the House, two by the Baltimore City Mayor and one by the Baltimore County Executive. Two co-chairs for the Council could be chosen by the Governor or the Maryland Transit Administrator from up to four nominees selected by
9504-545: The Midtown, Edmondson, Canton , Fells Point , Patterson Park, and Greektown communities. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act contains a provision on project reentry which directs the United States Secretary of Transportation to "provide full and fair consideration to projects that seek an updated rating after a period of inactivity." This provision was sought by Maryland Senator Ben Cardin with
9648-496: The Party's go-to guy on protecting the homeland. The telegenic Mayor has developed a detailed plan for rail and port safety and has been an outspoken critic of White House security priorities." O'Malley considered a run for governor in the 2002 election but decided not to run. In October 2005, after much speculation, he officially announced he would run in the 2006 election . He had one primary opponent, Montgomery County Executive Doug Duncan , who abruptly dropped out in June
9792-402: The Red Line on the basis of discrimination against Baltimore's predominantly African American population that would have benefited from the infrastructure project. Furthermore, the complaint highlighted that Governor Hogan's decision shifted funding away from public transportation dependent citizens, and instead was dedicated towards highway projects in primarily white rural and suburban areas of
9936-449: The Red Line was an east–west line that would begin at the Social Security Administration offices in Woodlawn in Baltimore County , travel through West Baltimore with an intermodal stop at the West Baltimore MARC station, pass through downtown (where transfers to the existing Metro Subway and Light Rail lines would be possible), and pass through East Baltimore with stops in Fells Point , Canton , and Patterson Park . The Red Line
10080-435: The Senate President and Speaker of the House. On July 30, 2007, an executive order by Governor Martin O'Malley restored the name originally selected by the Legislature. On September 9, 2008, the Red Line Citizens' Advisory Council voted unanimously to adopt its first report to the General Assembly, which included the statement that "Preparation of a SDEIS [Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement] should begin now, as
10224-431: The U.S. gathered to denounce President George W. Bush 's proposed budget, O'Malley compared the budget to the 9/11 terrorist attacks , declaring, "Back on September 11, terrorists attacked our metropolitan cores, two of America's great cities. They did that because they knew that was where they could do the most damage and weaken us the most. Years later, we are given a budget proposal by our commander in chief. ... And with
10368-662: The US are the NJ Transit River Line from Camden to Trenton and Austin's Capital MetroRail , which have received exemptions to the provision that light rail operations occur only during daytime hours and Conrail freight service only at night, with several hours separating one operation from the other. The O-Train Trillium Line in Ottawa also has freight service at certain hours. With its mix of right-of-way types and train control technologies, LRT offers
10512-455: The US as a whole, excluding Seattle, new light rail construction costs average about $ 35 million per mile. By comparison, a freeway lane expansion typically costs $ 1.0 million to $ 8.5 million per lane mile for two directions, with an average of $ 2.3 million. However, freeways are frequently built in suburbs or rural areas, whereas light rail tends to be concentrated in urban areas, where right of way and property acquisition
10656-666: The United States and in North America . In Britain, modern light rail systems began to appear in the 1980s, starting with the Tyne and Wear Metro from 1980 and followed by the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) in London in 1987, continuing into the 1990s including the establishment of the Manchester Metrolink in 1992 and the Sheffield Supertram from 1994. Due to varying definitions, it
10800-590: The United States are limited by demand rather than capacity (by and large, most American LRT systems carry fewer than 4,000 persons per hour per direction), but Boston's and San Francisco's light rail lines carry 9,600 and 13,100 passengers per hour per track during rush hour. Elsewhere in North America, the Calgary C-Train and Monterrey Metro have higher light rail ridership than Boston or San Francisco. Systems outside North America often have much higher passenger volumes. The Manila Light Rail Transit System
10944-472: The United States, "light rail" has become a catch-all term to describe a wide variety of passenger rail systems. Light rail corridors may constitute a fully segregated corridor, a dedicated right-of-way on a street, an on-street corridor shared with other traffic, a corridor shared with other public transport, or a corridor shared with pedestrians. The most difficult distinction to draw is that between low-floor light rail and streetcar or tram systems. There
