American River Taxi, the soon-to-be Potomac river ferry service, has a fancy new web site that provides proposed schedules and hours of operation. I’m sure BeyondDC is not alone in looking forward to this fun new form of transportation for the region.

But about that acronym, ART. Very clever, but already taken by the local bus operation serving the western bank of the Potomac River.

Did ART talk to ART before deciding on a name? Does ART even know that ART exists? Does ART have a copyright that will cause ART trouble? Will riders have to specify which ART they want when asking for directions or looking up information online?

I’m all for new transit options, but come on. When you’re a start-up company looking to get a foot-hold on a new market, do some research into what’s already there.