Democratic Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser struggled to accurately describe the city’s public transit system during a press conference Wednesday, repeatedly questioning which subway lines ran through the city’s Gallery Place-Chinatown station.
Bowser hosted a media availability Q&A with reporters following a meeting with Ted Leonsis, who owns the Washington Wizards and Capitals and announced plans on Wednesday to move the basketball and ice hockey teams from their home at D.C.’s Capital One Arena to a new stadium in Alexandria, Virginia, according to NBC Washington. (RELATED: ‘It’s Terrifying’: Businesses Flee Blue City In Droves As Crime Crushes Profits)
During the press conference, a reporter asked Bowser if the D.C. metro system was “ever part” of the discussion with the business owner, highlighting that the “blue and yellow” lines are the only two that run through Alexandria’s Potomac Yard station, where the new stadium would be located.
“Metro in D.C. has many coming into the area near the current arena. You have the blue and yellow and that’s it out in Virginia. Was that ever part of the discussion with Mr. Leonsis on what he can expect out there versus here?” the reporter asked.
WASHINGTON, DC – MAY 16: Washington DC Mayor Muriel Bowser and outgoing Washington, DC Chief of Police Robert Conte testify before the House Oversight and Accountability Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on May 16, 2023 in Washington, DC. The committee held an oversight hearing on Washington, D.C. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
The Washington Metro is the second-busiest in the United States and comprises 98 stations that serve the entire District as well as parts of Maryland and Virginia.
Bowser responded by commenting on the “notorious” Virginia traffic and then began to question which lines would carry sports fans to the future arena.
“Well we know what we could expect there with the traffic and the like – I’m no – I’m the D.C. mayor. I’m not an expert on their crime, but that traffic is notorious,” Bowser said with a smile, alluding to an earlier question about D.C.’s ongoing crime wave. “So people know about it and I think – which lines go to that station?”
The reporter confirmed again that the public transit lines running through Potomac Yard were blue and yellow, to which Bowser appeared confused on the metro system within her city. (RELATED: REPORT: DC Mayor Muriel Bowser ‘Lashed Out’ At Judge Who Released 7-Time Carjacking Teen)
“Blue and yellow — so every line goes to Gallery Place. Uh right? Red, blue, orange, and yellow. Yellow? And green. Is that right? I think that’s right,” Bowser stated.
“Green and yellow,” reporters called out from the crowd.
The D.C. mayor continued to list off the lines, once again repeating “green and yellow, blue, orange and red.”
Gallery Place-Chinatown, the closest station to Capital One Arena, sits on the green, yellow and red lines.
A Metro Transit service vehicle is seen outside of the Farragut North metro station after service on the red line was suspended following reports of smoke between Gallery Place and Farragut North stations earlier in the morning on April 27, 2017 in Washington, DC. (MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)
Another of the reporters began yelling out the lines — red, blue, orange and silver — that run through the nearby Metro Center station, while another called out “Silver,” apparently confusing Bowser even further.
“Silver. So it is – clearly you can come from all points of the region – and people have – to that station,” Bowser stated as she laughed off the mix-up.
WASHINGTON, UNITED STATES: Patrons crowd the platform 20 December, 2004 at the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority’s (WMATA) Metro Center stop in Washington, DC. Thousands use the public transit system daily to get them in and around the DC area. (KAREN BLEIER/AFP via Getty Images)
Leonsis owner of the Monumental and Sports Entertainment, which owns both sports teams, announced the $2 billion plan to move the teams across the Potomac River, stating that they will he will be working with Virginia officials to “create a world-class Entertainment District” in Alexandria, NBC Washington reported.
The business owner reportedly received multi-million dollar bids from both Virginia and D.C. lawmakers. Ultimately, Leonsis stated that Virginia offered “70 acres and the ability to start with a clean slate,” highlighting that the “vision” they have for the arena couldn’t be done “anywhere else,” according to NBC Washington.
He also complained that, in D.C., he was laboring under “the worst building deal in professional sports,” per the outlet.