11088-633: The WEC described concerns about the effects of double-tracked surface rail, traffic congestion, and safety concerns. In 2009, the WEC circulated a petition against the surface Red Line in the Canton neighborhood. It delivered 1,350 signed cards to Governor O'Malley on July 31, 2009. In the summer of 2011 the Red Line Now Political Action Committee (PAC) was established to voice the support of residents of Baltimore City for
11232-415: The ability of buses to travel closer to each other than rail vehicles and their ability to overtake each other at designated locations allowing express services to bypass those that have stopped at stations. However, to achieve capacities this high, BRT station footprints need to be significantly larger than a typical LRT station. In terms of cost of operation, each bus vehicle requires a single driver, whereas
11376-625: The adverse impact it would have on African-Americans, nor did the Governor seek any input from MDOT in making the decision. In July 2017 the DOT announced that it was closing its investigation with no finding. The alignment for the Red Line would have followed an east–west path. Starting from the west, the proposed stations were as follows: The "Citizens' Advisory Council for the Baltimore Corridor Transit Study - Red Line"
11520-534: The business community to a 40-member steering committee to implement each part of the Community Compact. The Red Line Community Compact Steering Committee held their first meeting on February 19, 2009; the group was scheduled to meet quarterly throughout the life of the project. The decision at the meeting on December 11, 2008 was disputed at another Advisory Council meeting on July 9, 2009, where 11 members were present. A six to five vote favored rescinding
11664-866: The case of the Disney amusement parks , even a land train . (The usual British term for an aerial tramway is cable car , which in the US usually refers to a ground-level car pulled along by subterranean cables .) The word trolley is often used as a synonym for streetcar in the United States but is usually taken to mean a cart, particularly a shopping cart, in the UK and elsewhere. Many North American transportation planners reserve streetcar for traditional vehicles that operate exclusively in mixed traffic on city streets, while they use light rail to refer to more modern vehicles operating mostly in exclusive rights of way, since they may operate both side-by-side targeted at different passenger groups. The difference between British English and American English terminology arose in
11808-644: The chair of the Democratic Governors Association from 2011 to 2013. After leaving office in 2015, O'Malley was appointed to The Johns Hopkins University 's Carey Business School as a visiting professor focusing on government, business and urban issues. Long rumored to have presidential ambitions, O'Malley publicly announced his candidacy for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination on May 30, 2015. One of six major candidates, O'Malley struggled to gain support, and he suspended his campaign on February 1, 2016, after finishing third in
11952-566: The city's first budget surplus in years." In 2004, the CitiStat accountability tool won Harvard University's "Innovations in American Government" award. The system garnered interest from not only Washington, D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty but even crime specialists from Britain. His record as mayor of Baltimore has drawn criticism. O'Malley has been accused by many of establishing a zero-tolerance policing strategy, aimed at reducing
12096-540: The city's high murder rate but that instead led to the targeting and abuse of black communities. While running for governor in 2006, O'Malley said violent crime in Baltimore declined 37% while he was mayor. That statistic came from an audit of crime that used questionable methodology and became the subject of controversy; he was accused by both his Democratic primary opponent Doug Duncan and his Republican opponent, incumbent Governor Bob Ehrlich , of manipulating statistics to make false claims. The Washington Post wrote at
12240-645: The city's picturesque downtown skyline and the Inner Harbor . On that date, he formally announced his candidacy for the 2016 presidential nomination . On February 1, 2016, after performing poorly in the Iowa caucuses , however, he suspended his campaign, receiving only 0.6% of state delegate equivalents awarded in the Iowa caucuses while both former First Lady, U.S. Senator and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton of New York and Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont received over 49% each. After suspending his campaign,
12384-421: The closure of Glasgow Corporation Tramways (one of the largest in Europe) in 1962. Although some traditional trolley or tram systems continued to exist in San Francisco and elsewhere, the term "light rail" has come to mean a different type of rail system as modern light rail technology has primarily post-WWII West German origins. An attempt by Boeing Vertol to introduce a new American light rail vehicle in
