Photo by spoffyMy favorite made-up-sounding metro-area transit phenomenon is the slug line: the carpool lanes that have developed organically between riders who need rides and drivers who want to give those rides to them, despite the fact that driver and rider are most likely strangers to one another. There hasn’t been a lot to report on the phenomenon recently, though the more-or-less official Slug Lines website did recently draft a Google map showing where the slug lines pick up and drop off.
Slug drivers (sluggers?) tell WTOP that some people are not so fascinated with the slug line — specifically, police. Metropolitan Police Department Chief Cathy Lanier says there has been no change in policy, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that police aren’t doling out tickets at slug-line stops on 14th Street NW and other places. Given that the system is informal, it seems plausible that frequent ticketing (especially at $100 a pop) could very quickly have a chilling effect on slugging.
Here is a thought: What would be the problem with making slug lines official? Drivers and riders — if you will, the market — has determined the need for carpooling and even solved it. Carving out space on 14th Street NW to establish pickup and dropoff points for slug drivers sounds like a nightmare, but it’s already been taken care of. The city wouldn’t have to do much more than put up a sign — sort of like a temporary HOV parking spot zone.
The simpler solution would be for Chief Lanier to distribute a memo telling cops to cut it out. But signs and official recognition might draw attention and participation for our unique slug line system.
(Apologies for each instance in which I used “slug” or “slugging” incorrectly, which I’m willing to bet is every instance.)
