By Jack Seufert, M.A. ’26, American Studies
Accompanying the 1959 Mass Transportation Survey, this map showing land use in 1955 Washington D.C. played an important role in shaping the city’s transit systems. In the mid-20th century, policy makers, city planners and the public debated highway construction versus alternatives for mass public transit, such as underground railways. The survey revealed new possibilities for traversing the capital. Although it underwent many changes, the plan to provide Washington with a more balanced transportation system would not have been possible without the foundation provided by the Mass Transportation Survey.
Beginning in the early 1950s, growing concerns over Washington’s sprawling population and potentially disastrous traffic congestion dominated city development. In 1952, Congress designated two bodies — the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) and the National Capital Regional Planning Council (NCRPC) — responsible for creating plans that would outline what was best for Washington and its transportation system.
Under the leadership of the NCPC Commissioner Harland Bartholomew, the agencies presented their Mass Transportation Survey to President Dwight Eisenhower in 1959 with an emphasis on highways. Their plan, which recommended 248 miles of new freeways, express buses and a 33-mile half-underground rail system, faced opposition from citizens and prompted Congress to refine the government’s efforts.
After Congress established the National Capital Transportation Agency (NCTA) in 1960 to oversee a refined transportation plan, the incoming Kennedy administration played a vital role in shaping its direction. Kennedy appointed the new agency’s administrator, Darwin Stolzenbach, who strongly opposed highways and their potential for disrupting homes. Kennedy also appointed Elizabeth (Libby) Rowe commissioner of the NCPC. A native Washingtonian and the planning agency’s first female commissioner, Elizabeth Rowe opposed highway construction that threatened lower-income neighborhoods. Under the leadership of Stolzenbach, the NCTA prioritized developing a regional rail system with 89 miles of track and 65 stations. Rowe and the NCPC supported this vision for a subway system.
Known as the November Report, the NCTA’s 1962 recommendations faced even harsher criticism than earlier plans. Concerns from the local press and government officials — particularly over funding and the potential loss of key highways — threatened the existence of the new transportation agency.
Under the Johnson administration, the federal government pursued a potential solution to Washington’s transportation challenges. The NCTA revised earlier proposals, introducing a 23-mile rail system with possible extensions — an effort aimed at building enough support to move the plan forward. But the House of Representatives shot down this “bobtail” plan, as it is now known, damaging Stolzenbach’s reputation. He resigned in 1964, leaving the NCTA one last chance to get their plan right under the new presidential administration.
Stolzenbach’s replacement, Walter McCarter, proved key to securing D.C.’s transportation plan. Ultimately, McCarter helped make the bobtail plan more financially appealing to Congress. Once Congress gave its approval, President Johnson signed the plan into law on September 8, 1965, allowing the federal government to begin work on what would become the Metrorail system.
The 1959 Mass Transportation Survey, including the 1955 land use map, initiated a major shift for transportation in Washington. Through multiple stages and phases, transportation studies ultimately pointed toward a solution that prioritized underground rail transit over highway expansion.
Bibliography
“Assessment of Community Planning for Mass Transit: Volume 10, Washington, D.C. Case Study.” Office of Technology Assessment, 1976.
Cherkasky, Mara. “The National Capital Planning Commission at 100.” Washington History 36-2 (2024): 70-72.
Eisen, Jack. “NCTA Transit Plan Assailed at Hill Hearing.” Washington Times-Herald, Jul. 26, 1963.
Lovelace, Eldridge. “The Washington Metro.” In Harland Bartholomew: His Contributions to American Urban Planning, 139-162. Department of Urban and Regional Planning, 1993.
Schrag, Zachary M. The Great Society Subway: A History of the Washington Metro. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2014.
This post was written in conjunction with the museum’s exhibition From A to DC: Transportation in Washington, an introduction to D.C.’s transportation history.
About the Author
Jack Seufert has a B.A. in English and history and is pursuing a master’s degree in American studies with a concentration in museums and material culture at GW. He enjoys researching historical artifacts and is interested in a public history career.