12528-503: The concept stage; however, the FTA estimated daily ridership for the completed system at 57,000 and expected it to cost a total of $ 2.2 billion with inflation included. Henry Kay, MTA's deputy administrator, estimated the cost of preliminary engineering at $ 65 million. The state would have had to pay preliminary engineering costs, but Kay said that these and other upfront costs would be eligible for federal reimbursement. Governor Larry Hogan, who
12672-519: The data in the Portal to track progress towards his 16 strategic goals. As one of the few states at the time linking progress directly to open data, Maryland led the nation in government transparency and accountability. O'Malley has said that President Obama has looked at StateStat as a potential model for tracking stimulus funding. O'Malley was elected as the vice chairman of the Democratic Governors Association for 2009–2010, and on December 1, 2010, he
12816-415: The day. This combination of factors limits roads carrying only automobile commuters to a maximum observed capacity of about 3,000 passengers per hour per lane. The problem can be mitigated by introducing high-occupancy vehicle ( HOV ) lanes and ride-sharing programs, but in most cases, policymakers have chosen to add more lanes to the roads, despite a small risk that in unfavorable situations an extension of
12960-755: The direct translation, which is city rail (the Norwegian term, by bane , means the same). However, UMTA finally adopted the term light rail instead. Light in this context is used in the sense of "intended for light loads and fast movement", rather than referring to physical weight. The infrastructure investment is also usually lighter than would be found for a heavy rail system. The American Public Transportation Association (APTA), in its Glossary of Transit Terminology, defines light rail as: ...a mode of transit service (also called streetcar, tramway, or trolley) operating passenger rail cars singly (or in short, usually two-car or three-car, trains) on fixed rails in
13104-650: The election. In 1991, O'Malley was elected to the Baltimore City Council representing the 3rd Councilman District (when each of six districts had three members) and served from 1991 to 1999. His 1991 election was endorsed by the editorial board of The Baltimore Sun . As councilman, O'Malley served as chairman of the Legislative Investigations Committee and chairman of the Taxation and Finance Committee. As
13248-505: The endorsement of several key African-American lawmakers and church leaders, as well as that of former mayor of Baltimore and Maryland governor William Donald Schaefer , who had served from 1971 to 1987. On September 14, he won the Democratic primary with a 53% majority and went on to win the general election with 90% of the vote, defeating Republican Party nominee, developer David Tufaro. In 2003 , O'Malley ran for re-election. He
13392-446: The executive were elected. In 2010, O'Malley announced his intention to run for re-election while Ehrlich announced he would also run, setting up a rematch of 2006. His future rival for the Democratic presidential nomination, Hillary Clinton , said in a private email at the time that "he should be reelected by acclamation for steering the ship of state so well." Despite major losses for Democrats nationwide, O'Malley defeated Ehrlich in
13536-565: The existing cleanup taxes required of Maryland citizens. Also in 2014, O'Malley approved the practice of hydraulic fracturing , or "fracking," in western Maryland but only on condition of tight regulations. He had previously blocked the technique from the region for three years, awaiting the report from the Marcellus Shale Advisory Commission on the risks and benefits of this controversial procedure. In December 2014, O'Malley issued an executive order to drive
13680-511: The first governor to sign the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact . O'Malley won reelection in 2010 . In 2011, he signed a law that would make illegal immigrants brought to the United States as children eligible for in-state college tuition . In 2012, he signed a law to legalize same-sex marriage in Maryland . Both laws were approved in referendums in the 2012 general election . O'Malley served as
13824-559: The former two-term city councilman inherited a city of rising crime, failing schools, and shrinking economic prospects. He was able to reverse course in all of these areas." The Washington Post endorsed his opponent, but noted that O'Malley, while "not solv[ing] the problems of rampant crime and rough schools in Baltimore," had "put a dent in them" while criticizing his gubernatorial campaign for being too focused on Baltimore and offering "little of substance" on Washington-area issues. The Washington Times complained that O'Malley, along with
13968-409: The funding and construction of Alternative 4C. Its website stated that the organization was staffed on a volunteer basis and planned to support local politicians that supported the construction of the Red Line. Red Line Now PAC was governed by a nine-member board of directors who were citizen volunteers who lived and/or worked along what would have been the Red Line corridor. The board members represented
