Transit

It's a good thing the folks at the Mass Transit Administration don't take their cues from their boss, Gov. William Donald Schaefer.MTA officials who oversee the Central Light Rail Line that runs between Timonium and Glen Burnie were alarmed at the increase in crime statistics along the line: 71 incidents of assaults, robberies and car thefts on or near the light rail system from June to December last year. On top of that was a sharp rise in shoplifting at some stores near the line. The MTA, to its credit, admitted that it underestimated the vulnerability of the light rail system it unveiled two years ago and now is taking corrective measures.

The gas tax increase Gov. Martin O'Malley signed into law Thursday will pay for weekend MARC service between Baltimore and D.C., roads and bridges throughout the state and construction on the Red and Purple lines to begin as soon as 2015. The first phase of the tax increase - 4 cents per gallon - will arrive in July, but officials already decided how to spend an $1.2 billion it will generate over the next six years. The tax is expected to increase at least three more times until July 2016, bringing the total tax increase to as much as 19.5 cents per gallon, according to state estimates released Thursday.  Here is the list of 10 projects officials announced immediately after the gas tax bill was signed:  $100 million to add weekend service to the MARC Penn line beginning this winter, two more round-trips on the Camden line during the week by next spring and new locomotives this summer.

Letter writer Mahlon G. Anderson of AAA Mid-Atlantic ("Md. should devote its surplus to transportation," Sept. 6) gives short shrift to an essential need here in Maryland - improved public transportation. He focuses on road construction and motorists. Another effective way to for Maryland "to tackle its own Beltway gridlock" is to develop the public transportation alternative to automobile commuting both in the Baltimore and the National Capital regions. In fact, the Nov. 1, 2011 Final Report of the Blue Ribbon Commission on Maryland Transportation Funding, of which Mr. Anderson was a member, refers to "capital needs to address doubling transit ridership goal" as an historic and important use of additional funds to the Transportation Trust Fund.

What started for Robert McCollum as a two-year leave of absence from a teaching job in Chicago has expanded into a five-year stint guiding 300 students in a Christian school in Bogota, Colombia. That enrollment was about a tenth of what McCollum was accustomed to in Chicago, but that wasn't the biggest difference. McCollum, 44, said the work "really helped me to frame my own thinking about what Christian education should look like. " After serving as secondary principal and director of academics at El Camino Academy in Bogota, McCollum has returned to the U.S. to serve as the upper school principal for Annapolis Area Christian School.

I read with interest the commentary by Gregory Spencer Jr. ("Connect the lines," Feb. 2) on the need for a transportation hub in Baltimore. There is no question that the convergence of the Red Line, the existing light rail transit (LRT) line and the Charm City Circulator will provide a new day for transportation for Baltimore. Transit and auto transportation is expensive, and as a region we need to continue to support every piece of transit that is affordable. It appears that there is the likelihood of some form of gas tax increase which will add to the cost of commuting.

Did you watch the transit of Venus last night? Clouds threatened, but it sounds like they cleared in time for most to see the transit. Check out the photos above and to the left to see how others saw it. Or if you have your own to share, upload them here . Was it all you thought it would (or wouldn't) be? E-mail me at sdance@baltsun.com or tweet to @MdWeather with your reaction. Read more about the transit in my  story from Sunday's paper : When Venus passed between Earth and the sun 251 years ago Tuesday, scientists scribbled downobservations that helped calculate a rough estimate of the size of our solar system.

I think is interesting that Thursday's editorial, "Growing Baltimore" (Jan. 3), included two paragraphs about how walkability and quality transit have helped to spark growth in Washington, D.C., but only a short sentence about the Charm City Circulator when discussing Baltimore. I commend The Sun for getting it right about D.C. But that begs the question: If quality transit has been so important to the revival to the city 40 miles to the south, why isn't it important to Baltimore's future?

A twice-in-a-lifetime celestial event is coming up in June, and on Tuesday, the Space Telescope Science Institute is providing a chance to learn more about it ahead of time. A monthly public lecture will focus on the transit of Venus, in which the planet will pass directly in front of the sun. During a transit, planets can be seen as a small black dot moving across the face of the sun. Of course, as with eclipses and other solar phenomena, they should not be viewed directly. In North America, the transit will be visible at sunset June 5. Look for more coverage here as the event gets closer.

ONE OF THE nation's largest transit-oriented developments is taking shape along Baltimore's Howard Street, at the confluence of this region's transit lines. And at the Owings Mills Metro stop, the state plans to invest $14 million in a parking garage as part of a 46-acre mixed-use, transit-oriented project. So it's somewhat surprising that the state Department of Transportation only now is aggressively seeking bids from developers interested in building on state land at 10 MARC, bus and subway stops.

