RA, Lake Anne Redevelopment Partners and JBG Approve Monorail

The Reston Association, Lake Anne Redevelopment Partners and JBG have finally approved the highly anticipated monorail initiative that is expected to be the crown jewel of New Reston. The monorail will be comprised of two trains and a fixed guideway, with each train on its own track.

Research for the Reston Monorail focused on other cities, such as Seattle and Tokyo, where these non-polluting people-movers are extremely popular. The Seattle Center Monorail has become an icon of the city and carries approximately two million passengers every year. Seattle Center Monorail is one of the few fully self-sufficient public rail transit systems in the nation.

An example of the Brutalist design of the Seattle Center Monorail

The Brown Line will run from West Reston (formerly Herndon) to RTC West and culminate at the Honorable Robert E. Simon Parking Structure near Lake Anne Plaza. It is still TBD whether this will be the North Lake Anne Plaza or the South Lake Anne Plaza.

Several sub-stations will be peppered throughout the new Lake Anne development and are detailed in the map above. The monorail will make living in Reston as streamlined and efficient as possible. For instance, if one has parked at the Honorable Robert E. Simon Parking Structure (A3) and needs to get to the new Lake Market (D1) quickly, they can hop on the rail and go from the Honorable Robert E. Simon Parking Structure through Robert Simon East station, Bob Simon South East station, RES North East station, R. Simon West station and simply hop off at the Bob S. West.

The Brown Line maneuvers almost silently through the Crescent Townhomes and provides shade for children to play.

Only minimal removal of old-growth trees is required for the construction of the monorail. As is stated in the proposal, the deforestation and reduction of the tree canopy that forms a wreath around Lake Anne will be replaced by the shade the monorail track will provide.

“I am confident the shade in these parcels will remain the same quality of shade we currently have,” states Reston neighbor Joe Quimby.

The Brown Line as it circles Lake Anne approaching the Bob S. West station.

The Reston Monorail will create approximately 100,000 new jobs and is expected to bring in $100,000 in revenue in the first year. Construction costs are estimated at $100,000 making it a win-win.

RA spokesperson Lionel Hutz said the monorail design is “the culmination of a year-long process that included both outside design consultation and internal staff planning. The board approved $100,000 in the 2014 budget to redesign to meet the findings of the strategic plan process and community interviews.”

With this approval, Reston is one step closer to the standard six-step approval process of the Design Review Board (DRB). Construction is set to break ground the beginning of April 2025 making Reston the Tomorrowland of today tomorrow.

Excited longtime resident April Narr tells us, “The Brown Line is the cherry on top of the frosting on the cake that is the Jet-Age Modern Urban Utopia we call Reston. As I always say, nothing ties a community together like a monorail.”

Brown Line renderings by Ioannis Hadjikyriakou. See his work on Facebook and here.

This article is satire. April Fool’s!