14112-409: The intent to allow for the Red Line and other canceled transit projects to be renewed. On June 15, 2023, Governor Wes Moore announced that he would restart efforts to build the Red Line in a ceremony with Baltimore mayor Brandon Scott . The state Department of Transportation plans to identify possible route alignments, gauge public feedback, and study the project's costs and benefits over the course of
14256-458: The late 19th century when Americans adopted the term "street railway", rather than "tramway", with the vehicles being called "streetcars" rather than "trams". Some have suggested that the Americans' preference for the term "street railway" at that time was influenced by German emigrants to the United States (who were more numerous than British immigrants in the industrialized Northeast), as it is
14400-524: The latter is described as light rail. In those places, trams running on mixed rights-of-way are not regarded as a light rail but considered distinctly as streetcars or trams. However, the requirement for saying that a rail line is "separated" can be quite low—sometimes just with concrete "buttons" to discourage automobile drivers from getting onto the tracks. Some systems such as Seattle's Link had on-road mixed sections but were closed to regular road traffic, with light rail vehicles and buses both operating along
14544-462: The light rail concept was the "Shaker Heights Rapid Transit" which started in the 1920s, was renovated in 1980-81 and is now part of RTA Rapid Transit . Many original tram and streetcar systems in the United Kingdom , United States , and elsewhere were decommissioned starting in the 1950s as subsidies for the car increased. Britain abandoned its tram systems, except for Blackpool , with
14688-455: The necessary signatures required to challenge the law, but Referendum Question 6 in support of same-sex marriage passed by 52.4% on November 6, 2012. In 2013, O'Malley signed a bill to ban the practice of shark finning in Maryland, making it the sixth U.S. state to enact this regulation. The signature of this bill made Maryland the first East Coast state to make it illegal to possess, sell, trade or distribute shark fins. O'Malley opposed
14832-414: The nine members present abstained. This document, signed by city and state officials, and 72 leaders of community organizations on September 12, 2008, described how they intended to build and operate the Red Line for the benefit of Baltimore and its communities. The Community Compact emphasized four main points: Mayor Sheila Dixon appointed leaders from city government, non-profit and citizen groups, and
14976-465: The old and new systems. Since the 1980s, Portland, Oregon , has built all three types of system: a high-capacity light rail system in dedicated lanes and rights-of-way, a low-capacity streetcar system integrated with street traffic, and an aerial tram system . The opposite phrase heavy rail , used for higher-capacity, higher-speed systems, also avoids some incompatibilities in terminology between British and American English, for instance in comparing
15120-421: The only white candidate for mayor of a city which had been predominantly African-American since the 1960 Census and had recently had two successive black mayors. His strongest opponents in the crowded Democratic primary of seven were former City Councilman Carl Stokes , Baltimore Registrar of Wills Mary Conaway, and Council President Lawrence Bell. In his campaign, O'Malley focused on reducing crime and received
15264-531: The other council member from the third district, Robert W. Curran , broke with them and instead voted for the mayor's preferred positions. O'Malley had previously been politically partnered with Curran, with the two having co-endorsed each other in the 1995 City Council election. Curran is also the uncle of O'Malley's wife. However, due to Curran's alignment with the mayor, in October 1996 O'Malley wrote an open letter assailing him. By his second term, O'Malley
15408-468: The peak direction during rush hour. Martin O%27Malley [REDACTED] Martin Joseph O'Malley (born January 18, 1963) is an American politician who served as the 17th commissioner of the Social Security Administration since 2023. A member of the Democratic Party , he was the 61st governor of Maryland from 2007 to 2015 and the 48th mayor of Baltimore from 1999 to 2007. O'Malley
15552-425: The previous decision for Alternative 4C. Council Chair Angela Bethea-Spearman ruled that the motion to rescind failed, because the vote was less than a 2/3 majority. She cited "Robert's Rules" as the criteria for requiring a 2/3 majority and denying the rescision. Beginning in late 2008, Baltimore City favored the "4C Alternative" selected by Governor O'Malley in 2009, which was endorsed by Mayor Sheila Dixon; however,
15696-558: The project in June 2023. By that November, it was undergoing updated route evaluations and mode selection. Light rail was selected as the preferred mode in June 2024. In 2001, then-Maryland Secretary of Transportation John Porcari appointed a 23-member independent commission, the Baltimore Region Rail System Plan Advisory Committee, to make suggestions for new rail lines and expansions of existing lines. The proposals used
