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and was terminated prematurely due to the lack of riders and the high cost of operation.

A study completed in 1971 by consultants Wilbur Smith and Associates recommended the construction of underground parking garages beneath the Mall. The Board of Regents, at the meeting on January 22, 1976, voted to have this 1971 study reviewed and updated. At its May 10, 1976 meeting, the Board of Regents directed the Secretary to continue planning for such parking garages and to advise the Regents on the necessary actions to be taken. The matter was discussed briefly at the October 1, 1976 meeting of the Board of Regents where it was reported that copies of the Wilbur Smith and Associates feasibility analysis study had been received and sent to the Department of the Interior, National Capital Planning Commission, Office of Management and Budget, and the National Gallery of Art in order to inform those agencies of the Institution's interests.

Based on information provided by the Smithsonian, the National Capital Planning Commission staff has included the project in its FY 1978-1983 Federal Capital Improvements Program for the National Capital Region, and stated "planning, design, and construction funds should be programmed in the next six years." This project concept will be reviewed at the Commission's meeting on February 3, 1977, and it is expected to receive approval, subject to subsequent Commission review of specific details. Responses from other agencies have been less conclusive.