I find the statement by Carroll County commissioner Richard Rothschild that "We don't want subways or metro buses" because "they are conduits for crime" ("Carroll commissioners break with past on growth, housing, transit" June 23) to be very short sighted and narrow. Though I am a citizen of Baltimore County, I ride four days a week on the Metro with many Carroll countians. I've been riding the Metro to work since the Owings Mills station opened. Ridership includes many hard working citizens, students, the elderly and handicapped and the occasional homeless person looking for cheap rent for the day. Are there criminals among us?

Downtown Towson is on the cusp of a building boom that will transform this suburban county seat into one of the most dynamic, cosmopolitan communities in Maryland. All the elements are in place for this transformation. Towson has two institutions of higher education, Towson University and Goucher College, that not only provide world-class learning but also a work force that stabilizes the commercial core. Residential developments like Towson Green will make sure the downtown area does not become a ghost town after sunset and on the weekends.

Of the 11 different players who have started in UMBC's midfield, freshman Pat Young has the most starts with 11 and junior Conor Finch is second with six. Next on that list is senior Joe Lustgarten, who has made five starts after spending the last two seasons as a starting attackman. As the Retrievers prepare for Thursday's America East tournament semifinal against Hartford at Stony Brook, Lustgarten is slated to make his fifth consecutive start in the midfield. In the team's last four contests, he has scored four goals on nine shots and assisted on five others.

  My 1-year-old dog seems to be past the chewing stage and I'd like to start leaving him outside his crate when we're not home. What's the best way for us to transition to his having free reign like that? Start slowly. Instead of making his first day of freedom be your longest day at the office, work up to the transition by starting with him inside the house, out of his crate, while you spend a few minutes outside. A few days later, head out to dinner or the movies.

If he had it his way, Kelechi Osemele wouldn't be moving anywhere. The Ravens would re-sign free agent left tackle Bryant McKinnie and the offensive line, minus the retired Matt Birk, would start the 2013 season like it ended last year. "It would be good to have that same lineup but things change and you have to be able to adapt," Osemele said Tuesday. After just one NFL season, Osemele has learned that lesson already. A second-round pick in 2012, Osemele started all 16 regular-season games for the Ravens at right tackle, a position that he hadn't played extensively in several years.

When Howard County's transportation chief looks at a flow chart of mass transit service in the suburbs south of Baltimore, he sees a tangle of "spaghetti mesh" that ill serves the region's workers, senior citizens and handicapped. John Powell Jr. hopes to bring order to that chaos next year by uniting Howard and Anne Arundel County bus services under a single entity that would eventually morph into the state's first regional transit authority. Annapolis and Laurel officials are considering joining the effort.

One of my best friends (and bridesmaids) recently got engaged and wonderfully asked me to be a part of her big day. I'm so excited for this experience because, so far for me, it's been “always a bride, never a bridesmaid.” So as I wrap up my experience as a bride, I want to make sure I transition smoothly into being a bridesmaid and making my friend's experience as great as she has helped make it for me. Some of the things I've already thought about...

LIKE MILLIONS before him, Rob Vallese three years ago made the big move to a spacious new suburban home. But he did it by going against the last half-century's tide - by moving closer to the city, shortening his work commute and garaging his beloved car. Mr. Vallese, a Montgomery County pension manager, moved from a Germantown townhouse to a luxury home in King Farm, a large mixed-use development rising in Rockville, about 10 miles closer to his downtown...

Maryland is on the verge of missing a golden opportunity this year to promote transit-oriented development and pedestrian-friendly communities. By seeking to establish State Rail Station Overlay Districts, House Bill 948 would have been in keeping with the state's traditions of progressive government and bold experimentation in civic improvement. Although the bill was defeated in the Environmental Matters Committee this year — and there is little hope for its revival — the ideas it contains are worthy of continued discussion and debate.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake's proposal to change the shift schedule for city firefighters has set off a storm of protest, and not without reason. Forget the fact that firefighters' hourly wages would go down under the plan. Going from a four-days-on, four-days-off schedule and a 42-hour work week to 24 hours on, 48 hours off and a 49-hour workweek entails a massive lifestyle change that will be disruptive for many. It is, however, in the best interest of the city. Baltimore's fire department has suffered from inadequate resources and outdated equipment and facilities for years.

A free career expo will be held Thursday in Linthicum for veterans and transitioning servicemen and servicewomen. The job fair, hosted by Military.com and the Non-Commissioned Officers Association, will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Four Points by Sheraton, 1001 Scott Drive. Defense contractors and local businesses looking to hire former military personnel will be present, according to the hosts. For more information, go to military.com/career-expo. ywenger@baltsun.com