15840-502: The public issue of granting equal civil marital rights to same-sex couples, you and I disagree." The Maryland House of Delegates approved this bill by 72–67 on February 17, 2012 and the Maryland State Senate passed it by a 25–22 margin on February 23. It was amended to take effect only on January 1, 2013, pending a voter referendum . After O'Malley signed the bill on March 1, 2012, referendum petitioners collected
15984-556: The required clearance height can be reduced significantly compared to conventional light rail vehicles. Reference speed from major light rail systems, including station stop time, is shown below. However, low top speed is not always a differentiating characteristic between light rail and other systems. For example, the Siemens S70 LRVs used in the Houston METRORail and other North American LRT systems have
16128-558: The rest of the year. In the meantime, the MTA will provide limited-stop bus service between Catonsville and Essex beginning in August 2023. MTA released six new alternative routes for the project that September – two alternatives featured tunnel segments and alignments similar to the canceled 2009 route. Officials initially did not say if the route would be run by bus rapid transit or light rail , but later announced in June 2024 that it will feature light rail. Light rail Light rail (or light rail transit , abbreviated to LRT )
16272-432: The right-of-way that is often separated from other traffic for part or much of the way. Light rail vehicles are typically driven electrically with power being drawn from an overhead electric line via a trolley [pole] or a pantograph ; driven by an operator onboard the vehicle; and may have either high platform loading or low-level boarding using steps." However, some diesel-powered transit is designated light rail, such as
16416-415: The road network might lead to increased travel times ( Downs–Thomson paradox , Braess's paradox ). By contrast, light rail vehicles can travel in multi-car trains carrying a theoretical ridership up to 20,000 passengers per hour in much narrower rights-of-way , not much more than two car lanes wide for a double track system. They can often be run through existing city streets and parks , or placed in
16560-401: The roads. Typically roadways have 1,900 passenger cars per lane per hour (pcplph). If only cars are allowed, the capacity will be less and will not increase when the traffic volume increases. When there is a bus driving on this route, the capacity of the lane will be higher and will increase when the traffic level increases. And because the capacity of a light rail system is higher than that of
16704-618: The same as the German term for the mode, Straßenbahn (meaning "street railway"). A further difference arose because, while Britain abandoned all of its trams after World War II except in Blackpool , eight major North American cities ( Toronto , Boston , Philadelphia , San Francisco , Pittsburgh , Newark , Cleveland , and New Orleans ) continued to operate large streetcar systems. When these cities upgraded to new technology, they called it light rail to differentiate it from their existing streetcars since some continued to operate both
16848-407: The sentences of four of them to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. O'Malley supported gun control in his second term. On May 16, 2013, he signed a new gun control bill into law. O'Malley supports legal abortion rights without government interference, up to the point of fetal viability. In Maryland fetus viability is defined as when, in a doctor's best medical judgment, there
16992-408: The standard gauge is that standard railway maintenance equipment can be used on it, rather than custom-built machinery. Using standard gauges also allows light rail vehicles to be conveniently moved around using the same tracks as freight railways. Additionally, wider gauges (e.g. standard gauge) provide more floor clearance on low-floor trams that have constricted pedestrian areas at the wheels, which
17136-531: The state. On January 19, 2017, the last day of the Obama Administration , the Department of Transportation announced it expanded its investigation into Governor Hogan's decision to cancel the Red Line, as well as the rest of MDOT's programs to determine whether federal law was violated. In addition, the DOT stated that the state transportation agency did not take the federal law into account or
17280-551: The system was a success with the public, gaining up to 190,000 passengers per day. Automatic train operation is employed on light rail networks, tracking the position and speed of a train and hence adjusting its movement for safety and efficiency. One line of light rail (requires 7.6 m, 25' right of way) has a theoretical capacity of up to 8 times more than one 3.7 m (12 foot) lane on a freeway, excluding busses, during peak times. Roads have ultimate capacity limits that can be determined by traffic engineering , and usually experience
17424-500: The time of his appointment, he did not expect the Red Line to reach the 140,000 to 150,000 ridership level necessary to attract federal funding for heavy rail. In August 2009, then-Governor Martin O'Malley (who was also a former mayor of Baltimore) selected a modified version of the Light Rail Alternative 4C, which became known as the "Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA)." The modification eliminated two stations and
17568-511: The time that "no evidence has surfaced of a systemic manipulation of crime statistics," but that "there is no quick or definitive way for O'Malley to prove his numbers are right." O'Malley spoke at the 2004 Democratic National Convention , arguing that 2004 Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry was a better choice for homeland security than President George W. Bush . In early 2005, Governor Robert Ehrlich fired aide Joseph Steffen for spreading rumors of marital infidelity about O'Malley on
17712-426: The traffic speed camera enforcement law he had supported and fought for to help raise revenue to try to overcome an imminent state deficit. Through his strenuous lobbying, the measure was revived after an initial defeat and passed on a second vote. One of O'Malley's first actions as governor was to implement the same CitiStat system he used to manage the city Baltimore as mayor on a statewide level. Maryland StateStat
17856-503: The trams, making it safe on city streets. Several systems in Europe and a few recently opened systems in North America use diesel -powered trains. When electric streetcars were introduced in the late 19th century, conduit current collection was one of the first ways of supplying power, but it proved to be much more expensive, complicated, and trouble-prone than overhead wires . When electric street railways became ubiquitous, conduit power
18000-503: The truths we are compelled to uphold, we speak with equal intensity and urgency in opposition to your promoting a goal that so deeply conflicts with your faith, not to mention the best interests of our society." O'Malley responded, "I do not presume, nor would I ever presume as Governor, to question or infringe upon your freedom to define, to preach about, and to administer the sacraments of the Roman Catholic Church. But on
18144-480: The unusual solution of erecting a temporary canopy at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in order to provide a venue. If Camden Yards were to host such a convention, it was likely that the Baltimore Orioles would have needed vacate the venue for a roughly two-month period of their 2004 season. Of the five cities to enter bids, Baltimore was the only one not considered as a finalist to host the convention, which
18288-519: The urban campus of the University of Maryland at Baltimore , earning his J.D. in 1988, and was admitted to the Maryland bar that same year. In December 1982, while still in college, O'Malley joined the Gary Hart presidential campaign for the 1984 election . In late 1983, he volunteered to go to Iowa where he phone-banked, organized volunteers, played guitar and sang at small fundraisers and other events. In 1986, while in law school, O'Malley
18432-460: The vast majority of light rail systems. This avoids the danger potentially presented by an electrified third rail . The Docklands Light Railway uses an inverted third rail for its electrical power, which allows the electrified rail to be covered and the power drawn from the underside. Trams in Bordeaux , France, use a special third-rail configuration where the power is only switched on beneath
18576-434: The widest range of latitude of any rail system in the design, engineering, and operating practices. The challenge in designing light rail systems is to realize the potential of LRT to provide fast, comfortable service while avoiding the tendency to overdesign that results in excessive capital costs beyond what is necessary to meet the public's needs. The BART railcar in the following chart is not generally considered to be
18720-421: Was challenged in the Democratic primary by four candidates, but defeated them with 67% of the vote. He had to wait more than a year to run in the general election because of a conflict between Maryland election law and the Baltimore city charter. At the same time that O'Malley won his first term, Baltimore citizens voted to move municipal elections to coincide with presidential elections. However, Maryland law gives
18864-543: Was coined in 1972 by the U.S. Urban Mass Transportation Administration (UMTA; the precursor to the Federal Transit Administration ) to describe new streetcar transformations that were taking place in Europe and the United States. In Germany, the term Stadtbahn (to be distinguished from S-Bahn , which stands for Stadtschnellbahn ) was used to describe the concept, and many in UMTA wanted to adopt
19008-477: Was designated by the commission as the starting component for new work on the 6-line system. Out of the commission's various proposals, the Red Line was taken up with the most enthusiasm by area officials. Progress was slowed by a debate between state Secretary of Transportation Robert Flanagan and the Baltimore City government and Congressional delegation over the mode of transportation; Flanagan favored
19152-588: Was elected chairman for 2010–2011. Soon after entering office, O'Malley closed the Maryland House of Correction in Jessup , a notoriously violent maximum-security prison . In April 2007, O'Malley became the first governor to sign legislation entering a state into the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact . Designed to reform how states allocate their electoral votes, the national popular vote plan has since been enacted in fourteen additional states and
19296-471: Was elected in 2014, announced on June 25, 2015 that he had canceled funding for the Red Line. During his 2014 campaign, Hogan had complained about the cost of the proposed Red Line for Baltimore, calling it a "boondoggle", and a proposed Purple Line for the Maryland suburbs of Washington, DC; however, he ultimately allowed the Purple Line to begin construction with reduced funding. On December 21, 2015,
19440-473: Was elected to the Baltimore City Council in 1991 and re-elected in 1995. He was elected mayor of Baltimore in 1999 after a surprise win in the Democratic primary. He won a second term as mayor in 2004 . As mayor, O'Malley prioritized reducing crime within the city. O'Malley won the 2006 Maryland gubernatorial election , unseating incumbent Republican governor Bob Ehrlich . During his first term as governor, O'Malley implemented Maryland StateStat and became
19584-488: Was established by the Maryland General Assembly in 2006. Governor Robert Erlich vetoed the bills which originally created the Citizens' Advisory Council on May 26, 2006, and replaced it with the "Red Line Community Advisory Council." This 15-member Council was appointed entirely by the Governor. At a special session in June 2006, the Legislature overrode the Governor's veto. The Council established by
19728-503: Was first tried in 2007 by a few public safety and human services agencies. By 2014, over 20 agencies were engaged in the StateStat process through monthly individual agency meetings and quarterly cross-agency Stats including BayStat , StudentStat, VetStat and ReEntryStat. (The EPA would later base its ChesapeakeStat program on O'Malley's innovative BayStat program.) In 2012, he launched Maryland's Open Data Portal- StateStat, which used
19872-677: Was introduced in North America in 1972 to describe this new concept of rail transportation. Prior to that time the abbreviation "LRT" was used for " Light Rapid Transit " and " Light Rail Rapid Transit ". The first of the new light rail systems in North America began operation in 1978 when the Canadian city of Edmonton, Alberta , adopted the German Siemens-Duewag U2 system, followed three years later by Calgary, Alberta , and San Diego, California . The concept proved popular, with there now being numerous light rail systems in
20016-529: Was named by then-Congresswoman Barbara Mikulski as state field director for her successful primary and general election campaigns for the U.S. Senate . He served as a legislative fellow in Mikulski's Senate office in 1987 and 1988. Later that year, he was hired as an assistant State's Attorney for the City of Baltimore , holding that position until 1990. In 1990, O'Malley ran for the Maryland State Senate in
20160-551: Was seen as a charismatic rising star in Baltimore politics, and was believed to be likely to soon seek a higher office. In a 1997 profile, Kevin Cowherd of The Baltimore Sun wrote of O'Malley, To many, Martin O'Malley seems ideally suited to the role of reformer, almost as if he were born for the job. He is 34, tall, leading-man handsome, with a Chiclets smile that seems to make his face glow. Now in his second term as an elected official, he's articulate, passionate, charismatic in
20304-439: Was that his administration took measurement of the time it took to repair the city's infrastructure in order to inform their approach to such work. In 2002, O'Malley submitted a bid for the city to be the host of the 2004 Democratic Convention. This bid was considered a long-shot, as the city lacked a standard venue of sufficient space and capacity to host a major party presidential nominating convention . Baltimore's bid proposed
20448-632: Was the Gross-Lichterfelde tramway in Lichterfelde near Berlin in Germany, which opened in 1881. It was built by Werner von Siemens who contacted Pirotsky. It initially drew current from the rails, with overhead wire being installed in 1883. The first interurban to emerge in the United States was the Newark and Granville Street Railway in Ohio, which opened in 1889. An early example of
20592-679: Was ultimately awarded to Boston . In 2002, at the age of 39, O'Malley was named "The Best Young Mayor in the Country" by Esquire ; and in 2005, TIME magazine named him one of America's "Top 5 Big City Mayors". In August 2005, Business Week Magazine Online called him one of five "new stars" in the Democratic Party, along with Senator and future President Barack Obama of Illinois , future Senator Mark Warner of Virginia , future Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and future chief of staff for President Obama and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel . Business Week declared that O'Malley "has become
20736-527: Was used in those cities that did not permit overhead wires. In Europe, it was used in London, Paris, Berlin, Marseille, Budapest, and Prague. In the United States, it was used in parts of New York City and Washington, D.C. Third rail technology was investigated for use on the Gold Coast of Australia for the G:link light rail, though power from overhead lines was ultimately utilized for that system. In
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